Best Ways to Make Money in Like a Dragon: Ishin

Learn the best ways to make money in like a dragon ishin, including Wood Cutting, Poker, and Chicken Racing for early to mid-game.

Wood Cutting Minigame

At the beginning of Chapter 2, you can explore Fushimi and find an old man in the southwestern corner of the map who offers The Wood Cutter Substory. This unlocks the Wood Cutting minigame, where you time button presses to chop logs. The speed increases with consecutive successful chops; missing resets the speed but allows you to continue. After the initial 20 logs for the substory, you can chop up to 100 logs per session. Initially, the old man pays 100 Mon per log, totaling 1 Ryo for 100 logs. Once you max his Bond gauge, he increases the price to 150 Mon per log, earning you 1 Ryo 5000 Mon per session. If the old man disappears, return to the Teradaya inn, enter, and exit to make him reappear. This minigame is good for the early game, but better money-making methods unlock in Chapter 3.

Playing Poker

Poker is one of the first reliable money-making methods, accessible in Chapter 3 when you reach Rakunai/Rakugai. Find the Gambling Den south of the pawnshop on East Shijo Street. You need approximately 2 Ryo to buy Wooden Tags, costing 1 Ryo for 100 tags. A minimum of 100 tags is required for the low-bet option, so purchasing 200 tags is recommended. Save your game before playing. Start with the low-stakes Poker until you accumulate around 2,000 tags, then save again. Move to the high-stakes version (50/100 bets), where the buy-in is 1,000 tags; dipping below this amount will remove you from the table. Aim for a baseline of 8,000 tags. Excess tags can be exchanged for Platinum Plates (1,500 tags each) at a nearby vendor. These plates sell for 3 Ryo 7500 Mon at the pawnshop north of the den, offering a good early-game profit.

Chicken Racing

Chicken Racing, unlocked at the start of Chapter 3, is the best money-making method until the endgame. It uses the same Wooden Tags as Poker, so having around 10,000 tags is advisable. The maximum bet is 3,000 Wooden Tags. To find the Chicken Racing building, pass through the northern gate in Fushimi, head east at the first intersection, and stop at the second. The purple building with blue curtains on the northern side is the entrance. Focus on the Condition, Prediction, and Payout on the UI. Lower Payout numbers indicate a higher chance of winning. Bet on the two chickens with the lowest Payout. On the Dividend List, find these two chickens and place the max bet of 300 on them. For Quinella, bet on the combination of these two chickens. On the next page, bet on both combinations for the Double Exacta (e.g., 1-2 and 2-1).

• Wood Cutting: Up to 1 Ryo 5000 Mon per session (100 logs at 150 Mon each).
• Poker: 3 Ryo 7500 Mon per Platinum Plate (sold for 1,500 Wooden Tags).
• Chicken Racing: Potential for high returns by betting on low-payout chickens.