A mysterious livestream event linked to Ryu Ga Gotoku's Judgment Remastered for the PS5, Xbox Series X, and Stadia has been scheduled for May 7 at 7 AM Pacific Time. Dubbed "Judgment Day," the event is almost certainly pointing to a sequel, especially since Judgment Remastered is out as of April 23.
Judgment is a spinoff of the popular Yakuza series, set in the same fictional district of Kamurocho but instead following a lawyer-turned-private detective Takayuki Yagami. Yagami was forced out of law after successfully defending a murder suspect who went on to kill again, something that's especially rare because of Japan's 99% conviction rate. The game's plot does ultimately tie back into the yakuza since a serial killer is targeting gang members and removing their eyes. Gameplay mainly revolves around a mix of detective work and street fighting.
A countdown to the stream is now live on Ryu Ga Gotoku's website as well as Sega's YouTube channel. In fact, clicking on the website's silent video thumbnail simply redirects to YouTube, where people can set a reminder if they want a notification when the stream begins. The event is scheduled unusually early for North America - many west-coast gamers may not even be awake - but serves as something of a compromise, since it's already starting at 11 PM Japan time. Europeans may have the easiest experience, getting to tune in at 3 PM London time.
Trademark filings have hinted that a sequel could be called Lost Judgment or Judgment: Seize the Truth. It's also rumored that actor Takuya Kimuya will be reprising Yagami, accompanied by the first game's sidekick, Kaito. Little else is known, but Ryu Ga Gotoku will presumably try to maintain a different tone from other titles such as Yakuza: Like a Dragon.
Ryu Ga Gotoku will no doubt be hoping for a smoother launch. The first Judgment was pulled from the Japanese market in March 2019 after one actor, Pierre Taki, was arrested for alleged cocaine use. The developer removed both Taki's likeness and acting from the game.
Judgment Remastered primarily offers visual upgrades over the original PS4 game while bringing it to new platforms. On the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S the game takes advantage of SSDs for faster load times. The release isn't a free upgrade for PS4 owners, but the original game should at least benefit from faster loading on a PS5.
Source: Ryu Ga Gotoku, SegaAmerica/Youtube