The spinoff will want to be what it is: a spinoff, independent from the Yakuza series, and not a single major character will be present in the game…

„We understand that many fans are hoping for this, but like the previous game, there won’t be any crossover with important characters in Lost Judgment. We reason that, while the Yakuza and Judgment series do share a world, they are two distinct IPs, and the themes and motifs being presented in each are distinct as well.

It is also important that characters that play a vital role in the story have the characterization and backbone necessary to do so. Each series requires characters that fulfil distinct roles, so it would be difficult to have Yakuza series characters appear in the Judgment series at this time,” Kazuki Hosokawa, the producer of Lost Judgment, told Inverse in an interview.

He also confirmed that two locations will be playable in Lost Judgment: Tokyo’s Kamurocho has been confirmed for a while, but regarding Yokohama, we just learned that the region included in Ryu Ga Gotoku (Yakuza) Studio’s game will be Ijincho. This is a welcome addition nevertheless.

He also explained the new exploration mechanics: „The athletic mechanics are tied to investigative instances, so you won’t be able to climb walls whenever and wherever you want. There will be situations where the opportunity arises to use the athletic mechanics (such as climbing walls and ropes), so you won’t be able to climb all the buildings in Kamurocho and Ijincho. The reason for this is because the environments are meticulously designed and allow for a better gameplay experience as they proceed.”

Lost Judgment will not be launching later than in Japan, as it is scheduled to have a worldwide launch on September 24 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. (The Digital Deluxe version might be allowing early access from the 21st in the West, too.)

Source: PSU, PSU