Every game in the Yakuza franchise features one particularly well-realized piece of side content. In ಌ168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who🐟 Erased His Name, the Coliseum fills that role. Not only are there a wide variety of different modes to part🌄icipate in, but the Coliseum also features a delightful team-bui🔯lding element.

From completing quests to hiring talent scouts, there are a multitude of ways to obtain fighters. We'll take you through all of them and also give you some advice on how to best build your team. We'll also be ranking each individual character's efficiency as we go. With our assistance, you will be able to build the best team possible!

Updated November 19, 2023: Well, we did it. We got the S Rank in every single Coliseum battle. We leveled up every last fighter to Level 20. It's done. It's finished. As far as we can see, there is no more content to be uncovered. However, after having S-Ranked everything, we realized that we had missed a few things...

There were characters that we missed the first time around, so, naturally, they weren't included in the original guide. Moreover, once we had fully leveled up every character, our opinions on certain characters shifted a little. So, we have done a MASSIVE update and made sure that this guide is as comprehensive as possible. Enjoy!

All the stats provided are the FINAL stats. So, these stats represent the level 20 itera💧tion of each c🐓haracter.

Character Traits

Every character has a class and a trait. Each class determines the character's core function. All Attackers will aggressively pursue enemies, all Defenders will draw an enemy's attention and protect their allies, and all Healers will heal.

Traits, on the🍷 other hand, vary from character to character. They are generally positive, though there ꦯis one notable exception to that rule of thumb. We have listed all the traits for you below!

Don't be afraid to use a character that can become frightened. During our extensive time with the game, we didn't witness this occurring particularly often.

If used correctly, these traits will help refine your approach to certain battles. This is especially true when you are fighting enemies with electrified weapons or flamethrowers. It isn't a bad idea to build a team around those encounters. Similarly, if you build a team of characters who like to support the leader, then it is easier to keep track of them and synergize with them. Traits aren't the end-all-be-all of team construction, but they are worth paying attention to!

Introductory Recruits

The characters are all recruitable immediately. Once you gain access to the Fighter's Lounge, they will be available. Thus, all of these characters will likely spend some time on your team.

Hammerhead - Rank B

Hammerhead is unmissable. He will be your first recruit.

Hammerhead is one of the most well-rounded fighters of the bunch. He is good at everything and is a valuable team member even once you are entering into the Platinum-rank fights. His tendency to stick close to Joryu also makes him easier to manage. While he will eventu🐈ally lose viability in the final encounters, he is extremely useful for the majority of your Coliseum run.

Hattori The Ninja - Rank B

This agile ninja will be one of your first recruits. You'll be able to find him hanging out near the bar in the Fighter's Lounge. You simply need to pay off his 1,000 yen tab in order to recruit him.

Hattori is fragile, but he hits like an absolute truck and his attacks are ranged. He is utterly invaluable for the first three quarters of rumbles you will engage in. He can be a bit of a wildcard sometimes, but he is worth keeping around for the majority of your time in the Coliseum for his extreme strengths, even if he does die early on occasion. That being said, by the time you hit the later Platinum Rank fights, you will need to retire this cagey kage.

Hattori's Heat Skill is also very potent and is extremely effective against tough opponents.

Businessman Taro - Rank C

Taro is another early recruit. Simply talk to 🦄🧸him and he will join you.

Despite how he may look, Taro is a decent fighter. He is an all-rounder who favors defense. This makes him pretty resilient and means that you don't have to worry about him in battle. That being said, as you progress through the ranks, Taro will simply be outshined by too many fighters, so he won't likely be a permanent staple of your team.

Phoeniki - Rank B

Phoeniki is another fighter hanging out by the bar. You will need to convince him to join you. He'll ask you a number of questions, just reply with "I wanted us to fight together" and "The sturdiness to stay upright after taking a beating". These ans𒀰wers will satisfy Phoeniki andಞ he will join your ragtag group.

Phoeniki is highly durable, which makes him an extremely dependable fighter to have on your team. His Heat Skill is also excellent for dishing out damage to groups of enemies. That ꦿbeing said, his low attack power will make him a poor choice once you start fighting Platinum-rank ba♉ttles.

Recruitable Opponents

All of these characters will be fought inside the Coliseum itself before you can recruit them. You will need to get an S-Rank finish against them before they will join you!

Technically, Hammerhead should be here as well, but we see him✅ as an introductor🅘y character.

Zhang Wei - Rank C

You will encounter Zhang Wei in the Fighter's Lobby once you get an S-Rank in the Bronze Tournament 2. You will need to give him a Staminan in order for him to join you.

