Random Shenmue III Thoughts

I watched Adam Koralik's Shenmue III review video today and he brought up a very interesting point near the end of his review. He states that when he was in Japan, the High-Definition re-release of the first two titles had a massive marketing campaign. What makes his video even more interesting is that when he was in Japan, he noticed that Shenmue III did not have a huge marketing campaign. And he went all over Japan even to infamous spots such as Akihabara the Otaku capital of the world. Yet, noticed no marketing for Shenmue III, and the stores that did sell Shenmue III had about three copies to their name.

Now, this could be for a multitude of reasons but when you take all those variables into account, selling eighteen thousand copies is impressive. That could be the very reason that we are getting the Shenmue anime. If Shenmue is not going to sell as a mainstream series, then it can still sell as a profitable niche franchise. And there are plenty of titles that do just that; ask anyone who plays the Atelier series from Koei Tecmo. This motivates me even more to support the upcoming anime and its merchandise.

 
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Oof, don't want to open that can of worms again haha! What I will say is that I would take SEPW's criticisms more seriously if it wasn't done in a "oh woe is me" sort of way. You think Suzuki kidnapped his dog and torched his house the way he's acting. It's insincerity negates anything relevent he has to say. Also his accent kinda makes my skin crawl (for context, Mark Cousins has a similar accent, but it's rather soothing...probably because he his positive and passionate about cinema).

Sadly, drama = clicks. I honestly don't know how people can live with such negativity; it's draining just reading it let alone creating content for it! I hope the crumbs he makes from ad revenue is worth it. But yeah, a video with two differing views in a sort of debating structure would be quite interesting to watch.

I actually plan to resume playing Shenmue III again later today (I stopped part way through Bailu on a 2nd playthrough last year) and just want to take my time with it.
 
It's weird to think more people played S3 in the past two years than played S2 in the 17 year period between 2001 to 2018, prior to the eventual HD re-release.

Thank goodness for the HD re-release, is all I can say. Without them, S3 sales would've been abysmal, and S1&2 would've been stuck in total obscurity. There would be no anime, and probably no hope for the future.
 
Cedric: Keep the faith

Me: Shenmue IV Confirmed 😆


But talking serious now, i saw this today as well, i want to believe that he is somehow involved with Shenmue IV but he just can't say yet, but i think Shenmue IV will happen. I remember when i saw the interview with Cedric in the Shenmue Dojo YouTube Channel, Cedric said that YS Net did some things about Shenmue IV to show to potential publishers and that what he saw about it was looking good, something like this , i don't remember the exact words.

Maybe i'm too optimistic but i think Shenmue IV will happen, Shenmue III was released after 18 years so Shenmue IV is not impossible, and i think with the anime it will bring even more fans to the community.

In my opinion the Shenmue series is in a better place now than it was in the past.
 
So I finished watching a long running Shenmue I & II Let's Play recently. I really wouldn't recommend it for fans because there are a lot of false assumptions being thrown around, and the two hosts don't pay enough attention to what's going on sometimes...but they occasionally make fair points, and have some interesting opinions on things.

For example, they liked Shenmue overall -- the high points being the characters and atmosphere -- but kind of despised Shenmue II. If it wasn't for Guilin, which they thought was the best part of the game by far, they would've hated it.

They liked that, in S1, the challenge didn't come from navigating confusing environments. They thought the environments in S2, while impressive for their time, made for frustrating gameplay. They understood the "fish out of water" concept, but didn't like it in practice. They thought S1 did character building a lot better.

What's funny is their reaction to Joy and Wong at the end of Kowloon was extremely similar to people's reaction to the fat master and broom girl at the end of S3 -- there was no emotional connection.

And they hated Ren. They were never under the impression that him and Ryo were buddies by the end of S2. I like Ren, but honestly, I have to agree with that.

It reminded me of a much harsher version of Brutalmoose's Let's Plays, who also much preferred S1.

The reason I bring this up here is because it sort of reinforced my view that, actually, I and II share many of the same issues as III when viewed through a modern lense, especially when nostalgia is completely removed from the equation. I've never bought into the idea that III is garbage compared to I & II. I think there are legitimate criticisms of all three, and I can totally see why someone would prefer any one of them over another.
 
