Takeshi Kitano is starring in the new Yakuza
Gangster paradise.
In a crossover so obvious it's amazing it's taken so long to happen, Japanese director Takeshi 'Beat' Kitano will be making an appearance in the next Yazuka game.
Kitano's cameo in Yakuza 6 was confirmed in a Tokyo Game Show presentation that's only just come to light - thanks for the heads-up, Kotaku - and it makes our pangs for a western release that much stronger. We're not holding out too much hope, though. Yakuza 5 came out in Japan towards the end of 2012 on PlayStation 3, and we're only just about to get it over here later this year. Given that most people's PlayStation 3's are gathering dust right now, it's not the best timing.
Still, Yakuza 6! It was announced during Sony's Tokyo Game Show conference, and is coming to PlayStation 4. Kitano, meanwhile, already has a history of sorts with video games. Before he found international fame with films such as Sonatine and Hana-Bi, his work as a comedian in Japan led to the production of Takeshi no Chōsenjō, a 1986 Famicom title from Taito that expressed Kitano's disdain for the medium with its off-beat humour.
Legend has it that the game's design and its strange tasks were formulated during a short meeting between Kitano and Taito in which he got increasingly drunk, explaining some of the odder moments in the game - you could complete it by not pressing any buttons for an hour, and in place of end credits there's a simple message upon completion: 'Why are you taking this game so seriously?' Right now, sadly, you've probably got more chance of seeing that localised than Sega's latest Yakuza.
