Summary
Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio seemingly has a lot in store forLike a Dragonfans in the coming months asLike a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Nameis set to release later this year andLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealthslated for a 2024 release. After already releasing the spin-offLike a Dragon: Ishin!earlier this year, the developer has another treat for fans as the latest trailer forLike a Dragon Gaidenrevealed that the game will include a special demo version ofLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. This bonus is reminiscent of a bygone era of gaming that more releases should follow.
While of both these titles are highly anticipated among fans,Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealthis the next mainline entry in the series and the bigger of the two games, so including ademo for it withLike a Dragon Gaidenat no extra charge is a great way to reward fans and whet their appetite for next year’s release. The demo also reportedly contains special content not found in the full version ofLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, giving players an even greater reason to check it out. This practice harkens back to the days of bonus demo discs that were common during fifth and sixth generation of consoles but have become scarce in modern gaming.
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Like a Dragon Gaiden’s Special Infinite Wealth Demo is Reminiscent of a Nostalgic Gaming Practice
A classic example of this type of practice is theoriginalCrash Bandicootfor the PlayStationthat included a demo disc for other upcoming PlayStation titles players could try out. Titles likeTekken 2,Wipeout 2097,Destruction Derby 2,Monster Trucks, andFormula 1were available via demos on this disc. Another great example is the bonus disc included with the special edition ofMario Kart: Double Dash!!which featured demos for games likeMario Party 5,F-Zero GX,Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,Star Wars: Rogue Squadron 3, andSonic Heroes.
Unlike these games that contain an array of different demos from a variety of series,Like a Dragon Gaidenonly features a demo for RGG Studio’s next release. However, the practice of including any sort of demo for an upcoming release bundled with a new game is very rare in the modern era, and more companies should capitalize on the nostalgia associated with it. The special feeling of getting a bonus demo with a new game is an exciting treat for players, andLike a Dragon Gaidenis smart to tease fans with a taste of the much largerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealthby including this demo version of the game.
Unfortunately, demos are much easier to distribute via a free download in the modern gaming space, so there isn’t as much of reason for publishers to include demos with new releases.Like a Dragon Gaidenreleasing as a digital-onlytitle may be part of the reason why this special demo is included with it, since it wouldn’t take any further resources to produce on a physical version. With more games seemingly going the route of a digital-only release, there is a chance more releases like this will feature special demos in the future.
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Namewill launch Jul 02, 2025, on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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