Xbox and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio presented an in-depth look at Stranger Than Heaven, the next open world crime drama from acclaimed Yakuza/Like a Dragon studio, confirming that it will launch this winter, and revealing the pivotal role that Snoop Dogg plays in setting up the game’s story.
Set across fifty years, five distinct eras, and five cities, Stranger Than Heaven follows main character Makoto Daito as he stows away to go to Japan, the land of his mother, in 1915. While stowed away, he is caught by Orpheus, the smuggler played by Snoop Dogg, who takes pity on Makoto and another stowaway, Yu Shinjo, and brings them into the criminal underworld.
Yu and Makoto will be both good friends and rivals through the events of Stranger Than Heaven, the first stop on their story seeing them working for Orpheus in Kokura, Fukuoka. Yu embraces being a Westerner in Japan, while Makoto’s more able to blend in and just try to survive, but has a talent for music, which ends up with them becoming partners in showbusiness later in the game.
The five decades and five cities in the game are the heavily industrialised Kokura, Fukouka in 1915, the shipbuilding port of Kure, Hiroshima in 1929, Minami, Osaka in 1943 with its vibrant entertainment hub, the tourist-filled Atami, Shizuoka in 1951, and builds up to a conclusion in 1965 Shinjuku Tokyo. Each will show how culture shifts in Japan through the first half of the 20th century, how Western influence sees the Italian mafia try to impose themselves in one location, how American culture permeates the country after WW2, and more.
As mentioned, Makoto has a keen ear for music, and is able to find and “record” sounds within the world, from the noise of a sweeping broom, to passing train, the crunch of a fight. Makoto will sometimes bump into composers, at which point you can use these sounds to create original compositions and unique music in the game. That’s alongside Makoto’s stage-managing, organising shows, hiring musicians and scouting singers, and picking a setlist for an entertainment venue. One notable singer is Takashi, played by J-Pop artist Satoshi Fujihara, who grows into the role to become Makoto’s assistant and protege.
But, since this is an RGG game, the real meat and potatoes of the game will be the street brawling, and Stranger Than Heaven has a brand new and more brutal combat system built just for this game. You control both sides of Makoto independently, so the right bumper and trigger work for his right arm and leg, meaning you can grapple and hold or be held by an enemy on one side and still attack with the other, or block incoming attacks from one side and counter with the other. In addition to his fists and feet, there’s a bunch of deadly weapons to wield, including knives, hammers, mallets, katanas, and much more. There’s power up attacks, special attacks and passive abilities that all of this can bestow upon you.
Stranger Than Heaven is in development for Xbox Series X|S, PS5 and PC coming out this winter. It will launch as a day one game on Xbox Game Pass, and will also be an Xbox Play Anywhere title from the Xbox store.
Source: Xbox
