Joshua Robertson is a News Editor for TheGamer. When not writing about breaking news, community stories, or covering industry events, you can find him begging FromSoftware for a Bloodborne remaster.
Over the past few months, Yakuza developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios hasn’t done a great job of keeping its fans happy and excited about its upcoming projects. It’s been ignoring an almost constant onslaught of criticism over its refusal to remove controversial Japanese actor Teruyuki Kagawa from Kiwami 3 — who admitted to forcibly groping a woman back in 2019 — and because of this, many of the developer’s previously loyal fans have slowly turned against them.
You’d think that both Sega and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios would do their utmost best to avoid fueling the flames of hatred any further, but a recent decision to delist Yakuza 0 from almost every storefront and replace it with the more expensive Director’s Cut has ticked fans off even further. That’s right, you have until December 8th to grab the original version of Yakuza 0, before it disappears into the void and can no longer be purchased on Steam, Xbox One, or PlayStation 4.
Yakuza 0 Is Being Delisted And Replaced With Director’s Cut
Even if you ignore the understandable concerns surrounding video game preservation, a lot of fans are simply annoyed that a cheaper version of Yakuza 0 is being removed from storefronts in exchange for the more expensive Director’s Cut. You can get the original Yakuza 0 for around $20, while the Director’s Cut will set you back $50, and not a lot of fans think that the extra content in the Director’s Cut is worth the increase in price.
I’m Afraid To Get Into Like A Dragon, So I Keep Playing Yakuza Spin-Offs Instead
There are so many mainline Yakuza games, so why not start with a spin-off instead?
On top of that, the Director’s Cut is exclusive to PS5 and Xbox Series X systems, meaning you actually won’t be able to buy any version of Yakuza 0 on PS4 and Xbox One once it’s been delisted. To say that it’s an unpopular decision would be an understatement, and you now have loyal fans claiming that Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios has managed to destroy the goodwill that it’s spent years building up, with people going as far as saying that they “despise this company now.”
If you’re wanting to grab a copy of Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut for cheap, Sega is offering an upgrade route for digital owners of the original Yakuza 0 for $15. That means you could buy the original version for $20 and then immediately upgrade to avoid spending the full $50 on the Director’s Cut once December 8 rolls around. Judging from the reactions though, something tells me that a lot of fans probably won’t bother now.
- Released
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January 24, 2017
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood, Intense Violence, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol
- Developer(s)
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Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio
