Yakuza: Like a Dragon Personality Guide

People love to build up their characters in RPGs, and Yakuza: Like a Dragon knows it. We’re also living in a post-Persona world, and that series really popularized the dating sim-like personality concept.

As you can probably figure out, Like a Dragon has a similar system for its protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga. Through taking actions that boost the various aspects of his personality, Kasuga gains access to new aspects of the game.

This includes new jobs, new Substories, and special defenses during battle. We will show you how to raise Style, Intellect, Confidence, Passion, Kindness, and Charisma in this guide. 

Yakuza: Like a Dragon Personality Guide

First, we’ll list the six different personality facets, and what they represent in combat. Each personality trait can be upgraded to level 10, so it can take quite a bit of effort to make Kasuga the best person he can be. Here are the basics:

• Style: Defends against Charm
• Intellect: Defends against Brainwash
• Confidence: Defends against Sleep
• Passion: Defends against Silence
• Kindness: Defends against Rage
• Charisma: Defends against Fear

Aside from bonuses in combat, upgrading your personality traits give you access to more stuff in the game. Like we mentioned earlier there are several jobs Kasuga won’t be qualified for until he reaches a certain personality level. You can also get new company management minigames, which is important for a certain unlockable we won’t spoil here. To increase your personality stats, there are five different methods, some of them easier to do than others. Those are:

• Reading special books for each stat that grant a solid +50
• Speaking to special NPCs who will boost various stats for money
• Dialogue choices during substories can boost various stats
• Passing tests at the Ounabara Vocational School
• Completing Part-Time Hero quests

In order to get the different books, you’ll exchange them for points from the game’s various minigames. We’ll lay those out here as well:

• Between Thrill and Passion (Passion): Can-collecting minigame prize. Costs 80,000 points from Kang.
• Think and Grow Confident (Confidence): Can be purchased with points from both Shogi and the Batting Center minigame.
• You, Unleashed (Charisma): Can-collecting or Pachislot
• The Poor Zoo (Kindness): Can-collecting or Shogi
• The Special Theory of Relative Brutality (Intellect): Batting Center or Shogi
• Street Dandy (Style): Batting Center or Shogi

As you can see, if you want those stat books you’ll have to spend time with Like a Dragon’s minigames. Shogi is going to be a barrier for some players, but luckily there’s always an alternative. 

If you’re flush with cash, there are multiple NPCs you can find during your travels, who will raise one or more personality stats for you in exchange for money. These fees can range from 30,000 to 100,000 yen, and they don’t appear consistently.

Once you find a stat-boosting NPC take note of where you found them, because there’s a chance they’ll respawn at that part of the map whenever you reload the area you’re in. Many of these characters are tucked away in alleyways or behind buildings, so they’re pretty conspicuous.

Related: Yakuza: Like a Dragon Beginner’s Guide: Tips and Tricks

These are the basics on what personality is in Yakuza: Like a Dragon and what functions it performs. Like any other ongoing system in this game, it can take a lot of time and effort to max it out. But once you get the hang of things like minigames and the Part-Time Hero quests, you should be able to passively get personality EXP while doing other things. And once you have decent income, knocking out all those tests is an easy way to get solid boosts.

Do you have thoughts on the personality system in Yakuza: Like a Dragon? Or tips of your own, or other topics you’d like to see covered here? Let us know over at the Prima Games Facebook and Twitter channels!