Japanese underworld action-adventure game Yakuza 3 will be introduced to Western audiences in March next year, when it goes on sale outside of Asia for the first time.

The game, to be released in New Zealand on PlayStation 3, thrusts the player into the sorded world of Japanese organised-crime. Playing as Kazuma, Yakuza 3 allows gamers to explore multiple Japanese locations, including seedy nightclubs in downtown Tokyo, as they struggle to complete more than 100 missions.

Sony Computer Entertainment said in a media release that, in addition to the familiar Tokyo haunts from the first two games, fans would discover a new setting in the tropical island of Okinawa.

Yakuza 3 would maintain the Japanese voice acting of the original Japanese version of the game but would be subtitled for English audiences, SCE said.

Sega Europe marketing director Gary Knight said Yakuza 3 had been one of the most requested titles for localisation by our European SEGA community and he was "delighted to be able to fulfil their wishes with this announcement".