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One of the biggest questions fans have is, does Kiryu die in Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth? Previous trailers for the game revealed a very important fact about the Dragon of Dojima: He has cancer, and it’s terminal. The previous protagonist of the long-standing Like a Dragon franchise revealed that he doesn’t have a whole lot of time left, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to pass away in this game.
Some of this is speculative, however. While we have a definitive answer to the question, “Does Kiryu die in Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth?”, what happens beyond this is unknown. We have information from the game, but we will also speculate on the future. Here’s what we know about the latest Yakuza/Like a Dragon title.
Note: This contains footage and spoilers for Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth.
Does Kiryu die in Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth? Exploring the ending
Does Kiryu die in Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth? That’s a question I had for the entire 70 hours of my playthrough of this epic RPG. After Kiryu Kazuma brings Kasuga Ichiban and Tomizawa to his hotel - paid for by the Daidoji Faction - the former protagonist of the franchise reveals that he has cancer.
It’s terminal, and while what caused it is not 100% known, there is speculation. It could be his years of smoking, or it could be his time handling toxic materials, which he does discuss in the game.
According to Kiryu Kazuma himself, he only has about half a year left, and that’s without treatments. If he gets treatment, it could extend his life by a year or so. However, throughout Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth, he refuses treatment, no matter what his friends and allies recommend.
However, later in the game, Kiryu realizes that the only way one can make amends for the sins of their past is to live on and atone. In the final moments of the game, he states that he willingly carried the sins of the Yakuza on his shoulders and that he could have made the world better but chose not to.
Like Ebina, the only way the two men could make amends is to live on. This leads us to the final moments of Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth’s ending. Does Kiryu die in Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth? No, he lives on, taking his own advice.
Players get to see Kiryu Kazuma in the hospital during the end of this game, taking his chemotherapy treatments. It’s also implied that he meets with Haruka and Haruto, as they both go to see him in the hospital - only to find him at his chemotherapy. He even gets to use his own name instead of an alias.
It’s unknown if Kiryu lives beyond this, but judging by how frail and sickly he looks, I think this was the final adventure for Kiryu Kazuma. He even suggests during the game that it’s time to leave things up to the next generation. If the Dragon of Dojima finally gets to relax with his family at the orphanage, then this might be one of the series’ best endings ever.
However, if he gets dragged out for one more fight, one more adventure, it will cut the effectiveness and emotion that this epilogue provided to one of gaming’s most popular characters. It's time to let Kasuga Ichiban be the sole protagonist from now on.
That’s all we know about “Does Kiryu die at the end of Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth”. As long as this is the final adventure, it’s a worthwhile, happy ending for Kiryu Kazuma. Kasuga and Kiryu’s latest adventure goes live on January 26, 2024.
