Is Rahul Kohli’s Like A Dragon: Ishin cameo a reference to Midnight Mass? “I’m sure it is”, says the actor

The remake of Like A Dragon: Ishin is here, finally releasing worldwide today. This international release will be a first for the game, too, which had only ever been released in Japan before.

On top of that, Like A Dragon: Ishin is introducing new gimmicks and mechanics to the game to keep gameplay fast, smooth, and intuitive. More specifically, these new addtions are being made to ensure that combat feels as good as can be. One of the most intriguing additions to the game is that of Trooper Cards, which are cards with special attacks, abilities, and debuffs that can make or break a fight.

One of Like A Dragon: Ishin’s many Trooper Cards is going to feature avid gamer and horror legend, Rahul Kohli, who rose to fame on iZombie between 2015 and 2019. We were able to have a brief chat with Rahul, who you may recognise as Owen from The Haunting of Bly Manor, Sheriff Hassan from Midnight Mass, or maybe he’s already appeared on one of your favourite gaming-centric podcasts. Not ours, though. Yet.

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VG247: You’re going to be a part of an all-new feature in the remake of Like a Dragon: Ishin called Trooper Cards, which must be pretty cool for a Yakuza fan. How did your involvement come about, and what exactly does your role consist of?

Rahul Kohli: I started playing through the series while I was in quarantine for a show. Everyone I knew had spoken very highly of the Yakuza series, so I started a playthrough, and I kinda loved it. I began publicly sharing my journey with that, and the community being what it is, they got very excited that someone else was playing Yakuza.

Late last year, RGG and Sega reached out and asked if I would be a part of the reveal trailer for Like a Dragon: Ishin – which I jumped at the opportunity to do. Then, a few weeks later, RGG asked if I was interested in having my likeness used for a Trooper Card.

The Trooper Card is basically a power-up, a buff, a card that you collect, and you decide which ones you want to have there and then as shortcuts. Each card has a different buff and whatever, and my card is a kind-of aggressive, fiery explosion. But yeah, it’s my likeness, and my name. It’s just a Rahul Kohli Trooper Card, and it’s super cool. I’ve always played characters and voiced characters and been someone else, so it’s cool to have my name and my likeness as me.

VG247: Your description on that card is ‘A chivalrous man who's traveled through space, time, and reality to serve the Shinsengumi. Draws upon his experience in law enforcement to keep the peace.’ Is this a reference to your role as Sheriff Hassan in Midnight Mass?

Rahul Kohli: That’s what I think! When you use the card, it says ‘rob them of their dignity’, dignity being this thing that Sheriff Hassan keeps talking about. When I read the bio, I immediately was like, ‘yo, is this a Mass thing?’, and I think it was. I’m sure it is.

VG247: This isn’t your first rodeo in the games' industry, having voiced characters in Rage 2, Gears 5, and even Fortnite. That said, do you plan on working with games more? And if so, what series would be a dream come true for you to be cast in?

Rahul Kohli: I’ve done a few now, yeah, and there’s a few that haven’t been announced. So, I’ve got some that I haven’t recorded yet, and they’re NDA’d. That’s the thing with the games stuff, you do them, and then you can’t really say anything.

Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed was probably the shortest one from recording to announcement. That all happened in the same year, which is really rare. Obviously, I’m not a voice actor by trade, I don’t even really audition for stuff. I tend to be approached and requested, so that’s how that comes about.

But yeah, so we’ve got a few planned, and do I want to be a part of other stuff? Yeah. I’m a big gamer, and I’d love nothing more than to - I don’t know - be in the next Red Dead or Doom. Again, I have no insider knowledge, I’m just a fan, so why not?

VG247: In addition to your roles in gaming, you’ve been pretty busy following iZombie. You starred in Mike Flanagan’s Haunting of Bly Manor and Midnight Mass, and just wrapped up filming The Fall of the House of Usher. You also just starred in the film, Next Exit! So, I have to ask, how does gaming fit into your regular schedule?

Rahul Kohli: I actually am able to game a lot more because I am working. When I’m filming, I cannot and will not watch TV or film. I view it through such different eyes. I kinda can’t stand watching other people act after I’ve been on set for 15 hours watching other people act. I can see it all, the choices, marks, and I cannot separate. So, that’s where gaming – and to a certain degree – Warhammer and miniature painting comes in; I’ll do anything but consume media on film or TV.

So, I’m playing every night, basically. Depending on what time I wrap, I’ll go home, and I’ve always got my laptop there, so I’ve got my Steam library. I’ll usually have one of my consoles, mainly my PS5. I’ve got a Steam Deck when I’m out in my trailer, plus a travel hobby station, so I get a lot of my backlog done while I’m filming.

VG247: So, you’ll have a set-up wherever you go? I saw that you bought a TV for your hotel recently that was crap.

Rahul Kohli: Yeah, it broke. It didn’t last very long, so I went out and bought a super-duper one and gifted it to my friend who lives out in Vancouver. But yeah, usually if I’m going to be abroad for a certain amount of time, I’ll tend to make sure I have a few things that I need. I usually want a decent television and a decent internet connection.

VG247: On that note, what’s this about you going into a strip club at 1am a few months ago to ask for an ethernet cable, so you could play Darktide?

Rahul Kohli: So, yeah. We were playing Darktide, everyone was waiting on me, and something was up with the Wi-Fi I was using at the hotel. I don’t know what was going on, but it just wasn’t able to keep a stable connection.

It was either Bruce or Alanah - someone was like, ‘Try the ethernet! Try and get an ethernet cable!’ It was one in the morning in Vancouver, and I was like ‘where am I going to do this?’, so I jumped on Discord on my phone and stuck an Airpod in. I thought, okay, this is live on their stream, and I tried a few shops. Then I realised, I know the strip club. I know the people quite well there, they’re good friends, and they’ve got an office… so maybe, they’ve got an ethernet cable.

So, I went in, with the Airpod in, so everyone can hear me talking and asking. It became this livestream treasure hunt, but yeah, the strip club came through. Big love to Penthouse on Seymour Street. They provided me with an ethernet cable!

VG247: I’ve got one final question for you on top of that; can you tell us what your favourite Yakuza game is?

Rahul Kohli: Right now, I haven’t played past 2. That’s still hundreds of hours. I’m glad I played it the order I played it in; I played Kwami, then 0, then Kwami 2. I loved 0, funnily enough. Playing it that way was awesome. It kind of served as a prequel rather than an entry title, so I got to see Majima before he was Majima. I feel like I really benefitted from playing it in that order, but I’m just about to roll credits on 2, and that might change.

VG247: Do you plan to play through the whole series?

Rahul Kohli: Oh yeah, I have to. The problem is, so when fans were demanding and really wanted Ishin to come to the west, I was happy for it to take another ten years, because I knew I wanted to play through every Yakuza game, and I wanted to play through Like a Dragon, and then I wanted to play through Judgement 1 and 2 before I got round to playing the spin-off titles. But then they went and put my face in the game.

It’s going to interrupt the order that I had set out, so Like a Dragon: Ishin will immediately be the one that I play next.

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Like a Dragon: Ishin will launch February 21, 2023 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.