Like A Dragon Ishin Another Life is a sub-story turned lifestyle sim snuck into the game in the fourth story chapter. Here, Ryoma will reluctantly take on the role of an uncle, helping his new adoptive daughter Haruka pay to keep her family home after the tragic loss of her parents. In Ryomas’s new villa, there is plenty to do, including cooking, selling homegrown products, managing an ever-growing veggie patch, and of course, paying back that looming hefty debt.
In this guide, we’ll run through how to find the Another Life substory in Like a Dragon: Ishin, as well as how to pay off the debt, cook, fulfil orders, grow your garden, and of course, build a relationship with Haruka. All of this comes during the Like A Dragon Ishin chapters before branching out to the Like A Dragon Ishin substories.
How to unlock Another Life in Like a Dragon Ishin
To unlock the Another Life sub-story in Like a Dragon: Ishin, you will first need to progress to the fourth chapter in the game’s campaign. Once you’ve made it to the fourth chapter, head to the large doors that lead in and out of Fushimi. Here, you will initiate an encounter involving a young girl, a priest, and a landlord, which Ryoma can eavesdrop on.
Up until this point, the content is unavailable, and the interaction needed to open up the associated villa won’t occur. During their conversation, Ryoma will step in and take responsibility for the girl’s 100 Ryo debt, and subsequently, the priest will take you to a villa in rural Kyo, one that is in dire need of some TLC. From here, the pause menu option for Another Life will no longer be greyed out, and you can check your farm livin’ stats from anywhere in Kyo.
Before the priest leaves you to your new farmstead life, he will let you know that the landlord will send a letter asking for 20 Ryo at a time to pay off the debt. What the kind priest does not let you know is that this won’t trigger until you’ve earned the equivalent amount through your work on the farm. So, even if you are raking in money taking care of criminals on the streets of Kyo, keep in mind that its honest farming that will eventually allow you to pay off the house.
Like A Dragon Ishin Another Life explained
When you first arrive at Haruka’s family home, there is not too much to see. Outside there is a small veggie patch and a shrine to pray at and purchase Another Life-related upgrades with Virtue. Inside the home, there’s a bath to rejuvenate and regain health, a small kitchen to cook in, a seated area and a bed. Both the inside and outside of the home can be upgraded via the shrine to add new features like a dog kennel, chickens, or a larger patch for crops.
Not long after you settle in, Haruka will inform Ryoma of the business her family ran before their death. In this business, they would fulfil orders and provide fresh farm products for money and items. This is the main over-arching task to be completed in Another Life. All the minigames hidden within the walls of the homely villa, like cooking, gardening, and tending chickens, can be used to service the business and fulfil invoices so that you can eventually pay off the landlord.
To access the orders list and get started, go inside the house and move to the back left corner to find a cabinet behind the seated area. Interacting with the cabinet will bring up a list of orders for various items, from vegetables to fish and whole meals. You do not have to complete the whole list to start earning and can pick and choose based on what you have in your inventory. While you can speed run the process of filling invoices by buying vegetables and fish at the market in Fushimi, the farm itself is able to provide more than enough, especially once you start upgrading your vegetable patch and kitchen.
How to farm in Like a Dragon Ishin Another Life
Farming in Another Life is a pretty low effort activity. The small shed next to the patch is your main tool for managing the space, including choosing and organising what vegetables you want to grow and where. Fitting them in is a bit like navigating Tetris, or managing your inventory in Resident Evil, as different vegetables require different squares of space. Fitting as many in without wasting a cube is the ideal scenario and can often lead to a good variety of produce.
Each vegetable or fruit will take different amounts of time to grow. You can see the time left on each seedling via the shed menu as well. The time left is signified by a clock on each block of vegetables that fills in with red the closer they are to harvest.
There are two options for harvesting crops; the first is good old-fashioned manual labour. Going up to each crop and interacting will see Ryoma pull at the ground until you are presented with the quality of the harvest The second is to visit the shed menu and select harvest all, which is, naturally, much quicker.
How to upgrade your home in Another Life in Like a Dragon Ishin
Upgrading your home at the shrine in Another Life enables you to cook more recipes, grow more glorious veg and truly harness the power of farm life. But doing so requires Virtue, a currency earned through various ambient open-world tasks in Kyo, from praying at shrines to completing substories and more. This currency is a major tool for upgrading your Another Life home but remember, it can also be used to increase other all-encompassing stats like sprint speed and inventory, so spending it wisely is key.
Upgrading the field expansion is a great first choice. Costing only 500 Virtue, this upgrade and its subsequent levels make fulfilling orders much easier, resulting in quicker turnaround for that extra cash thanks to an influx of space.
How to cook in Like a Dragon Ishin Another Life
Cooking in Like A Dragon Ishin Another Life mashes up the best bits of Cooking Mama and Taiko no Tatsujin, with Ryoma completing rhythm-based minigames to pull together precious meals. Where possible, achieving perfect rhythm will garner more of a response from Haruka and upgrade the quality of your meals so that they provide better healing properties. To cook each meal, you will need to source the ingredients first. This can be done manually through the fishing minigame and by growing vegetables that can also be purchased at the various vendors in Kyo.
The second step to cooking proficiency comes from kitchen upgrades which can be purchased with Virtue. Upgrading the kitchen with the Kitchen Expansion (Ordinary kitchen) is well worth the 300 Virtue you’ll pay. Being able to cook more complicated dishes will not only boost your relationship with Haruka – unlocking heartfelt cutscenes -but it will also give you some handy healing items to use in battle and more item options for orders to fill.
Another Life is intended to be a relaxing break from the high-intensity combat you regularly face in the city, so there really is no wrong way to approach it. Whether you want to take it slow and manually pick strawberries or just cook the same pickles every day, this rural homestead truly is your oyster. For more non-farming-related content concerning the game, check out our Like A Dragon Ishin characters guide to see who you will meet in the game.