Thank you for the post. Even though it's not overly positive it's good to see you expand upon what you're talking about, which has been lacking in some posts here. I won't reply to all of it because I will be here for ages but there's a few things I wanted to add/point you in the direction of a topic which you might find interesting based on the above.
The graphics are bad. An overall graphical improvement of the game is needed, from character animations, NPC faces (which convey no emotion and look very still) to inanimate objects. The graphics look like an early PS3/Xbox 360 game. They are not of PS4 quality. Some animations are stiff for sure that's a given. However it doesn't look that bad. Getting something of consistent PS4 quality with the amount of NPC's would have taken a ridiculous amount of resource and I suspect further watered down the game, which is already a little thin on story. I can't see this being patched in.
Ryo’s mouth doesn't move when he enters an area he shouldn't be going to and then backs away saying "maybe I should talk to a few folks around here" etc. This looks very awkward. Agreed but a little nit-picky imo.
When you enter stores and choose to shop, your current inventory amount of items should be shown in the shop game menus as to avoid overspending. Totally agree! This could be patched.
There should be an option in the game when starting a new day to return to yesterday’s exact location before Ryo returned for bed the previous day, as seen in Shenmue 2. Agreed. I missed this.
There should be a statistics page in the pause menu which keeps track of in-game statistics e.g. how many fish caught etc. I had to keep a manual count. Never really considered it until you mentioned it but I agree.
There should be more martial arts mini games other than just Horse Stance, Rooster Steps and One Inch Punch, and they should be more advanced than simple button presses. I personally enjoyed these, barring Horse Stance. I sense within the budget they would have struggled to do much else. However I would have liked a game where you practice your steps like the dude in Bailu. That would be good and be more than single presses and encourage combos etc.
An inclusion of a darts mini-game. Sega does not hold the rights to darts! YES YES YES!
I would have liked to have re-visited some of the paths Ryo and Shenhua traversed from Langiushan to Bailu as seen in Shenmue 2.
A manual time skip feature should be implemented which allows players to skip time to their desired hour of the day. Yes to both!
A return to the Virtua Fighter fighting style including throw moves is much needed. The new fighting mechanics are ok but not as good as the original 2 games. This comes down to preference I think, I liked the new system and they were wanting to implement throws but couldn't due to issues with the Mo-Cap. I prefer the older system from the first two and would love an update version but the new system is perfectly enjoyable. The physics aorund hit detection etc need brushing up but could be patched.
We should have some sort of save file transfer from our Shenmue 1 and 2 HD saves which is compatible with Shenmue 3. I can't ever see this happening, it requires too much cross platform work, I know modders are trying to get it going but given they had to focus attention elsewhere it was a necessary sacrifice I feel.
All DLC should have been included to Kickstarter backers who backed over a certain pledge tier or at the very least the DLC should have been included in the Collector’s Edition/Digital Deluxe and not have required a separate purchase. This is unacceptable. While I get your point, by backing doesn't mean we're entitled to these things. It would, however, have been a good PR move to do so.
Dialogue skip is needed. I can't see if you posted about this.
There's some points eg re Shenhua's house that while again I get your point are down to personal preference, not saying it's wrong but I don't seem them as a big issue personally.
My personal view is that, going through my second play now, Bailu is the better/more developed area. It's clear in my mind that Naiwou got cut somewhere in terms of content, given the abrupt./rushed ending. The game as a whole feels like a concept game and lays foundations for Shenmue 4. I do feel some peoples expectations were way too high (not saying yours were but a general statement) but I agree there should have been more focus on story development, something which Yu Suzuki himself admits is an issue.
I do think we will get Shenmue 4, sales matter of course but given III exists and isn't a bad game (7/10 from Yu himself and that's the review average) it is amazing given the budget ($12million all in with marketing I think, check the recent IGN stuff).
I'd like to guide you to this topic here discussing the while story as a whole, it would be interesting to see your thoughts here too!
https://www.shenmuedojo.com/forum/i...have-we-learned-in-shenmue-i-ii-and-iii.2566/
Finally (after an essay of my own) welcome to the forums. I do hope that given time you re-capture the Shenmue magic and join us for Shenmue 4 or even stay contributing here!