Should Ryo Hazuki from Shenmue be a playable character in Yakuza 5?

[ThePsychoGamer]

This reminds me of the april fools joke I posted last year.

OT Shun Akiyama FTW

[Juhani1982]

No way. Ryo is a little boy compared to the Yakuza characters. 100% Kiryu is the way to go with Yakuza 5.

[Shaks]

Wouldn't mind playing as Jo Amon

[WhatTheFIsACeeDee]

I'd love to see Akiyama again just for his personality. But for some reason, I want the boss status given back to the one who earned it. Kiryu.

[romeoteknik]

Guys, remember Shenmue takes place in the 80s. If he appeared in Yakuza 5, he'd be close age-wise to Kiryu and the rest, maybe older. Heck, his family could be a clan itself. Assuming Ryo has both mirrors, he could be a good boss, almost unbeatable.

In any case, I like Ryo and after seeing the 1985 flashbacks in Yakuza 4, I'd like to see a game that takes place in that setting. Yakuza '85!

In this game, maybe Ryo could be playable and have a side story, running into a young Kiryu. The Chinese mafia could be Lan Di's henchmen. Ah, so many ideas, my heads gonna explode.

Voted for Akiyama, Goro and Ryo.

[DingoEnderZOE2]

Pfft leave Ryo Hazuki with the game he was from, no need to try to randomly add him to the game just to satisfy a bunch of Shenmue 3 hopefuls......

However the idea of a yakuza game being set during the 80s with Ryo has a possible character does have some sense of appeal but again, I still say leave Ryo in Shenmue.

Anyway my vote goes to Majima, Akiyama, and Saejima as playable characters. But if I had to sacrifice one playable character for a brand new one, I'd guess I would choose to cross out Saejima.

[jpoppawusc]

At any rate, I love all of the discussion and differing opinions we've had on the subject. Just to weigh in, though, I think I would prefer to continue moving forward in the Yakuza timeline, and if Ryo Hazuki were playable, I would be happy to see him as a 45-year-old man who has stayed quiet over the years until his involvement is really needed. I don't think he would require a lot of explanation, as Yakuza 5 would not be an actual sequel to Shenmue II and would be far enough removed from those events that a few flashback cutscenes or conversations would suffice. Again, a full-fledged Shenmue sequel probably won't happen now that Yakuza has taken its place in Sega development, and this would just serve a dual purpose by allowing Shenmue fans to explore Hazuki's post-Shenmue aftermath and maybe gain some closure. Even if it happened in 5, I'm not proposing that Hazuki becomes a mainstay for the franchise (he would likely retire away quietly like Kiryu attempted or might even die for some righteous cause). Either way, I think the inclusion of Hazuki as a more mature character amongst four or five playables would hold great potential and would carry some legacy cred with fans of both series. Otherwise, I agree with most everyone that Kiryu, Majima, Akiyama, and a new female like Asagi would round out the roster nicely.

[metalsonicgame19]

I want a new female character. I want to know what it is like for a woman to be a part of the Yakuza. I mean, we did see some of it with Yayoi Dojima.

My second choice would be Ryo Hazuki. Wow, I looked up their ages on Wikipedia and they are about the same age. Kazuma Kiryu was born on November 6, 1968.

Ryo Hazuki was 18 in November 29, 1986. So he was born in 1968 given that he already had his 18th birthday before the game started.

Basically, it would be cool to see Ryo as a hidden character/side quest Kazuma could fight.

[IrishNinja]

Asagi'd be cool.
Akiyama's gotta be a shoe-in, and i don't think it fits but Axel would be awesome to see, haha. Ryo though...i'm okay with forklifts about, but this would be kinda mean, as a big Shenmue fan.

[izanagi_the_creator]

Probably should have included Ukyo Tatsuya from Kurohyou in the poll... oh well, I'm not that crazy about him anyway.

I agree. Ukyo Tatsuya would make a pretty good playable character in Yakuza 5 though a cameo is more suitable..