Tupac's inclusion in Stranger Than Heaven has drawn critcism but RGG Studio is committed to the idea.
The upcoming Yakuza franchise prequel, Stranger Than Heaven, premiered its cast trailer and dropped a major reveal–with influential and long-deceased hip-hop icon Tupac Shakur entering the game as a character called Amaru, which is his real-life middle name.
It sparked widespread reactions online, with fans expressing both excitement and confusion. Tupac, who was fatally shot in 1996 at the age of 25, was not only a major figure in music, but also known for his powerful lyrics addressing human rights issues, poverty, racism, police brutality, and more.
It is not surprising that some fans are uneasy about his inclusion in a violent game set 30 years after his death, where his character will feature his exact likeness but be voiced by another actor.
IGN has shared the response from Stranger Than Heaven’s executive director and head of RGG Studio, Masayoshi Yokoyama, who clarified how they received permission to feature Tupac in the game, and their vision on his voice acting.
Stranger Than Heaven
Release date: 15 January, 2027
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC (Windows via Steam)
Developer: RGG Studio
What is RGG’s response to Tupac being featured in Stranger Than Heaven?
Yokoyama clarified that this is not the first time the game has featured characters inspired by people who had passed away before the game’s development. He named Genko Izawaki, played by Bunta Sugawara, who passed away in 2014.
He explained that the studio followed the appropriate channels to seek permission before including the hip-hop star in the game, including discussions with his estate and family, saying that “we made sure that we talked to his estate and family and got their permission; not just their permission, but we talked to them about what we wanted to do.”
The studio not only received their approval, but also explained in detail what they intended to do.
“They not only said okay, but they were really excited about the opportunity. We wanted to give these characters a role that would do justice to the people themselves as well. If we didn’t, we think that would be extremely rude, so we definitely would not have done it otherwise. So we did our best to make sure that any role we create for these characters would honour them and their families.”
One of the main points of debate regarding Tupac’s inclusion is the voice actor portraying him, who has not yet been named.
Yokoyama clarified that the studio is not using AI to recreate Tupac’s appearance. Instead, it is using archival footage and photographs to bring him to life in the game.
His voice, however, required a different approach. According to Yokoyama, the studio wanted a real actor to “put their own spin on the character”.
“We didn’t want them to just imitate the character; we wanted them to bring out that character’s personality, but with a different voice. So we did our best to pick an actor that would fit the role and the character, and some of these people might be related to them or have some sort of relationship to them.”
The RGG Studio head also concluded that they will continue to bring life to their vision of “giving an inspirational, emotional, or deep experience to as many people as possible."
“Criticism is a freedom that people are free to have. But, this is something that we thought was a good idea. That this would be something that would add value to our game, which is why we chose to do this. In the end, we are creating something we think people will enjoy and like. We think it's something that will add value to the game we're making. So, we have no real regrets or worries about what we're doing.”
How Snoop Dogg helped to bring Tupac to Stranger Than Heaven
During Summer Game Fest, rapper Snoop Dogg, who is also set to appear in Stranger Than Heaven, revealed on stage how he helped bring Tupac into the game.
“The Tupac estate and my son and myself, we work very closely together. So it just made sense to put him in this game, because his likeness and his spirit still live on. I just felt like it was so connected to what we’re doing.”
Stranger Than Heaven will take players across five decades of adventure centred around protagonist Makoto Daito, who is said to eventually become the founder of Yakuza’s Tojo Clan. Snoop Dogg plays Orpheus, a smuggler who mentors Makoto. Meanwhile, Tupac’s role in the game has yet to be revealed.
