Kurohyou Like a Dragon: Black Panther fan translation coming in August

Wakarimashita

The fan group Team K4L have announced that their translation of Kurohyou: Ryu Ga Gotoku Shinshou will be released this August. Initially, they had hoped to release it last year, but unfortunately had to delay it.

Sega has come a long way when it comes to localizing their Yakuza/Like a Dragon series, so we’ve been eating well. Like a Dragon: Ishin! was once argued by Sega as being a poor choice for localization, but despite that, we just recently finally got it over here. However, in a recent interview with The Gamer chief producer Hiroyuki Sakamoto said of Kurohyou, “I think if we wanted to develop something, we’re not really looking at the past, we’re looking to the future, and we think that we want to put our efforts and our priorities at making new titles for Like a Dragon.” That’s not a “no, definitely not,” but it’s not looking good, so it’s always great to see fans step in to bring a title to a wider audience.

Kurohyou: Ryu Ga Gotoku Shinsho is a 2010 spin-off of the series for PSP. Rather than an attempt to simply transplant the Like a Dragon/Yakuza formula to the portable, Sega enlisted AKI Corporation (now known as syn Sophia) to put their own spin on it. AKI should be a familiar name to anyone who played N64 wrestling games, as they’re the developers behind WCW/NWO Revenge and WWF No Mercy. These titles, as well as the others they put out on the console, are still regarded as some of the best pro wrestling games ever released.

The gameplay focuses more on one-on-one combat, but the narrative features the familiar neighborhood of Kamurocho and is packed with mini-games and side quests. Combat is modeled closer to Def Jam Fight for NY, rather than the more beat-’em-up brawling of your typical Yakuza/Like a Dragon game.

K4L will be releasing the translation patch this August under the name Kurohyou (Like a Dragon: Black Panther).

Zoey Handley

Staff Writer – Zoey is a gaming gadabout. She got her start blogging with the community in 2018 and hit the front page soon after. Normally found exploring indie experiments and retro libraries, she does her best to remain chronically uncool.