Before 23 games and 21 million copies sold, the first Yakuza game was "flat out rejected" by Sega because it wouldn't appeal to women and children
Toshihiro Nagoshi reflects on pitching the artist formerly known as Like a Dragon
Table of Contents
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Sega)
Yakuza’s series creator has revealed it took three tries to getSegato approve the series since it was “flat-out rejected” at first.
Nagoshi explained that he pitched the Yakuza series during a time when Japanese game sales were no longer dominant around the world, and American and European games were growing more prominent. “This led to a mindset of making games that would appeal to the masses, games that could sell anywhere and to anyone. Many producers, including myself, thought this way,” Nagoshi explains.
Nagoshi further reveals this led to game pitches being “watered down,” as producers had to bend to the will of publishers like Sega. Watching this happen apparently made Nagoshi question himself, and it’s “where everything started” for the Yakuza series as a whole.
“Of course, it was flat-out …
