This past Wednesday, Nintendo revealed a number of titles for the Switch 2. This included a new version of an old favorite. Yakuza 0 will arrive on the upcoming console as Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut. But what does this mean and what will it entail?
As expected, the new version of the 2015 game will feature scenes cut from the original. In an interview with Famitsu, producer Makoto Suzuki explained that the director’s cut will feature 26 minutes of new cutscenes.
But perhaps most surprisingly, Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut will include online battles, a first for the Yakuza series. In this stage clearing mode, players can fight alongside up to four friends or players from around the world. Players will unlock characters as they play, with up to 60 characters ultimately becoming available.
In a series with over ten entries and spinoffs, going back to 2005, it’s surprising that it’s only now getting a true multiplayer mode. Previous games have had online card games, but not multiplayer for fighting—which is what you do most in a Yakuza game.
So what prompted the new addition? Suzuki explained that new Switch 2 tech prompted the change (translated from Japanese):
The Switch 2 has an added “C Button” that makes it easy to enjoy voice chat. There were other areas where communication had been strengthened, so we thought “Could we use this in Yakuza?” With this in mind, we all got together and created [online battles].
While arriving ten years after the original game, Yakuza 0 is actually a prequel. Chronologically the first game in the series, it takes place in fictionalized versions of Tokyo and Osaka in the 1980s. The title tells of tales of Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima, two recurring characters in the series, and their early conflicts with various organizations vying for a unique plot of land.
Suzuki shared a little bit of info teasing the new scenes for Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut. These new sections will include Kiryu and Nishiki, Kiryu and Kuzu, as well as Majima and “someone else.” We’ll see if this new iteration somehow references Majima’s latest misadventures from this year’s Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii.
For those looking to play a Yakuza game, Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut should prove a great place to start. Not only does the game introduce players to the world and characters of Yakuza, but it’s widely considered one of the best in the series. In our review of the original Yakuza 0, we noted that “the graphics are great, the music is solid, the 80’s vibe is charming, [and] the story, while still ridiculous and fantastic, is much more coherent and focused.”
The updated game will play in 4K with a Switch 2 connected to a 4K monitor. As for the framerate, it will play at 60 FPS. Suzuki expressed surprise at “how beautiful” the game looked even in portable mode. It will also feature English voiceover and text in French, Italian, German, and Spanish.
No word yet on the release date of Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut. The Switch 2 will arrive on June 5th, 2025. So we’ll likely hear more shortly after the new console’s release.
