Stranger Than Heaven director says the game's combat was inspired by old 'Ninkyo' Yakuza movies because the 'raw and gritty' action scenes fit Daito's character as an inexperienced fighter — 'We felt that atmosphere was what made those genres special'

• Stranger Than Heaven director Mikinobu Abe says the game's combat system was inspired by classic Ninkyo yakuza movies
• He says the action scenes in those movies were "raw and gritty" and encapsulated the feeling RGG Studios wanted to showcase
• Abe adds that the combat system also correlates with Makoto Daito, who will start as an inexperienced fighter before evolving

Stranger Than Heaven director Mikinobu Abe has revealed that classic yakuza movies inspired the upcoming action game's combat system, and that it will tie into Makoto Daito's character development.

Speaking in an interview with TechRadar Gaming, Abe shared how RGG Studios conceptualized the game's combat, saying that it "really wanted to make sure that the player feels this atmosphere that it’s either you kill, or you get killed," and revealed that "we took a lot of inspiration from the old Ninkyo movies."

Ninkyo is a classic subgenre of Japanese yakuza-themed movies made in the 70s and 80s. Abe said RGG was influenced by movies like New Battles Without Honor and Humanity, starring Bunta Sugawara, who also plays a character in Stranger Than Heaven, because of its unrefined action scenes.

"While we were watching these movies, we noticed that what made those movies special was how raw and gritty the action scenes are in those movies," he said. "No one throws a cool-looking fist punch or anything; it's just people rolling around and fighting. We felt that atmosphere was what made those genres special."

The "raw" action scenes also influenced the game's main character, Makoto Daito, and his gradual progression to becoming a better fighter than he starts; players will see him evolving the more they become attuned to the combat system.

"We took a lot of inspiration from that, and wanted to make sure that Daito is a character who starts out not being too good in a fight," Abe continued. "As he progresses, though, he gets more comfortable fighting people. Because of that, because the game is about one man's life, we definitely wanted to depict how the main character is evolving, or I guess more like ageing, through the narrative. We wanted to make sure that the player can also feel that, while also feeling that tension of kill or be killed."

Abe added that "It was really, really important that the combat feels intuitive to create this sense of synchronisation between the player and Daito" and to allow the player to "immerse themselves in controlling Makoto."

"As the player's skill gets better, so does Daito as a character gets better," the director said. "So that was the whole concept of what we wanted to depict through this combat system."

Stranger Than Heaven releases on January 15, 2027, for PS5, Xbox Series X and Series S, and PC.