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Shenmue discovering the Sega classic 14 years too late (The Guardian)
- Thread starter thelatestmodel
- Start date
SolidSnakex
Member
I don't think it'd cost 100m, but it'd certainly be very expensive. Suzuki has apparently said that if he ever got the chance to make Shenmue 3 then he'd complete the story. That means it'd have to cover chapters 6-16. Which is why the Kickstarter idea thrown around has always seemed highly unlikely. I just can't see how they could raise anywhere near enough to complete a project of that scale.
ComputerMKII
Banned
Why wouldn't SEGA re-release it? It's not available on any current platform. The most recent edition was Shenmue 2 on the original Xbox...
TemplaerDude
Member
Just let it die, please.
cheststrongwell
my cake, fuck off
Hope they re-release it with better controls. I don't even need updated graphics.
LelouchViBritannia
Member
revamp the controls, use high res textures, and give players the option to fast-forward the waiting times like in Shenmue 2.
Would be awesome.
Would be awesome.
Because if people actually played it (either again or for the first time), they would realize how TERRIBLE the game is and stop begging for a sequel on internet forums.
Guys, I have a confession to make:
I didn't like Shenmue. At all. It utterly bored the shit out of me even when it was new. I'm sorry guys. I just can't bring myself to view the nonexistence of Shenmue 3 as a tragedy. I think much of the love for those games is tangled with a larger mourning for the Dreamcast and old Sega in general. It has become a symbol for the lost cause of the Dreamcast, the grand sweeping vision of Sega that never came to be.
I didn't like Shenmue. At all. It utterly bored the shit out of me even when it was new. I'm sorry guys. I just can't bring myself to view the nonexistence of Shenmue 3 as a tragedy. I think much of the love for those games is tangled with a larger mourning for the Dreamcast and old Sega in general. It has become a symbol for the lost cause of the Dreamcast, the grand sweeping vision of Sega that never came to be.
sonikokaruto
Banned
Shenmue is something i need back in my lyfe
Yes, because that's exactly the experience described here in this article, by a writer who only just played it for the first time...
Karak
Member
Not even close. I hate that the original discussion always turns to that. Honestly we are talking about an incredible small area even if he went bigger than planned, compared to today's smaller open world games. Engines available for insanely cheap with no need to make your own.
Voice actors though.
Mostly because it isn't true.
ShenmueNextGen
Neo Member
Brilliant Shenmue Review! Especially from someone who played the game only for the first time! Kudos for that. 
But there are some points that needs a little more care. One is about the myth that Shenmue 3 is going to cost a lot.
Relative to its contemporaries, Shenmue 3 neednt be as expensive as the first two games. The ground that was broken by Shenmue 1 & 2 is now well trodden, with plenty of experience and tools available to reduce the insane amounts of R&D required for developing the originals, which were inarguably ahead of their time.
The cost of making games has certainly increased, but the proportional cost of making Shenmue-style games has fallen dramatically from the bleeding edge heights of its development in the 90s. It really was an exceptional project to undertake in those days, whereas now, even if they aim for AAA presentation, its costs would be comparable to its modern peers.
While games are now generally more expensive to produce and inflation makes the numbers look even scarier, it should go without saying that Shenmue today would not be the technical breakthrough that it was in 1999. It paved the way for what so many games are doing now. All the costly R&D, all the early trial and error, was done by Shenmue. The tools, skills and experience to develop that kind of game are now more readily available than in the late nineties when there was no precedence from which to learn and evolve. Just like other open world adventures of today, Shenmue III would be standing on the shoulders of giants, not starting from scratch at the foot of the mountain.
A particular comment there set it right, too:
---
---
As a last note, I wish the author of the article would mention the #SaveShenmue campaign and the passion that prevails among the fans even today.
But there are some points that needs a little more care. One is about the myth that Shenmue 3 is going to cost a lot.
Relative to its contemporaries, Shenmue 3 neednt be as expensive as the first two games. The ground that was broken by Shenmue 1 & 2 is now well trodden, with plenty of experience and tools available to reduce the insane amounts of R&D required for developing the originals, which were inarguably ahead of their time.
The cost of making games has certainly increased, but the proportional cost of making Shenmue-style games has fallen dramatically from the bleeding edge heights of its development in the 90s. It really was an exceptional project to undertake in those days, whereas now, even if they aim for AAA presentation, its costs would be comparable to its modern peers.
