Welcome to the first installment of Who’s On Crack (in video games), a concept rudely stolen, er, politely borrowed from another site.The basic idea is this: People do crazy schtuff. Companies, which are run by people, do crazy stuff on a much larger scale. And when you mix fantasy worlds, die-hard fandom and entertainment industry PR, even crazier stuff happens.

Sega! If a company is going to release a game outside of Japan, they’ve got to do it right! Yakuza 3 owners are now even more displeased with how Sega handled the localization and North American release of the game, and I’ll give you a hint why – more content was cut than previously revealed.

As Gamertell reported before Yakuza 3 was released for the PS3 on March 9, 2010, Sega admited that the hostess bar/cabaret clubs would be cut from the final build of the game because it wouldn’t “resonate” with players. (Even though Yakuza and Yakuza 2 both had the clubs.) Sega also stated that the quiz game present in the Japanese version of Yakuza 3 was eliminated, since players likely wouldn’t know the answer to the questions…

One of the absolutely wonderful things about the Yakuza series of games is how it introduces Western gamers to niche elements of Japanese culture while also giving Kazuma something to do when he’s not beating guys up, getting revenge, saving the day and what-not. Yakuza 3 however, will be a little lighter on the niche Japanese content though, since Sega decided to not localize it.

Specifically, two fairly substantial segments from the original Yakuza 3 ended up on the cutting room floor when making the North American and European versions. Sega told IGN that the quiz game and the hostess club are gone…

If you’re planning on purchasing Yakuza 3 for your PS3, then you better make sure you have some preorder money ready. All preorders of Yakuza 3 come with downloadable content that you won’t be able to get otherwise. You’re not just getting one extra, teeny, tiny addition either. You get four new modes and extras. You get three battle modes that include the boss rush Battle for Survival mode, the seven character All-Star Tournament battle and the eight team All-Star Tag Tournament battle. You also get Haruka’s Request, which sounds like a pretty comprehensive adventure in which Kazuma has to take Haruka around the entire world available in Yakuza 3, completing her missions and keeping her happy.

GameStop also has a preorder offer, in addition to the DLC preorder mentioned above. You get a Challenge Pack…

Many people were worrying that Sega wasn’t going to bring Yakuza 3, the first PS3 entry in the series, to North America or Europe due to the lackluster response to Yakuza and Yazuka 2. Thankfully, there’s no need to worry about that anymore. An announcement on the PlayStation.Blog by Sega of America’s Assistant Community Manager Aaron Webber has confirmed the game is getting an English release. It’ll be out in March, 2010 with English subtitles.

Yakuza 3 once again stars Kazuma “Dragon of Dojima” Kiryu. He and his adopted daughter Haruka Sawamura now live in Okinawa, where he runs the Asagao Orphanage. Unfortunately, there is trouble within he Tojo clan, one of Kazuma’s friends has been murdered and a local yakuza clan wants to sell the property the orphanage is on. Kazuma will once again have to get involved in affairs in Tokyo and Okinawa, if he wants any hope of a quiet and peaceful life for him and his daughter…

Fans of the Yakuza series (me among them) were seriously bummed that Sega hadn’t announced any plans to localize the third installment. Now, 1UP, citing sources close to the project, reports that Yakuza 3 is being localized for the US and European markets.

It’s possible an announcement about the Playstation 3 exclusive game could come at the Tokyo Game Show, September 24 through 27, 2009. There’s a precedent here as the US localization of Yakuza 2 was one of Sega’s announcements at TGS 2007. Yakuza has been termed the “spiritual successor” to Dreamcast classic Shenmue thanks to its vivid depiction of Japanese culture.