Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth

Lore & Background

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth follows former Tojo Clan yakuza Ichiban Kasuga and Kazuma Kiryu in 2023. Kasuga travels to Honolulu after learning his biological mother, Akane Kishida, is alive and living there. Kiryu, acting on orders from the Daidoji faction, also seeks Akane for different reasons, and the two team up to protect her from local criminal organizations while uncovering an international conspiracy. The game features returning party members from Yakuza: Like a Dragon, including Yu Nanba, Koichi Adachi, Saeko Mukoda, Tianyou Zhao, and Joongi Han, as well as new party members Seonhee, Eric Tomizawa, and Chitose Fujinomiya.

Reader's Guide

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth uses a turn-based combat system called the 'Live Command RPG' Battle System, similar to its predecessor but with added positional mechanics. Characters can move within a ring during their turn, affecting damage and enabling environmental attacks. The Hype Meter allows team-up attacks, and Kiryu's unique 'Dragon of Dojima' job lets him switch to real-time combat. The game features open-world exploration across three cities, with sidequests, minigames (including Karaoke, Darts, Mahjong, and new additions like Sujimon Battle and Dondoko Island), and character classes themed after real-world jobs. The game received positive reviews from critics and was followed by a spin-off, Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, in 2025.

Did You Know?

• The game is the first in the Like a Dragon series to have settings outside Japan.
• Kiryu's unique job, 'Dragon of Dojima', allows him to temporarily perform real-time combat.
• The Sujimon Battle minigame is a parody of Pokémon.
• Dondoko Island is a major side activity where the player manages a resort island.

Production & Stage Design

The eleventh edition of the Game Awards marked the ceremony's tenth anniversary, and the production team made that milestone visible in the show's physical and digital footprint. Held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on December 12, 2024, the event was once again helmed by Geoff Keighley, who returned as executive producer alongside Kimmie Kim, with Richard Preuss directing and LeRoy Bennett shaping the creative vision. Bennett deliberately expanded the stage's LED display count beyond prior years to give each iteration a distinct visual identity. The broadcast reached audiences on more than thirty streaming platforms simultaneously, and separate YouTube streams offered American Sign Language interpretation and audio descriptions for accessibility. A thirty-minute preshow called Opening Act, hosted by Sydnee Goodman, preceded the main ceremony, which featured live musical sets from d4vd, Royal & the Serpent, Snoop Dogg, and Twenty One Pilots, as well as appearances by Harrison Ford, Hideo Kojima, and Aaron Paul. Public tickets went on sale November 1, and the Future Class initiative chose to honor its existing alumni rather than induct new members that year.

Voting Mechanics & the Fortnite Hub

The nomination window closed on November 22, 2024, and the resulting shortlist—announced November 18—was compiled by a global jury drawn from over 130 media outlets, with ballots collected by November 12. Final winners blended a 90 percent jury vote with a 10 percent public vote cast through the official website and Discord, though the Players' Voice category was decided entirely by fans beginning December 2. Specialized juries handled niche categories such as accessibility, adaptation, and esports. Two long-standing esports categories were retired, while a new honorary Game Changer award was added. Roughly 112 million public votes were tallied, a 25 percent jump over the previous year. In a notable crossover, the ceremony partnered with Studio 568, Nighttimes, and Spiral House to build a votable hub world inside Fortnite, where players could explore ten user-created islands. Keighley's photorealistic MetaHuman avatar, scanned at 3Lateral in Manchester, greeted visitors in Unreal Editor for Fortnite, though several critics described the model as uncanny. Keighley framed the entire experiment as a prototype for merging award shows with in-game spaces.

Historic Wins & Industry Firsts

Astro Bot dominated the night with four trophies, including Game of the Year, making it the third Sony Interactive Entertainment title to claim the top honor after God of War and The Last of Us Part II. Its nomination also represented Sony's ninth straight year in the category. Balatro became the first solo-developed game to reach the GOTY shortlist, while Black Myth: Wukong marked the first Chinese-developed nominee, and Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree was the first downloadable content package ever nominated. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth took Best Score and Music, extending the series' streak to three total wins. Melina Juergens made history as the first performer to win Best Performance twice for the same role, and Nomada Studio earned its second Games for Impact award with Neva. In esports, Faker collected his third overall Best Esports Athlete trophy, and League of Legends secured Riot Games' sixth consecutive win in the Best Esports Game category.

Announcements, Impact & Reception

The 2024 broadcast drew over 154 million streams, the highest viewership in the show's history, and its announcement slate leaned heavily toward video games rather than film or television. Headline reveals included Elden Ring Nightreign, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, and The Witcher IV, while a Squid Game season-two preview served mainly as a lead-in to the game Squid Game: Unleashed. Pre-ceremony showcases on December 10 and 11—Wholesome Games, the Latin American Games Showcase, Day of the Devs, and the Women-Led Games Showcase—spread the promotional load across multiple days. The inaugural Game Changer award went to Amir Satvat for his work helping laid-off industry workers find new employment. Journalists broadly praised the developer speeches, the quality of winners, and the announcement lineup, though the eligibility of DLC and seasonal content for major categories sparked mixed reactions. In a lighthearted counter-programming gesture, Pengonauts Studio and Joystick Ventures staged their own parody ceremony the following day, showcasing more than 70 indie titles from 600 submissions with tongue-in-cheek award names.

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