While games are now generally more expensive to produce and inflation makes the numbers look even scarier, it should go without saying that Shenmue today would not be the technical breakthrough that it was in 1999. It paved the way for what so many games are doing now. All the costly R&D, all the early trial and error, was done by Shenmue. The tools, skills and experience to develop that kind of game are now more readily available than in the late nineties when there was no precedence from which to learn and evolve. Just like other open world adventures of today, Shenmue III would be standing on the shoulders of giants, not starting from scratch at the foot of the mountain.
A particular comment there set it right, too:
---
Huh? Shenmue is already dead. We are trying to resurrect it, because we love it and we need a conclusion to the epic saga/story.
Some people just didn't like it. Others enjoyed the slow pace because it's so different. What you found boring about it, I probably found to be the quintessential masterstrokes of the series.
---
As a last note, I wish the author of the article would mention the #SaveShenmue campaign and the passion that prevails among the fans even today.
TechnicPuppet
Nothing! I said nothing!
Me either, graphics were great. The could allow HD and updated controls.
Coin Return
Loose Slot
After the first two games got a digital re-release, I could understand your request. But that's yet to happen, and at the very least would get people talking again.
LelouchViBritannia
Member
The franchise hasn't died n almost 15 years. It isn't going to die now.
Interceptor
Banned
Yeah thats nonsense.
Hmmm, I love Shenmue and I did actually just replay it but I feel this is a terrible comparison to make. The actual way in which the story is told in Shenmue often feels disjointed and awkward in comparison and there is a LOT of busy work and loading screens always working against this feeling.
It's an interesting experiment of a game that I still love but it has aged pretty noticeably. It definitely feels like a game that was simply too ambitious for its time.
This is also hogwash.
Shenmue is far behind a lot of even early PS2 games in so many ways. They also misspelled benefiting.
Acquiescence
Member
Nice to see someone discover the magic of Shenmue for the first time a whopping 15 years after it has come out and rightfully herald it as the classic that it is. Shenmue and its sequel have no equal - there's nothing else out there that can be compared to them, and that's why the world still screams out for a third instalment to this day.
petran79
Banned
I didnt even play that game
I got a Dreamcast for the arcade ports, Soulcalibur and Jet Set Radio
regarding storytelling, I was used to the FMV games with real actors on Windows and MS-DOS computers.
so going from real actors to CGI 3D images, was a downgrade really.
I'm a little confused here. You say it's hogwash, but it sounds a lot like you agree with him?
Unless an astounding job was done to update Shenmue's look, I would probably have more confidence in them pulling a Megaman 9 with the sequel tbh. The last thing I need is for it to receive a Halo CE:Anniversary style makeover.
Matesamo
Member
I picked Shenmue up the day it launched and it is one of the few "modern" adventure games that I played through to the finish, I was obsessed with the game and remember the first time I left the house and ran through the village. At the time I had never seen anything like it, it was like I was actually in Japan and it was breath taking and beautiful on my 36 inch tube TV.
The job the article mentions about driving the forklifts hits home as well. I remember getting so annoyed at the game during that point and it took my girlfriend to remind me that it was a JOB I was doing so of course it should not be fun, lol. I would love to explore that world and finish the story if I ever got the chance.
The job the article mentions about driving the forklifts hits home as well. I remember getting so annoyed at the game during that point and it took my girlfriend to remind me that it was a JOB I was doing so of course it should not be fun, lol. I would love to explore that world and finish the story if I ever got the chance.
Your post sounds bit like: "i don't like X game, therefore y'all must be a bit delusional".
Whether someone likes it or not, i think Shenmue is able to carry its reputation on its own, without the need to become a larger symbol for the death of SEGA.
And i'm telling you this as someone who had never owned a SEGA console before or after the Dreamcast, so i wasn't particularly attached to the brand (though i found, on the Dreamcast some of the best gaming experiences i've had, indeed).
Whoa, your opinion about the game you didn't even play is so interesting!
thiscoldblack
Unconfirmed Member
Even at the year 2020, we will still see people asking for more Shenmue.