I know that those top images were from an old cut village called Miao Village. I'd have to dig the topic up off the old forums but they do share a similar look to Bailu from Shenmue 3.
No way of knowing for sure, as the pictures are from a Muecas update on Shenmue.com where they are said to be from a cut village between Kowloon and the arrival at Langhuishan. They certainly do bear a resemblance, however. The Miao Village loading screen was actually a discovery by LanDC in what I think was What's Shenmue, but I could be wrong.

The old's man name is Rakousei, and is a cut character from Shenmue II. I've compiled a document of information relating to this topic, and you can check it out here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/...ouid=111091275894495953866&rtpof=true&sd=true

Always fun to read through old Dojo material!
 
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So I'm currently in the middle of a 'chilled' 3rd playthrough of S3 (started a new game from my completed Platinum file, with kung-fu at max level and all move scrolls etc), and just finished Bailu - I deliberately made a point of talking to every NPC possible every time Ryo's question changed, to see if there were any notable extra conversations. And there is a surprising amount! Specifically, if you talk to Yang Lihong at certain points in the game, he sometimes asks Ryo questions where you can choose from multiple answers (usually unrelated to whatever Ryo is currently doing in the quest, so was a bit thrown but pleasantly surprised!)

As a reminder, Lihong is the kid in the blue/white striped shirt, generally found in the Sunflower Grove (he's the kid you find in Xu's house when playing hide and seek)
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Try talking to him at these points in the game:
-When Ryo is looking for Panda Market (for a conversation about where babies come from!)
-When Ryo is on his way to meet Shenhua at the Ternary Spring (he will tell you what various women in the village have said about Ryo)

These are the conversations where Ryo can choose multiple responses (and you can keep talking to him again to try all the different responses), but you get some amusing conversations from him at other points in the game as well (for example when you ask him about the Verdant Bridge, he talks about his peeing technique from over the bridge...)

I also found a few other interesting/amusing tidbits from talking to other characters - for example there is an ongoing 'plot' of sorts with Kong Mei where she moans to Ryo about how badly her steamed buns are selling, before she'll answer any of his questions. Eventually, she tells you that they are now selling great after she lied to people that Mao Meimei from the Prize Exchange made them! Also, the abandoned temple where Sun resides was once called 'Bailu Temple', and is in its current state due to the resident monk passing away, and no one taking over.

It's also well worth talking to everyone after you've defeated Yanlang, apparently the news spreads through the village fast! Even Meiyang, who is generally unfriendly to Ryo throughout the game, shows appreciation.

I may attempt to make a YouTube video of the multiple choice Lihong conversations - unless @BlueMue beats me to it, of course :p

I'm not expecting anything too exciting from talking to the Niaowu shopkeepers but will report back anything interesting!
 
I notice on the 500K FB page someone has made a fair comment about Shenmue 3 existing is better than Shenmue 3 not existing at all and of course people come out of the woodwork to say it's shite etc. I think I spent about 5 minutes replying to people until I realised that life's just too short. Starting to feel like groundhog day.

I'm not criticising the original poster, but just the same thing happening again and again. Good grief.
 
I notice on the 500K FB page someone has made a fair comment about Shenmue 3 existing is better than Shenmue 3 not existing at all and of course people come out of the woodwork to say it's shite etc. I think I spent about 5 minutes replying to people until I realised that life's just too short. Starting to feel like groundhog day.

I'm not criticising the original poster, but just the same thing happening again and again. Good grief.
Life is definitely way too short - I'm trying to take a break from social media right now for the sake of my own mental health. I nearly felt the need to argue with someone bashing the whole series on Twitter the other day, but its just not worth it. You're never going to change these people's minds.
 
So I'm currently in the middle of a 'chilled' 3rd playthrough of S3 (started a new game from my completed Platinum file, with kung-fu at max level and all move scrolls etc), and just finished Bailu - I deliberately made a point of talking to every NPC possible every time Ryo's question changed, to see if there were any notable extra conversations. And there is a surprising amount! Specifically, if you talk to Yang Lihong at certain points in the game, he sometimes asks Ryo questions where you can choose from multiple answers (usually unrelated to whatever Ryo is currently doing in the quest, so was a bit thrown but pleasantly surprised!)

