Like a Dragon made me realize how few games let you play as an idiot. It’s rarer to see the kind of genuine emotional growth that requires players to sit with a vulnerable character. We watch the Doom Slayer go from gunning down one demon at a time to taking out an entire room in one BFG shot and that’s how we know he’s stronger by the end. Usually, growth is measured solely by power. Video games are weird when it comes to character development. By the end of the game, it’s clear that he’s taken all of those lessons to heart and adjusted his outlook on life accordingly without sacrificing his positivity. Every time he says something dumb, he’s fully receptive to criticism.
What’s amazing about that moment is that Kasuga genuinely listens. Nanba scolds Kasuga for failing to understand the reality of the homeless crisis and how society makes life challenging for the people he’s trying to casually hype up. I cringed through the scene until one of Kasuga’s companions, Nanba, intervened. Frustrated with his new situation, he tries to spin that negativity into a rah-rah moment by giving the camp a motivational speech about how everyone needs to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and change their life by finding a job. By starting from such a naive place, Kasuga is allowed to do something that few game heroes get to do: He gets to make mistakes.Įarly on in the game, Kasuga finds himself in a homeless camp after falling on hard times. He has the best character development of any video game protagonist this year, bar none. That personality lends the game its hysterical comedic edge, but Kasuga isn’t merely a shallow gag. Imagine a human puppy dog constantly begging for someone to throw the ball. He’s a full-on goofball far too eager about everything.
Previously, the action series primarily focused on Kazuma Kiryu, a dopey himbo who’s ultimately a cool, collected strong man.