Zhang Wei is a glass-cannon type fighter. That means he hits hard, but he doesn't take hits particularly well. You will probably retire him fairly early on, as he dies too quickly and doesn't provide enough attack power to make up for his vulnerability.

Yoshihito Onizuka - Rank A

Onizuka will show up in the Fighter's Lounge after you get an S-Rank in the first Bronze Hell Rumble.

He is a great healer who is able to fight pretty well. He has decent attack power for a healer, while also being quite tough. He e🍬ven has above-average defense, and an average amount of health. In general, he is a fantastic addition to your team, and is viable all the way to the final encounters in the Coliseum.

On the negative side, his "Mounted Rush" Heat Skill is completely useless against all the giant enemies. Overall, it is just a very bad Heat Skill. Which is too bad, as Mounte𝓡d Rush is the only thing dragging Onizuka down.

Scorpion Nakamura - Rank C

Scorpion Nakamura will arrive in the Fighter's Lounge after you get an S-Rank in the first Silver Hell Rumble.

Scorpion Nakamura is, for all intents and purposes, the exact same fighter as Akira Guren and Businessman Taro. All three are m♚iddle-of-the-road fighters who come rock✤ing the "Booster" Heat Skill—which increases attack power briefly.

Of those three, Scorpion is the best. However, he still doesn't really move too far beyond being a spot filler. Quite simply, there are better characters to fill the space.

Brave - Rank B+

You will recruit Brave once you get an S-Rank in the Silver Tournament. All you need to do is to talk to him in the Fighter's Lounge and choose the "..." option every time.

Brave is just a better Hattori and a worse Ishikawa. Of all the acrobatic ninja-type characters, he is the toughest. However, he isn't tough enough to justify using over Ishikawa who has a considerably higher attack stat. That being said, Brave is strong! He will be worth adding to your team, even if he doesn't end up seeing much use in the later Platinum battles.

Kung Fu Master Suzuki - Rank B+

Kung Fu Master Suzuki will show up in the Fighter's Lounge after you get an S-Rank in the first Gold Hell Rumble. You will need to pay off his 100,000 yen debt before he will join you.

At a glance, Suzuki just doesn't seem resilient enough to be viable. His defense is criminally low, and he has below-average health. Sure, his attack stat is elite, but what good is that if he drops dead immediately? Well, this is a case where the stats don't tell the whole story. Suzuki has a wholly unique fighting style that is highly evasive. That makes him far less vulnerable than you would first꧑ expect.

Suzuki also has a number of kick attacks that will hit multiple opponents. So, he is also pretty good f🎉or clearing out chaff. When you are facing the big, tough, resilient Oni, Suzuki ma🎀y occasionally just die out of nowhere. Which makes him a pretty big gamble for the final couple of Coliseum battles.

Yasuo Sodachi - Rank A+

You will recruit Yasuo Sodachi by getting an S-Rank in the Gold Tournament. Once you do, he'll show up at the Fighter's Lounge.

Sodachi is a fantastic character to bring into battle with you. His defense is horrifyingly low, but that is compensated for with his legendarily high HP. Moreover, his attack stat is the highest of all your squad members. His moveset also leans into this,ꦜ as he will frequently throw a rapid series of punches🌌, which can decimate resilient foes.

Better yet, Sodachi has the "Heat Mode" Heat Skill which greatly increases attack power and makes it harder to knock your characters down. Sodachi is a great character, and🍎 in spite of his terrible defense, he still has reasonable survivability.

Nightmare - A+

Nightmare will appear in the Fighter's Lounge after you get an S-Rank in the first Platinum Hell Rumble.

Nightmare is the second-best all-rounder in the game. He is great at everything, and on top of that, he has a unique fighting style which is fast and will see him land more attacks than most other fighters.

His biggest downside is that his Heat Skill is the very vanilla "Booster". This just grants an enhanceme🔯nt to attack power, which is a little underwhelming when certain characters are able🔯 to boost multiple stats.

Wang Wei - Rank S

Finally, you will recruit Wang Wei once you get an S-Rank in the Platinum Tournament. He will then show up in the Fighter's Lounge.

You will need to have recruited Zhang Wei before you🔯 can acquire Wang Wei.

Wang Wei is basically Yasuo Sodachi, but with rounded-out stats. His health is considerably lower, but his defense is substantially higher. This leads to him being a more stable character than Sodachi. Emphasizing this, h﷽e has a unique moveset that is more evasive, making him even more likely to see the end of the baꦕttle.

