Ryu Ga Gotoku boss says the end of Like a Dragon episode 1 made him scream and take a cigarette break

The head of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio says the the first episode of Amazon Prime Video’s live-action series of Like a Dragon: Yakuza made him scream.

In a video posted by Sega during the San Diego Comic-Con, RGG Studio director Masayoshi Yokoyama explained his reaction to watching the series for the first time.

“There’s a major surprise at the end of episode one,” Yokoyama said.

“When I saw the ending, I couldn’t help but scream. I jumped on my feet in my office, excited by the drama’s twist. My hands were trembling, as I took a smoke in our smoking room right after that. I was that affected. I thought it was amazing.”

Yokoyama also said the series has plenty of fan-service, saying: “Aspects of the original’s essence are built in everywhere. The game fans who love the original story will understand. The spirit is there. They’ll see surprises almost every 30 seconds.

“If you’re new to the game, it’s a new world. If you know it, you’ll be grinning the whole time.”

Despite this, Yokoyama noted that the new portrayals of Kazuma Kiryu (played by Ryoma Takeuchi) and Akira Nishikiyama (played by Kento Kaku) would differ from the characters in the games.

“To tell you the truth, their portrayal of the characters are totally different from the original story,” he explained. “But that’s what’s great about it.

“The Kazuma Kiryu we created 20 years ago was perfect, and there’s nothing more to add to his character. When you see how they fight in this drama, it’s obvious they were not recreating the characters from the game.

“This project brought forth a new Kazuma Kiryu. At the same time, his rival Akisa Nishikiyama was newly created by Kento Kaku. Their acting is a must-see for sure.”

The live-action series will consist of six episodes, with the first three releasing on October 25 and the final three releasing on November 1.

The show, which is produced in Japan, will be available in its original Japanese language with subtitles, or with a dubbed voiceover.