Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Has an Animal Crossing-Style Minigame

The Like a Dragon (previously Yakuza) series has long been known for over-the-top side stories and minigames. In fact, some players prefer modes like Like a Dragon 7's Business Management simulation and Yakuza 0's Cabaret Club to the main game. Thus, it's no surprise that developer RGG Studio saved a prime slot at today's Xbox Partner Preview to show off the latest minigame coming to Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth next year. As RGG tends to do, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's Dondoko Island looks bigger and better than ever before, this time incorporating an entire Animal Crossing-like minigame into the mix.

In many ways, Dondoko Island's Animal Crossing influence is the perfect evolution of what RGG has been building toward in its minigames. Remember, Like a Dragon: Ishin launched this year and one of the more fleshed-out minigames in that samurai tale was the farming sim. Dondoko Island takes that idea of Like a Dragon's main character growing up a small, idyllic business and blows it out to epic proportions.

What's On Dondoko Island in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth?

As you can see in the video above, RGG is doing some heavy lifting from Animal Crossing. Hero Ichiban Kasuga makes a small island his home by doing all kinds of chores. Just like in Animal Crossing, he'll need to clean up the island, catch bugs and local fauna, and even place down buildings to attract visitors. There's even a Tom Nook-like character who sells you furniture on the island.

Of course, long-time fans of the series will be happy to see RGG referencing its past in both the furnishings and visitors. Even in this short trailer, eagle-eyed viewers will notice small touches like the tiger that Ichiban is keeping in his house at around the 1:35 mark, and later in the trailer, we see that some of the island's visitors include Professor Okita (Like a Dragon 7) and Etsuko, the Obatarian who was first introduced in Yakuza 0. That said, Infinite Wealth looks to have its own fun characters to add to the mix, including a parrot named PingWing who already seems like a star.

It's not all fun and games on the island. This is a Like a Dragon game, after all. The trailer shows Ichiban beating down some thugs who have invaded the island, which is definitely something you'll never see in an Animal Crossing game. Fortunately, players don't have to wait too much longer to get their hands on the game. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth comes to PlayStation, Xbox, and PC platforms on January 26, 2024. If you're picking up Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name on November 9, you'll also get to play a demo version of Infinite Wealth.