He also has the same "Heat Mode" Heat Skill as Sodachi, so the comparisons just keep coming. Honestly, both deserve a space on your roster, but Wang Wei edges Sodachi out.

Akame Request Recruits

As you complete Akame's Request missions, you will acquire a number of fighters...

Akira Guren - Rank C

After completing the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Final Showdown: Red Peacocks Request, Akira Guren will want to turn over a new lea🌼f and join 🥂you.

Akira is very solid, if a little unmemorable. The stat he favors most is defense, so he doesn't die easily, but he doesn't hit as hard as some of the other attack-type fighters. He is a perfectlﷺy solid character to add to ⛦your team if you get him early.

Koji Shiranita - Rank C+

You'll recruit Shiranita after completing the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Final Showdown: White Knights Request. Koji Shitanita

Shiranita has high health, solid defense, and pretty low attack power. However, what helps him stand out a little is his natural ability to resist attacks. Like all of the larger characters, Shiranita doesn't stun as easily, and is harder to knock down. Moreover, his EXCELLENT "Berserk" Heat Skill boosts attack and defense and prevents KOs.

However, despite being pretty reliable throughout most of the Gold-Rank battles, Shiranita starts to fall off in effectiveness once you hit the Platinum-Rank battles and need someone who can hit a little harder.

Keita Kuroyanagi - Rank A

After completing the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Final Showdown: Black Swallowtails Request, Keita Kuroyanagi will be inspired to joi🌃n your cause.

Keita is resilient, having both a high defense and HP stat. He also has an excellent Heat Skill. If you recruit him early, he is definitely useful. However, he will be eventually outclassed by the much harder-hitting Chicജken Man.

Homeless Yamaoka - Rank C

You will recruit Yamaoka after you complete the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Recruit Homeless Yamanaka Request.

Yamaoka, like Gondawara, enters the battle with a club. This makes him pretty great for clearing up the weaker units, as he will often hit multiple at a time. Due to his relatively unspectacular stats, Yamaoka doesn't hang with the best characters, but he definitely isn't a bad recruit to use early.

Excellent Sujiya - Rank B

You will recruit Sujiya once you complete the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Save The Pro Wrestler Request.

Sujiya is a very solid all-around fighter. He doesn't do anything particularly well, but he does have a unique fighting style with heavy-hitting grabs that help him overperform his stats. Unfortunately, once you start getting into the Platinum-Rank fights, he won't be able to hang anymore.

Yuji Nunokawa - Rank B

You will acquire Nunokawa once you finish the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Liberate The Hammer Man Request.

Nunokawa is, for all intents and purposes, simply a better Phoeniki. He has better stats in every category, and he naturally resists attacks better, as he is a big-bodied character. In every other way, they are identical. You will typically♛ want to swap out Phoeniki for Nunokawa.

One thing to be aware of is that Phoeniki is able to resist electri🌟city, while Nunokawa resists burns, so that is one distinction worth considering for certain encounters.

Ryusei Tobashira - Rank B

After finishing 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Strongest Convenience Store Clerk Request, Ryusei will join 📖your team. He is a healer who can fight a bit. Ryusei is VERY similar to Munan Akamatsu, a healer you will pay a pretty penny for, though he is the inferior of the two.

We don't think he is as good as Akimoto-kun, who is an absolute tank, but he is a super helpful character to have on your team nonetheless. You will likely eventually replace him with Munan𒊎.

Tobashira following the leader does make it much easier to direct his healing ability. This makes him pretty valuable early in the game.

Katsuwo - Rank A

Katsuwo is recruited once you complete 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Cat-Lovin' Rapper Request.

Katsuwo is the healer with the highest attack stat in the game. That being said, when you compare him to Onizuka and Higashi, he does appear to fall a little short. As an example, he has 500 more attack than Higashi, but he has 2,400 less defense and 3,400 less health. That is a HU🦂GE sacrifice for a pretty mino♛r bump in attack power.

That being said, this is another example of a fighter being more than their stats. Katsuwo's breakdance style of fighting will hit multiple opponents, and is great for fighting large groups of enemies. So, he can be an invaluable fighter to have. His Heat Sꩵkill is also excellent and will keep your whole squad healthy. He is a little vulnerable, but he is still wo🌄rth considering for your team.

Renji - Rank B

You will obtain this fighter once you complete 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Struggling Host Request.

Renji has a high attack stat and mediocre everything else. Well, everything else except for his pretty excellent "Bullet Storm" Heat Skill. Renji will be a strong addition to your team if you pick him up early, but you ꦜwill almost certainly ditch him ☂for the infinitely superior Chicken Man later on.

