Ryu ga Gotoku Ishin (released in Japan in February 2014) is a spin-off game set at the end of the Edo period of Japanese history (known as the Bakumatsu period), a period when the Tokugawa Shogunate came to an end and imperial rule was restored (Meiji Restoration).
Sakamoto Ryoma is living undercover, with a false identity, as "Saito Hajime" in Kyoto. One year earlier, on the eve of the coup d'état of Tosa, Ryoma's foster father, the man who raised him, was murdered before his eyes. The only lead he had to discover who the killer was is that he used the Tennen Rishin style of fighting. This is a style used by the Shinsengumi, so Ryoma infiltrates their ranks, becoming captain of the 3rd Shinsengumi unit, in attempt to find the killer.
Big thanks to Kevin Debrabandere for creating a PDF for the entire Ishin guide. You can download the PDF version of the guide here. Please be advised that the PDF is outdated now, but still contains information for the whole game.
Below are the basic controls for the game
| Walk / Run | Left Analogue Stick |
| Camera Movement | Right Analogue Stick |
| Camera Reset Position | L2 |
| Attack | Square |
| Strong Attack | Press Triangle during a Square combo |
| Grab Enemy | Circle |
| Grab Attack | Square or Triangle when you are holding an enemy |
| Throw | Circle when you are holding an enemy |
| Strafing | R1 |
| Guard | L1 |
| Parry | Press L1 when an enemy attacks you |
| Evade | X (you can use the left analogue stick to evade in a specific direction) |
| Change Fighting Style | Directional Buttons Left = Sword Up = Wild Dance Right = Pistol Down = Hand-to-Hand When you press down while already in Hand-to-Hand mode, you switch to your equipped "special weapon" (which is any weapon that isn't a sword or gun - such as long poles and cannons) |
| Pick Up Weapon | Press Circle when next to an object with a blue arrow indicator above it |
| Throw Weapon | Press Circle while holding a weapon |
| Sprint | Hold down X to sprint in adventure mode. You can only do it for a limited time before Ryoma gets tired. |
| Action/Confirm | Circle/X - If you are using a European console, X will be the confirm button and circle will be the cancel button. If you are using an American or Japanese console it will be the other way round |
| First Person View | R3 |
| Pause Menu | Start Button |
| View Map | Select Button |
