With the release of the Yakuza Remastered Collection around the corner, let’s talk about one of the biggest Yakuza phenomenon that took the Yakuza fandom by storm: Majima Everywhere.
Majima Everywhere was a mechanic that was introduced in Yakuza Kiwami, the 2016 PS3/PS4 remake of the original Yakuza, which was also later ported to PC in February 2019. The premise of the Majima Everywhere mechanic was for Goro Majima to attack Kazuma Kiryu in a large variety of ways. The intent was to keep Kazuma alert and to train him back up to his glory days and relearn the Dragon Style after spending the past 10 years in prison.
Now here’s the fun part. When they told us it was gonna be Majime Everywhere, they meant everywhere. Goro Majima will be hiding behind corners, under manholes, on rooftops, or hiding in objects such as giant traffic cones, trashcans, and car trunks. He’ll also appear out of thin air (and quite comically, too) with a cutscene when you’re out ordering food, out for drinks; pretty much anywhere, he’s there.
And to top it all off, he appears in a variety of outfits with some very frisky cutscenes. One quite literally, where it’s implied that Majima frisked Kazuma with a cop outfit. Kinky, but it gets better. He’s gone on encounters and had heart-to-hearts with Kazuma all the time, and that was enough fuel to start some hard shipping action in the fandom. From darts and pool, to whiskey-tasting sessions to flirting with Goromi the hostess (Goro in drag).
That’s right. I ain’t Goro Majima right now. The butterfly that dances in the night… The serpent that tempts men… Her name’s Goromi. Remember it.
~Goromi to Nishida, Ryu ga Gotoku Online
And this was enough to drive the fans wild with imagination. There’s a slew of comical, yet…homoerotic art. This is a simple piece drawn by Jen on Twitter that shows off exactly what kind of energy Majima gives off around Kazuma.
Here’s another beautiful piece that shows of the outfits and personas that Majima takes on to sedu- fight Kazuma. I particularly like the snake holding the dagger that emerges from the smoke from his cigarette. Smoky entrances, the dagger, and a snakeskin jacket are all signatures of Goro Majima. Props to jokerita for this piece.
And this one is a parody piece of the sexually charged poster from PS3’s Catherine. It’s hard put my thoughts or emotions into words so I’ll let the picture do the talking.
It’s hard to tell how much of this homo-erotic tension was intended and how much of it was projected from the fans. Going through some of the cutscenes, it’s really hard to say that the developers didn’t intentionally write them that way. Personally, I find it all in good fun, and I got a few chuckles from the whole thing. Anyway! I hope you enjoyed this article. Keep an eye out for future Yakuza news, we’ll be sure to cover it.