9 Best Fan Service Moments In Video Games

2. Old Friends - Yakuza: Like A Dragon

yakuza like a dragon
Sega

I really wanted to include this one because it’s definitely one of my favourite video game fan service moments in recent memory but it is a bit of a spoiler so if you haven’t played Yakuza: Like A Dragon and don’t want to know one of the cool reveals this is your opportunity to nope out and meet us over at number one. Yakuza: Like A Dragon is the most recent entry in the long running Yakuza franchise and even though it changed out series staple protagonist Kazuma Kiryu for newcomer Ichiban Kasuga, it’s equally fantastic.

If you missed our old friends from the previous games, though, don’t worry because they aren’t exactly gone.

If you’ve played any Yakuza game you know this franchise loves itself some fan service and consistently delivers on what the people want. So maybe it should have come as no surprise that Kazuma Kiryu does show up in Yakuza: Like A Dragon. Not only that, you’ll have to fight him and the conflict has a delightful ending where Kasuga imagines Kiryu as a mighty dragon and it turns out Kasuga got stomped.

Majima also rocks up and you’re later able to call on both of them in battle as summons. As an old school fan who spent a chunk of Like A Dragon dearly missing Kiryu, this was jaw-droppingly delightful.

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Jess has been a journalist and content creator in the games industry for over 15 years and has been WhatCulture's resident Australian import and sorry cop since 2020, upping the quotient of swearing and apologising in WhatCulture Gaming's annual blooper videos considerably. She previously worked at GameSpot for 10 years, most notably hosting GameSpot News in addition to E3 live shows, and PAX panels. She regularly livestreams a variety of games on her 'jessmcdonell' YouTube and Twitch channels and hosts the 'Do It On The Day' podcast. She has won awards for her news and feature work in gaming as well as an accolade for her comedic writing (likely an admin error). She can be found on X at @jessmcdonell and Instagram at @jessicamcdonell sharing her current videogame fixations, industry insights, and videos of her cat, Karma.