Sega's upcoming open-world gangster simulation, Yakuza 6, will feature some very unique sidequests, and has been developed to have no loading screens.
The franchise, which has a massive fan base in Japan, allows players to take on the role of Japanese mobster Kazuma Kiryu. The first trailer for Yakuza 6, released in December of last year, showed the visual and gameplay upgrades that the game underwent as it makes the jump to the PlayStation 4.
The Yakuza series, which has been frequently compared to the Grand Theft Auto franchise, contains gritty storylines focused on the war between crime syndicates, with brutal action scenes and expansive open-world exploration.
The Yakuza games, however, are also known for over-the-top sidequests and minigames, which provide players a break from the intense pace of the main game. Yakuza 6 does not disappoint in this aspect, with one of the diversions offered to players being the chance to manage their own Japanese cat cafe.
As players walk through the streets of Japan as Kiryu, they will see stray cats that are in need to be rescued. After rescuing several of these stray cats, players will be provided the option of putting up a cat cafe where the stray cats will be placed. The cafe will then generate income for the player in the form of in-game currency.
In addition to managing the cat cafe, other optional activities for players include pachinko, mahjong, darts, busking and batting cages. Players can also try to find a girlfriend for Kiryu by making friends with bar hostesses and chatting with virtual webcam girls.
Gamers will also be able to play working arcade versions of puzzle game Puyo Puyo and fighting game Virtua Fighter 5, with both arcade games also offering multiplayer modes.
In addition to all these crazy sidequests, Yakuza 6 will be completely seamless. Players will not see loading screens anywhere as the game unfolds, whether by going in and out of battles, watching scenes or entering structures.
The decision to make the game seamless meant that Yakuza 6 could not have a PlayStation 3 version, as the technology of the previous-gen console is not powerful enough to support the feature.
Series creator Toshihiro Nagoshi said that hard work was put into giving Yakuza 6 the ability to run without loading screens because of their negative effect on realism. The example that he gave was when there is a 60-second countdown to reach a location to stop an explosion — if there are loading screens, the seconds that the screens take up take away from the pressure that players should be feeling.
Yakuza 6, exclusive for the PlayStation 4, is set to launch in Japan on Dec. 8. There is no release date yet for North America, though the prequel to the series, Yakuza 0, is set to come on Jan. 24.