That is awesome, I will have to check that out on my next playthrough. I thought in many ways the branching dialogue was a step down from Shenmue 2, where often you could ask about multiple things related to your next objective. I understood why given the budget it would have to be paired down but I’m pleasantly surprised it remains in some form with your conversation with Yang Linong.
 
-When Ryo is looking for Panda Market (for a conversation about where babies come from!)
This was one of my favorite things from my initial play through! That kid is hysterical. My favorite response from Ryo was:
When he starts reciting the beginning of Momotaro, about the peach bobbing up and down along the river. It’s a little like the Japanese equivalent of the stork, but it just sounds a lot funnier to me.
 
So I finished watching a long running Shenmue I & II Let's Play recently. I really wouldn't recommend it for fans because there are a lot of false assumptions being thrown around, and the two hosts don't pay enough attention to what's going on sometimes...but they occasionally make fair points, and have some interesting opinions on things.

For example, they liked Shenmue overall -- the high points being the characters and atmosphere -- but kind of despised Shenmue II. If it wasn't for Guilin, which they thought was the best part of the game by far, they would've hated it.

They liked that, in S1, the challenge didn't come from navigating confusing environments. They thought the environments in S2, while impressive for their time, made for frustrating gameplay. They understood the "fish out of water" concept, but didn't like it in practice. They thought S1 did character building a lot better.

What's funny is their reaction to Joy and Wong at the end of Kowloon was extremely similar to people's reaction to the fat master and broom girl at the end of S3 -- there was no emotional connection.

And they hated Ren. They were never under the impression that him and Ryo were buddies by the end of S2. I like Ren, but honestly, I have to agree with that.

It reminded me of a much harsher version of Brutalmoose's Let's Plays, who also much preferred S1.

The reason I bring this up here is because it sort of reinforced my view that, actually, I and II share many of the same issues as III when viewed through a modern lense, especially when nostalgia is completely removed from the equation. I've never bought into the idea that III is garbage compared to I & II. I think there are legitimate criticisms of all three, and I can totally see why someone would prefer any one of them over another.

Not angry at your post specifically, but yeah, I hate when people just don't get it...

Wong, I can see there not being a super-emotional connection, (as he's a little dick at first and then becomes a nuisance at the end), but Joy and Ren?

Huh?

Did they skip through everything? Did they do any extra stuff? SMH...
 
Interesting that in JP it has a single meta score of 70, whereas if I look it's two scores of 69 / 67.
Missed this before. That's actually one of the Chinese language entries. :sweatsmile:
Not too sure what to make of the language choice--.
 
I noticed some people complaining how they regret backing this game on Facebook.

Shenmue 3 is a far better game than Cyberpunk, if you appreciate its limitations. Again, having Hollywood actors and a ridiculous budget does not make it a good game.

These fans are also getting an anime series. What more can Suzuki do? I hate how they picture him to be this evil villain. We as fans took a risk funding his project. It was that or no Shenmue at all.
 
If we're doing a trip down memory lane...

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Still a more beautiful game than it's given credit for.
 
Ahhh good times. And I made this box art which gained Cedric's approval :cool:

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While they were definitely exciting times, it will always be tainted in my mind by the toxic Kickstarter complaining and obscene mob reaction to the Epic store exclusivity.

Shenmue III had more pre-release hate than any game I've ever seen, and only a small amount of it was related to the game itself.

That was rock bottom for the community in terms of the toxic BS posted on a daily basis. But despite S3 garnering a mixed reception, the launch period was an improvement. Sure, there was an air of disappointment among some fans, but there was also genuine excitement, people figuring the game out, etc. Then, post-launch, things went slightly downhill for a while, with those who disliked S3 basically refusing that anyone could or should enjoy it, there opinion was fact; you could barely post anything positive about S3 without being called out.

But now everything's settled and the anime is on the horizon (and looking amazing), I think this could quite possibly be the best time to be a Shenmue fan since the early 00s.
 
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