sega recently announced that they are developing three games, two set in the "Yakuza" universe and an adaptation of a classic anime. These titles are obviously slated for an Eastern release, but there is still no word whether the company will translate them into English and make them available in the West. The "Yakuza" franchise has been around since 2005, although it struggled to really gain a foothold in the Western market.

A survey has been launched by SEGA to see how Western audiences feel about the upcoming games.

'Yakuza: Kiwami' making amends for past mistakes

"Yakuza" struggled out of the gate. The first two titles are hard to go back to today, especially after experiencing "Yakuza 0" or any of the later games. This is not only due to them being from the PS2 era, with lackluster combat and poor controls, but the localization for the first game was dreadful. For some odd reason, SEGA decided to dub the definitive Japanese game with a Hollywood cast. The voice acting could have only been more out of place if it was handed over to the Muppets.

The first "Yakuza" title crashed and burned in the United States, but the franchise did start to earn itself a positive reputation once the fourth and fifth entries were released.

The fun zombie spin off, "Yakuza: Dead Souls" also helped greatly, as it provided a stand alone entry point to the series. As each game continued from the previous one, it was not easy for newcomers to get into the franchise. "Yakuza 0" completely solved this issue, as it is a prequel to all the previous games.

"Yakuza: Kiwami" comes out on August 29, and is a remake of the first game.

The combat is improved and a variety of side missions have been added to increase the run time due to the relatively short main story, so there has never been a better time to dive into the series. Unless SEGA is really disappointed with the remake's performance, "Yakuza: Kiwami 2" should also receive a Western release. Finally, players who loved the prequel would be able to experience the full story without having to play the two original PS2 games.

"Yakuza Online" is less of a sure thing, as SEGA has generally refused to localize the spin-offs of the franchise, with "Dead Souls" proving to be the only exception. It was suggested that the other games are tailor made for such a small niche group, that there is simply no reason to make an English version. Multiplayer titles can be quite lucrative nowadays, even free-to-play ones, but this romp might not make the jump.

'Fist of the North Star'

"Fist Of The North Star" is a legendary anime series reminiscent of the original "Mad Max" trilogy. There have been quite a few video game adaptations, like "Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage", and some have been translated into English as well. It is not too hard to believe that SEGA would bring this title to the West, especially if their other games continue to sell well.