10 Most Severely Addictive Video Games Of The Last 10 Years

3. Yakuza: Like A Dragon

Final Fantasy XIV
Sega

The Yakuza series is the masterclass in open-world design, crafting games that are as wide as a puddle but deeper than the ocean. And Yakuza: Like A Dragon is the magnum opus of that design philosophy.

Shifting the Yakuza formula from real-time action game to turn-based RPG was a stroke of genius, as it gives the player more details to keep track of and be responsible for. The city of Yokohama is large enough to be considered a step up from Kamurocho - a proper CITY instead of just one small district in Tokyo - while still being compact enough that every weird thing in this game will be encountered at some point.

The substories are some of the best in the entire franchise, with the business management game being a contender for this list all on its own. And overall, everything about this title is built to scratch the itch the franchise has been scratching for decades, harder and better than ever before.

If you're the kind of gamer to get REALLY into a Yakuza game, then the siren song of Like A Dragon has probably gotten you already. And if it hasn't, don't bother resisting. You're already in its thrall. Just give in.

Contributor
Contributor

John Tibbetts is a novelist in theory, a Whatculture contributor in practice, and a nerd all around who loves talking about movies, TV, anime, and video games more than he loves breathing. Which might be a problem in the long term, but eh, who can think that far ahead?