Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth has a whole Animal Crossing side mode
Book a ticket at Dondoko Airlines.
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At Microsoft's Xbox Partner Preview showcase last night, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth kicked proceedings off with a new trailer revealing one of the new side hustles.
Dondoko Island will let players escape to a deserted island off the coast of Hawaii, a "vacation within a vacation, where a cosy DIY lifestyle awaits". There's fishing, material gathering, furniture crafting, and even decora- hold on...
RGG Studio has essentially added Animal Crossing into the Like a Dragon (previously called Yakuza) series, but with the usual exaggerated wackiness the franchise has become known for. And I could not be more excited for it.
Ichiban uses his baseball bat to collect rocks, but he'll also be able to gather other materials with a variety of different tools. We'll even be able to clean up rubbish and recycle it to make DIY furniture. Other collectable resources around the island include mushrooms, bugs, and fish (we see Ichiban catch a blue butterfly and an aweoweo). The side mode looks like it'll have a day-night cycle, judging by the small sun icon shown next to the map at the bottom left of the screen during gameplay.
Home and island decoration looks like it'll have plenty of options. In floor decor alone, you can choose between a variety of options including asphalt, concrete, or glass tiles. There's even an Empty Lot Tile, should you wish to recreate that very important acre of land on your island.
The animations for Ichiban making a chair are ridiculously over-the-top, so I wonder what'll happen if we get to make some of the more ambitious furniture we see such as that fountain or the replica taxidermy tiger?
The island can be transformed into a tourist location, with Ichiban managing the business. We'll be able to pop shops and guest houses down to turn the place into a dream resort. All that's left to do is greet tourists and fulfil their requirements to make them into happy, paying guests.
At times, you'll need to protect the island from unwanted guests, which includes gangs and construction workers apparently, as well as wild boar. And once the island is safe, everyone kicks up around the bonfire and listens to Ichiban do a nice sing-song with his guitar.
This is one of the largest side activities to be included in a Like a Dragon game and it's already a huge hit with me. A combination of Like a Dragon's style of humour, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and a management mini-game? Sign me up.
Unfortunately we'll have to wait until 26th January 2024 before we can ride our own dolphins off to Dondoko Island. Alan Wen previewed Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth at Tokyo Game Show last month and felt it had "infinite generosity of heart and activities".