Why can't Sega release Shenmue I & II in HD and see if sales are good enough to warrant a 3rd and final chapter? I think Suzuki-san will be more than willing to work as a consultant for the project.
EDIT: Loved the piece.
Why can't Sega release Shenmue I & II in HD and see if sales are good enough to warrant a 3rd and final chapter? I think Suzuki-san will be more than willing to work as a consultant for the project.
EDIT: Loved the piece.
TheSpoiler
Member
Shenmue is a great game. It really is. But it's very, very niche. That's just how it rolls, and I like it better that way, but honestly, it's very hard to justify another game.
People always say "DOESN'T SEGA LIKE MONEY?!?!", but that answers their own question - they apparently do, and that's why you haven't seen another Shenmue game in years.
HD re-release? Still costs money. You have to put it back up on the network, redo the textures and shit, etc. None of that is free, and takes quite a bit of work to get up and running.
Then you'd have to hope that people buy the damn HD release and don't scoff it off. Let's face it - it's very hard to get a decent number of people to buy a game like this.
I just don't think Shenmue has the fans to even justify that HD release. It'd take some major tweaking to get even the most hardcore gamers to grace the series, and wouldn't that kinda ruin the whole point of the game(s)?
PirateKing
Junior Member
If it ever happens, now is the perfect time to do it for Wii U exclusive.
MightyHedgehog
Member
Yes, what was the deal with this? Such a tremendous and still mostly unsurpassed foundation for a fully 3D adventure game, IMO, and it's a damned shame it hasn't had the opportunity to be fixed up with the benefit of hindsight, the modern refinements to game design developed over the intervening years, and better current console hardware, in terms of horsepower and modern standards of control. Imagine the ability to eliminate loading pauses, add in dual analog control for better independent movement and camera view, and allow for full-on VF-quality fighting everywhere in its world and not just specific areas meant to handle its performance needs in addition to creating truly bustling streets of people and vehicles.
Also: where are the police in the world of Shenmue, anyway? Pretty sure they were around in 1980s Japan and China.
Remember when SEGA teased that they were going to remake Shenmue 1 and 2? and Skies of Arcadia?
http://www.gamereactor.eu/grtv/?id=27471
And then this screen from this Magazine showed Skies of Arcadia HD?
http://operationrainfall.com/2012/11/27/rumor-skies-of-arcadia-gamereactor/
Then for about two years, news on that is silent.
I have a theory that the poor critical/commercial reception of Aliens: CM fucked up SoA's plans of remaking them, and adding it to the SEGA Heritage lineup.
http://www.gamereactor.eu/grtv/?id=27471
And then this screen from this Magazine showed Skies of Arcadia HD?
http://operationrainfall.com/2012/11/27/rumor-skies-of-arcadia-gamereactor/
Then for about two years, news on that is silent.
I have a theory that the poor critical/commercial reception of Aliens: CM fucked up SoA's plans of remaking them, and adding it to the SEGA Heritage lineup.
It's hogwash though you agree with him. Early PS2 games looked much worse. We had loads more polygons, but tiny framebuffers and simple textures for quite a while.
Shenmue had great consistency and although textures look a bit muddy now, they were more complex and varied than most other console games at the time or soon after.
This is a game I never got to experience. When it came out I was super pressed for time. I remember that it had an English dub on it which really turned me off so I allocated my time elsewhere. I've got more time now though, and I think it might be fun to get into it. I'm still really turned off by the English dub though.
Still looks awesome 15 years later.
No, you. Shenmue will always be remembered because it is an important game. I'll forget your drive-by threadshit by tomorrow.
Speak for yourself. I played it less than a year ago and it's still pretty damn great.
Linkstrikesback
Member
I honestly can't believe that is true in this day and age.
Even if they thought a retail release might not be viable, a digital download is virtually risk free if they'd already completed the games.
petran79
Banned
sometimes you dont even need to play it.
my prediction proved right for GTAV and Last of Us when I got to play them afterwards.
no need to watch a movie or read a comic if you know what you'll expect....
Whilst I agree that there is often no need to watch or play something if there is sufficient information available for you to deduce that you won't like it... I see no reason why you would bother to enter a topic about that game to inform people that did like it of how much it never interested you. What's the point in that? It's not as if you not liking it makes it objectively rubbish and everybody else who did like it needs to realise this...
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