Last October, producer Toshihiro Nagoshi revealed a few small details about the upcoming fifth installment in the Yakuza (Ryu ga Gotoku) series. The producer shared more information on the game's setting in a recent issue of Japanese magazine Famitsu (via Andriasang).

　　Kiryu Kazuma will be the main protagonist in part five. The game's narrative picks up after the events of Yakuza 4, and the game's producer will be Masayoshi Yokoyama, who previously worked on scripts and scenarios for past Yakuza titles. Further details regarding multiple protagonists like in Yakuza 4 have yet to be revealed.

　　Producer Toshihiro Nagoshi said in the article that if the series were like a house, Yakuza 5 would be building a new house instead of adding an extension. The game will take place in a city from each of the five districts in Japan: Sapporo, Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka. Nagoshi said that the cities will be just as big as the digital representations of Dotonburi and Ryukyu in previous titles. He also added that the game's engine will be improved to allow seamless battles and conversations, as well as improved camera work.

　　On a related note, Sega will be touring the aforementioned five cities early next year in search of female candidates for the game. The winning girls will appear in Yakuza 5 representing their respective cities and will promote the game throughout commercials. Eligible contestants in Japan will need to be 18 years or over to participate. After the initial screen test, the auditions will be held from February 18 to March 4, 2012. Sega will be holding an online poll from March to June, with the final winners to be announced in June.

　　Gamers can check out the recent promotional video of the tour here and the audition page here. A release date for the game has yet to be announced.