Like Red Dead, Yakuza is also having upgrade discount issues on Xbox Series X|S — Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio offers an update

by

Rockstar Games recently updated the original Red Dead Redemption, originally released on Xbox 360 and PS3, with modern improvements and re-released it last week.

The Xbox 360 version of the game was playable on newer Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S consoles with improved performance and graphics thanks to Microsoft’s compatibility features. This updated version replaces the older one, and Rockstar Games initially offered it as a free upgrade. Unfortunately, the upgrade process didn’t work correctly for about a week.

More Xbox players are now successfully getting the free upgrade for the original Red Dead Redemption, but a new problem has surfaced with how Microsoft is handling the offer.

This week sees updated releases of the classic Japanese action games Yakuza Kiwami 1 and 2, now refreshed for newer consoles. The original versions have been removed from sale, and the developers, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, and publisher Sega hope players will upgrade to these enhanced editions. While discounts were expected for those who already owned the older games on Xbox, they aren’t currently available.

Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio posted an apology on X (formerly Twitter) regarding the pricing of the discounted versions of Yakuza 1 and 2. They explained that they’re looking into why some users experienced confusion and will provide an update.

We’re sorry for a mistake with discounts on the Xbox Series X|S versions of “Like a Dragon 0: The Place of Vows Director’s Cut,” “Yakuza Kiwami,” and “Yakuza Kiwami 2.” Some customers who already owned these games weren’t receiving the correct discount we announced. We apologize for the trouble this caused. We’re looking into what happened and fixing the discount settings now. We’ll share an update as soon as we can, so please bear with us.

Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio

This issue seems to only affect Xbox, and it’s unclear why it continues to occur.

As an analyst, I’ve been talking to developers like Tom Sala, creator of *The Falconeer*, and Dave O’shry from New Blood Interactive, and a common frustration is coming up: Microsoft’s Xbox backend. It’s a stark contrast to Steam, where Valve lets publishers manage their own sales and licensing. With Xbox, everything requires Microsoft’s approval, which developers find cumbersome.

With the holidays approaching, Microsoft might be short-staffed, making it harder to resolve these account problems.

In any case, we’ll keep you updated on the situation with Yakuza Kiwami.

Yakuza is awesome

Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut is an updated version of a game that tells a story leading up to the main Yakuza series. Yakuza Kiwami 1 and 2 are rebuilt versions of older games originally on PlayStation 2. These updated releases feature improved graphics, brand new English voice acting, and other improvements to bring them in line with current gaming standards.

Customers who previously owned older versions of the software were promised discounted upgrades. Currently, these discounts aren’t showing up on Xbox. Here are some links where you can check if the discount is now available for your account (you’ll need to sign in with your Microsoft account).

We’ll let you know as soon as these are available. If you haven’t played them before, they’re quite affordable – each costs $19.99 and offers a lot of gameplay along with a compelling story about Japanese crime.

Sadly, the games aren’t available on Xbox Play Anywhere, but many of them are on Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Read More

2025-12-10 17:10