SEGA of Japan has announced that the forthcoming PlayStation 3 title Yakuza 3 will be released in the region on March 6, 2008 for approximately JPY 7,980.

Speaking at a press conference earlier today, the company unveiled some new details on the PS3 exclusive, among which included news that the games story is to be narrated by radio DJ and Pride announcer, Kei Grant.

Furthermore, Executive Director Hideki Okamura was on hand to provide some insight into the developer’s hopes for the game, which he claimed is to ignite interest in the samurai period of Japanese history, an era that he feels has faded into obscurity within the younger generation.

This belief was also shared by Yakuza Producer Toshihiro Nagoshi, who attributed his love for Japanese history as the reason for changing the time period for the third instalment: “I personally love Japan, but I've gotten this strange feeling of late, a feeling of loneliness. I wanted to produce something in response to this, so I changed the time frame from the modern period to the historical period.”

Details on a western release have yet to be revealed. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.

Source: PS3qj