Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s output in 2023 has been pretty impressive, with Like a Dragon: Ishin! and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name garnering acclaim. Both titles made their way to Game Pass, the latter even launching on day one. However, the studio’s next mainline title, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, won’t be following suit.
Speaking to Automaton-Media, RGG Studio director Masayoshi Yokoyama said, “At the moment, there are no plans for Infinite Wealth to come to Game Pass.” Launching Like a Dragon Gaiden on the service was akin to “handing overseas users our business card” and drumming up new player interest.
“This is connected to what I mentioned earlier, but for Gaiden, I thought of Game Pass as a way of ‘handing overseas users our business card’ – in other words, letting players new to the series enjoy the game and get to know Kiryu. Game Pass proved to be a very good method to invite new users to interact with the series.”
Developers like Larian Studios are also not opting for Game Pass with Baldur’s Gate 3, which Yokoyama understands. “I understand the reasoning behind their decision very well. I think each title has its own goals and befitting ways of being provided to users.”
It’s understandable why Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth won’t arrive on the subscription service, given that it’s the first $70 Sega title and the longest game in the series. Thus, it makes sense to use other titles to generate hype (and hopefully more sales).
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is out on January 26th, 2024, for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5 and PC. Head here for more details on its randomly arranged dungeons and changes to the summons.