SEGA has just confirmed that Yakuza 3 is coming to a Playstation near you in 2010 via their blog. What does this mean? This means I'm going to get drunk and celebrate tonight. Woot!
Game is being released March 2010 and will feature subtitles and Japanese voice work. head over to their blog for more details. Yes its published by SEGA, the blog post is done by our favorite community manager RubyEclipse.
More details will be posted while they come in. (Updated: Announcement trailer added!)
Hit the jump for the press release...
Toshihiro Nagoshi’s Yakuza 3 officially slated for release in the west
SEGA set to take western gaming aficionados into the gritty underbelly of Japanese culture
SAN FRANCISCO & LONDON (December 8th, 2009) – SEGA® of America, Inc. and SEGA Europe Ltd. today announced that its Japanese smash hit Ryu ga Gotoku™ 3 will be officially localized for the west as Yakuza™ 3. Selling over half-a-million copies in Japan the game has established an ardent fan base in its native land and has achieved cult status with true videogame connoisseurs in the west. SEGA’s decision to bring the game to its western territories was heavily influenced by the recognition of Yakuza’s enthusiastic fan base throughout the U.S. and Europe. Yakuza 3 will be available exclusively on the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system in the spring of 2010.
The Yakuza series is the brainchild of Toshihiro Nagoshi, one of SEGA’s most prolific and successful internal developers. Along with the Yakuza saga, Toshihiro also created the beloved Super Monkey Ball series and has worked on other well known SEGA games such as Daytona USA, F-Zero GX, Spikeout. To this day Toshihiro still over-sees work of internal development teams to make sure his creations speak to gamers as he originally intended.
“Since its release in Japan, gamers in the west have wanted to know whether SEGA would be releasing Yakuza 3 in the west.” said Sean Ratcliffe, VP of Marketing, SEGA of America, Inc. “Today I’d like to tell all the Yakuza fans. We’ve heard you. We’re bringing it. Get ready for your initiation into the Japanese underworld!”
Yakuza 3 will feature full English subtitling, while retaining the outstanding voice acting from the original Japanese version of the game to create an authentic and immersive experience. The transition to the PlayStation 3 has allowed SEGA of Japan’s CS1 team to add an unprecedented level of environmental detail and realism to the game – a hallmark of the series that fans have come to expect. In this action-adventure sequel, players will take on the role of Kiryu Kazuma to explore rich and realistic environments, take part in a multitude of unique mini-games and experience the deepest combat experience in the series yet. In addition to the familiar Tokyo haunts from the first two games, fans will also discover a completely new setting on the tropical island of Okinawa where, accompanied by his adoptive daughter Haruka, Kazuma manages an orphanage. However, he is allowed no respite in this idyllic retreat and before long he is once again forced to deal with his sordid past.
For more information on Yakuza 3 please visit www.yakuza-games.com. For press assets please visit segapr.segaamerica.com
About SEGA® Corporation:
SEGA®Corporation is a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home, encompassing consumer business, amusement machine sales and amusement center operations. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. SEGA® Corporation's Web site is located at sega.jp.
About SEGA® of America, Inc.:
SEGA® of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA Corporation, a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. SEGA of America’s Web site is located at www.sega.com.
About SEGA® Europe Ltd.:
SEGA® Europe Ltd. is the European Distribution arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA® Corporation, and a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. SEGA Europe’s web site is located at www.sega-europe.com.
