Summary
Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Nameoffers a breath of fresh air for the longtime series previously known as Yakuza. Upgrades include crisply redesigned menus, more nuanced combat, and a variety of new ways to make the most of your limited level-up and monetary resources.
From learning the ins and outs of combat to noticing everything Sotenbori may hide in plain sight, you’ll want to get a grip on some Like A Dragon Gaiden pro-tips before diving in. You may have to forget some otherwise solid life advice, as this series rewards following every dark corridor and alley you come across.
Contains Minor Story Spoilers
8Prioritize Blocking & Dodging
The Like A Dragon series is primarily focused on beating the hell out of your enemies but avoiding a beating is equally important in this entry. Even on the standard difficulty,you’ll notice the need to dodge often, forcing you to conserve health rather than endlessly heal in your menus.
Youcould once easily negate any damage taken by simply pausingand consuming healing items without much issue.
However, this strategy is much more difficult to rely on, especially in the early game or on the hardest difficulty.
Bosses are particularly strong and will deplete your HP bar in an instant if you allow their Ultimate Attacks to connect. Instead of endlessly whaling on the punch combos, remember tobuild dodging combinations into your muscle memory, or constant button mashes will lock you in an attack animation.
7Keep Your Eyes Peeled For Glowing Objects
From your first few steps into Ijincho, you’ll notice there are numerous briefcases and unidentifiable glowing objects littered throughout the city. Objects – like briefcases that can be looted – will have a periodic yellow glimmer that pulses around them like an aura.
Look up andaround tree branches for glittering objectsas well, and retrieve them using your Spider Gadget.
You canfind coin locker keysand numerous other useful items within those coin lockers, including money and gear, once you use the keys. Be sure topay special attention to dark corners or alleyways, as the developers tend to hide rewards around sneaky spots.
6Use Your Surroundings In Combat
Speaking of the wonderful world around you, Joryu can inflict major damage by throwing foes into destructible objects, or by using those objects as weapons. You can pick up bats, swords, traffic cones, and all sorts of unexpected weapons while in the heat of battle.
The Spider Gadget is particularly helpful for sending an enemy flying into a crowd, setting off a chain reaction of destruction if you’re able to aim your throws well. This gadget is particularlyhelpful for creating space or maintaining distancefrom larger groups of enemies.
5You Can Easily Escape Or Ignore Pursuers
Throughout your journey, numerous gangs of enemies will roam around looking to pick a fight with you, but there are a couple of clever ways to avoid them.
While being pursued by one group of enemies, you can run directly through other gangs without them being aggressive towards you. It seems that only one group can be chasing Joryu at a time, so further groups will ignore him and can be used as makeshift obstacles during your escape.
Similarly, if you want to ditch some pursuers, but can’t seem to shake them, walk up to a citizen in need of assistance and talk to them. These citizens have exclamation marks above their heads and are unlocked along withthe Akame Network section.
4Switch Styles Often
Combat styles have evolved throughout the series, first serving as expressions of your favorite fighter. In The Man Who Erased His Name, these styles are more necessary combat elements, and changing styles will be almost as important as knowing when to dodge and when to attack.
Using your Agent Style will be incredibly helpful against larger crowds, but you will want to focus on the highersingle-target damage that the Yakuza Style offers against bosses. Try out the strengths of each style and learn their limits, so you are prepared to switch things up when required.
3Juggle Enemies Using Combo Attacks
If you love fighting games, then you’re likely familiar with ‘juggling,’ the act of continuously chaining attacks while keeping your foe immobilized in the air. You can easily execute this in The Man Who Erased His Name by using the Spider Gadget to throw enemies up.
Once a foe is in the air, continue to chain your attacks together to keep them immobilized, thus appearing to ‘juggle’ them in the air. This is a consistent way to deal a lot of damage for free, particularly when facing a group. However, you won’t be able to do this to stronger enemy types.
2Know Your Limits Against Bosses
Stronger enemy types like bosses have a bit more resilience and won’t be susceptible to techniques like juggling or grabbing.Do not try to use your Spider Gadget or grab moves against bosses, especially not as an offensive move as they will be easily dodged or countered.
Most bosses force you into a more reactionary playstyle where you’ll have to cautiously observe their patterns before picking your spots to attack. Dodging against these foes will usually be the most effective route, withUltimate Attack countersbeing the most effective way to deal a lot of damage quickly and safely.
To perform an Ultimate Attack Counter,dodge just before the attack is about to land, then be ready to hit the button prompt to execute a counterattack.
1Stock Up At Poppo ASAP
Poppo is your one-stop-shop for everything healing and food-related in the Like A Dragon universe, and even Joryu needs to refuel. Be sure tostop at Poppo before you begin jumping into the main story missions, or you run the risk of getting stuck during one of the long combat sections in the opening act.
Aside from healing, you’ll also find plenty of food and drinks to get your hands on. These items can be exchanged as part of different requests from the Akame Network, sobuy at least one of everythingto make sure you have all bases covered.
NEXT:How Long Does It Take To Beat Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name?
