While I was at PAX this past weekend I decided I would try my luck asking an official SEGA rep (who were currently promoting/demoing both a Sonic game and Project Diva) whether he knew about Yakuza 5, a game which was released in Japan in December 2012, and if it was ever coming to the US.
He said, “I know a lot” in a somewhat strained manner. After pressing him a bit more and prompting with questions about possible roadblocks, he essentially said that there were currently no plans to take it on.
Unfortunately he said that there weren’t very many fans like me, and if they did decide to localize it would be a long time before we would see the game released here in America. In addition he specifically admitted that the lengthy localization process would not help. However, the way our conversation happened and the way the rep carefully chose his words, it seems like there are bigger issues.
Considering how much I enjoyed Yakuza 3, 4, and Dead Souls (all available for PS3), this does seem like a big blow. I hope they are just hedging their bets and perhaps will revive this series soon.
Not too promising that’s for sure. But saying “there weren’t very many fans like me” is just insulting!