Masaharu Kaito - Rank A

You will recruit Kaito once you complete the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:End The Destruction Request.

By the time Kaito hits level 20, he will have excellent stats in general, with the highest health in the game. Despite being a defensive-type fighter, he also hits fairly🌺 hard. You can acquire Kaito pretty early in the game, so he will likely carry your team for the majority of your Coliseum battles.

Kaito does fall off a little bit by the final few S-Rank battles, as you will have access to multiple units that have considerably higher attack, but he never stops being a viable character, even at the highest levels.

Toru Higashi - Rank S

Like Kaito, Higashi will join your team once you complete the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:End The Destruction Request.

He is a healer, but while being able to recover health for the entire team, he also has a respectable attack stat. This makes Higashi a two-for-one character, as he isn't an offensive black hole like the other healers. Like the other Judgment characters, Higashi is among the strongest recruits in the game.

Referral-Based Fighters

The largest batch of fighters will be those you get from referrals. In total, there will be four separate brokers who will find you fightersᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ for a fee.

Well-Connected Gyaru

The Well-Connected Gyaru is located in the Fighter's Lounge and will help you acquire three fighters...

Mamoru Tateno - Rank B

Mamoru is the cheapest fighter you can recruit through the Well-Connected Gyaru. He will cost 70,000 yen in total.

Mamoru is extremely resilient, and he will make your team tougher as a result. He will draw a considerable amount of attention🗹 to himself, which will allow some of your robust members get some breathing room.

Unfortunately, his abysmal attack stat does mean that, by the end of the game, he'll need to be replaced. He just can't dish out enough damage to justify being on the team once you start entering into the S-Rank battles.

Mr. Masochist - Rank C+

Well-Connected Gyaru's second recruit is Mr. Masochist. He will cost you 140,000.

On the plus side, Mr. Masochist has incredible defense. His Uncomfortably Numb Heat Skill is also excellent, as it allows him to absorb damage and heal. However, his attack power is incredi♛bly low.🅺 It is hard to justify bringing Mr. Masochist along when completing battles quickly provides greater rewards.

Akimoto-Kun - Rank A

Akimoto-Kun is the third and final Gyaru hire. He will cost you 210,000.

Akimoto-Kun has the lowest attack power in the game. Bar none. However, his healing ability is incredible. He is also ungodly resilient. His defense is massive, meaning you don't have to worry about him in battle. You may decide to drop Akimoto in the later battles, but he will carry your team to victory all the way up to Platinum. With his potent healing and hefty defense, he always had a place on our team.

Broker

The Broker hangs around in the Coliseum Reception. He will definitely provide a better class of fighter than the Well-Connected Gyaru, but you'll have to pay a little more, too.

Kamiyama - Rank B

Kamiyama is the first fighter that you can recruit through the Broker. He will cost 100,000 yen in total.

While Kamiyama is a little on the fragile side, he enters into battle with a giant cannon, which makes him both excellent for dealing damage to densely packed groups, but also a bit of a liability, as he will blow you away as well. Kamiyama will either be your star player, or the bane of your existence. If you don't mind having that kind of volatility on your team, he is a solid addition.

Lil' Ryuji Goda - Rank C+

Goda is the second recruit you will get through the Broker. He will cost you 200,000 yen.

Lil' Ryuji Goda is an excellent, stable addition to your team. He is definitely more of an all-rounder. However, his massive sword swipes will be able to hit mꦬultiple enemies simultaneously.

His Heat Skill will also greatly increase your team's defense, making them even more capable of weathering tough battles. Goda is a good character, but he does start to fall behind in some of the later battles.

Super Guard Machine - Rank B

The Super Guard Machine is the Broker's third referral, and will cost you 300,000 yen.

He is an interesting pick, as he does a great job of absorbing aggro with his shield. Of all the purely defensive characters, Super Guard Machine is amo🗹ng the best. Pairing him with a number of healers makes your team extremely hard to kill.

Patriarch Gondawara - Rank B

The man, the myth, the diaper. This is the Broker's final recruit, and he will cost you a grand total of 400,000 yen.

Don't let the diaper fool you, Gondawara hits extremely hard. However, he also has criminally low defense, which means that he will die pretty quickly. You'll only want to bring Gondawara if you have a good supply of healers. He does pair well with a character like Super Guard Machine, of course.

Millionaire

The Millionaire is the next man to talk to when looking for recruits. He's located in the VIP Lounge. However, his fighters are not cheap. You will also have to have at least 1,000 fans before the Millionaire will be willing to work with you.

