UPDATE:  Sega has now released the first trailer for the HD collection which you can observe at the bottom of the article.  Enjoy.

Making my inner-Yakuza fanboy squeal with absolute glee comes the confirmation from Famitsu Weekly, that the previously rumoured HD re-release of Yakuza 1 & 2 is indeed going ahead and will release in Japan on November 1st, this year instead of the previously rumoured December 1st date.

As well as high-definition aesthetics (which I would be very interested to see given the generational leap between Yakuza 2 and Yakuza 3), we’re promised trophies and greatly reduced load times.

Smaller features which might go unnoticed by the ignorant massive, but greatly appreciated by the Yakuza faithful, include being able to manage your item box in the phone booth and marks being placed next to the food that you have eaten, so that you are able to keep track of the cuisine that your tattoo’d bruiser has been lapping up.

No western release or date has been mentioned yet, but personally, I believe it to only be a matter of time until the announcement is made.

The reveal by the Japanese magazine effectively gets the jump on the official announcement by Sega which is due to occur sometime today.

Naturally, any new information which comes from that announcement will be reflected here.