Munan Akamatsu - Rank A

Munan is the first of the Millionaire's recruits and will cost you 500,000 yen.

Munan is basically another Akimoto-Kun. However, he can actually fight a little. While Munan has a very respectable amount of defense, he doesn't have Akimoto's level of survivability. That being said, it is nice that he is actually capable of damaging enemies. We prefer 🔜Akimoto still, but when tit comes to tat, they are pretty much equal. Why not put both on your team?

Hamako Ishikawa - Rank A+

Ishikawa is the Millionaire's second recruit, and will cost you a cool 1,000,000 yen.

In the same way that Munan is another Akimoto, Hamako is another Hattori. Howeverඣ, he is just an upgrade in every way. Not only is he sturdier (though not by a whole lot) but he also has one of the h🏅ighest attack stats in the game.

That being said, despite it being incredibly convenient having such a hard-hitting character on your team, Ishikawa really struggles to survive in the last few platinum battles. Still, he is one of the most powerful units, and on top of that, he h☂as ranged attacks. For the mass majority of the battles, he is utterly invaluable.

Gary Buster Holmes - Rank A+

Gary is the final recruit you'll get out of the Millionaire. While the 1,500,000 yen it will cost you to recruit him is nothingও to sneeze at, he is worth it.

Gary is another all-rounder. He is literally good everywhere. Of all the all-rounders, Gary is most certainly the best. He slightly favors defense, but he also hits very hard. What really helps Gary stand out is his Heat Action: it buffs everything and it heals. Gary is unde🐟niably a very strong fighter to have on your team.

Oil Barren

Once you have ranked up to Platinum, you will be able to find the Oil Barren on the second level of the Castle Casino. You will need to have at least 3,000 fans before the Oil Barren will work with you. However, once you have met these conditions, you w🧔ill have ac﷽cess to some of the best fighters in the game.

Yappi-Kun - Rank A

Yappi costs 800,000 yen and is the fi🙈rst f🧸ighter you will get from the Oil Barren.

Yappi-Kun is like a better version of Hammerhead mashed together with Zhang Wei. He is an all-rounder, yet, his stats are extremely high for a fighter who is good at everything. He also has Zhang's excellent Heat Skill.

His only downside is that he moves pretty slowly. So, while he is a fantastic fighter to have, this can limit🌌 his utility when the action has moved away from him. Still, Yappi is a great addition to your team.

Chicken Man - Rank A

Nugget... is that you? This Chicken Man doesn't come cheap. He'll cost you 1,600,000 yen.

Chicken Man is a powerful fighter who is defined by his extremely high attack stat and very respectable health. Wh𓆏ile his defense is definitely on the low end, that health stat helps keep him reasonably durable.

He also brings a machine gun to battle which he will whip out during his Heat Skill. This is the same Heat Skill as Keita Kuroyanagi. This Heat Skill is fantastic for finishing off multiple regular enemies. If you still have Kuronagi in your party when you acquire Chicken Man, then your new feathered friend will be an excellent replacement. Especially since literally every stat Chicken Ma🍃n has is higher.

Sheep Man - Rank S

Sheep Man is the second-last referral-based fighter you will acquire. He ends up costing you a whopping 2,400,000 yen.

Sheep Man is another character that is just good at everything. His stats are good across the board, but he favors attack power. His "Hellfire" Heat Skill delivers a single rocket to an enemy. It is a highly damaging move. You can't go wrong with Sheep Man!

Fumiya Sugiura - Rank S+

Justice fans rejoice, everyone's favorite acrobat is back to show off. And he'll only cost you 3,600,000 yen! You know what? We aren't complaining. He is worth every penny.

Sugiura is easily the best character you can recruit. He has one of the highest attack stats, and he has an impressively high vitality stat as well. Despite being so overwhelmingly strong in both of those categories, his defense is also above-average. Oh, and his Heat Skill is a healing ability. Sugiura is amazing. Every team needs him on it!

Tier List

Here we have it, the finalized tier list. We've ranked them all based on their stats, in-battle speed, and Heat Abilities. Moveset is also taken into consideration, as certain fighters, like Katsuwo, are considerably better than their stats would have you believe simply due to his attacks that hit multiple foes. These rankings are based off of each fighter's final stats.

As an example, we ranked Gary Buster Holmes higher on the tier list than Yappi, which, if you look at their stats alone, seems like an injustice. However, Holmes is just SO much faster, and his Heat Move heals, so he is just a slightly better character overall.

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