My Shenmue 3 impressions (5 hours in)

I will say, having not played the game, if it is truly a "stopgap" or "filler," I'm completely okay with that IF it is because the focus lies heavily on training and Ryo progressing his kung fu/martial arts skills. In S1, he can't even touch Shozo (the homeless guy), and in 2, he can't touch Jianmin, both of whom are older. That's without even mentioning Xiuying, who is clearly way above Ryo in skill. The games make a point of indicating that Ryo is no martial arts master.

That being said, I really didn't expect to get to body Lan Di in this one. However, maybe this isn't what folks are meaning by "not progressing the story."
 
Guys, I want to continue to post impressions and thoughts but with regards to the ending specifically and further chapters can we use the other thread for that discussion? I’ve already shared my thoughts there and still have more to say after letting ending stew overnight.

Another collection of thoughts and observations;

- The rain effects are pretty great in the game. There was a couple of times I was caught in almost a torrential downpour in Niaowu and it looked and sounded fantastic

- Standing on the balcony of
Hotel Niaowu
at the end of the day, just soaking in the scenery and taking in the ambient noise is such a Shenmue moment

- So I was able max out of my stats for Horsedance and One inch Punch. It appears the maximum number is
7 with each number containing 10 levels

- For your attack meter to rise you must spar. The only way you benefit from sparing is having new move scroll to master. Thus you will need to constantly be buying or exchanging items for new move scrolls.

- I don’t know who play tested the QTE sections but reading as other people’s impressions come in, it appears I’m not the only one who repeatedly failed the prompts. The window for press corresponding button is far too short, I hope this can be patched

- I experienced a lot more judder and slowdown in Niaowu. Adding in night lights or rain seems to push the PS4 Pro the hardest. I’m curious how it performs on base machine

- Character pop-in does occur, sometimes I will run by stand or go into store and it will take a moment for shop keeper to appear

- There are a couple of parts in Niaowu you can’t run. For example the Rose
Gardens or corridor at end of the Promenade
I assume this is to mask streaming in new assets
 
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code l name said:
- I don’t know who play tested the QTE sections but reading as other people’s impressions come in, it appears I’m not the only one who repeatedly failed the prompts. The window for press corresponding button is far too short, I hope this can be patched
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Absolutely agree there, the QTEs are pure trial and error most of the time, this will be a big concern for a lot of people who don‘t like this gameplay element in general. As there are a lot of hilarious reactions following a failed QTE, I think to some degree this was done on purpose but it can get annoying at times. At least you are not put to the beginning every time as in the old games.

code l name said:
- I experienced a lot more judder and slowdown in Niaowu. Adding in night lights or rain seems to push the PS4 Pro the hardest. I’m curious how it performs on base machine
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There is no Pro optimization logo on the back of the packaging, the game probably is the same on both consoles.
 
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Do the QTEs also have sound prompts? I recall that being something that was mentioned early on.
 
Seraph87 said:
At least you are not put to the beginning every time as in the old games
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As more impressions roll in it’s clear a lot of players are struggling with how short reaction time window is.

While it’s nice entire sequence isn’t repeated, it’s also disappointing that any error leads to an immediate fail safe. I mean think back to 1999 and Jimmy chase, they already had built in a certain amount of errors you could make and still have a successful chase. It’s one element that does feel inferior to the originals.

There is no Pro optimization logo on the back of the packaging, the game probably is the same on both consoles.
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Correct, at least none that I could see.

mjqjazzbar said:
Do the QTEs also have sound prompts? I recall that being something that was mentioned early on.
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There’s like this flashing noise. The button prompt is in a circle icon which shows timer to successfully pull off button press.
 
Honest question that I've asked a number of times, should I purchase the Death Stranding PS4 Pro Bundle for $432 or just a Pro system alone for $360? My only dilemma is the resale value, because S4 will likely be on PS5, so I'll clearly sell the PS4 when the time comes. Thoughts? I'm not waiting for Black Friday. I just received a email that I received a package. I wanted to wait, but I just can't. I can afford to play it for a couple of hours this weekend.
 
The only game I really failed qtes at was the original yakuza 2 which has weirdly harsh qtes at points, so I'll see how 3 fares with me.

ManoTemple said:
Honest question that I've asked a number of times, should I purchase the Death Stranding PS4 Pro Bundle for $432 or just a Pro system alone for $360? My only dilemma is the resale value, because S4 will likely be on PS5, so I'll clearly sell the PS4 when the time comes. Thoughts? I'm not waiting for Black Friday. I just received a email that I received a package. I wanted to wait, but I just can't. I can afford to play it for a couple of hours this weekend.
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I mean if you want death stranding I guess go for that, the games not for everyone but I think it goes from good but kind of tedious at points start to downright fucking amazing at mid chapter 3 and up.
 
ManoTemple said:
Honest question that I've asked a number of times, should I purchase the Death Stranding PS4 Pro Bundle for $432 or just a Pro system alone for $360? My only dilemma is the resale value, because S4 will likely be on PS5, so I'll clearly sell the PS4 when the time comes. Thoughts? I'm not waiting for Black Friday. I just received a email that I received a package. I wanted to wait, but I just can't. I can afford to play it for a couple of hours this weekend.
Click to expand...

If you have any interest in Death Stranding, I would definitely buy that. It should retain its value more than a regular Pro. However, if you couldn't care less about the game, I wouldn't bother paying the additional 60-70 bucks.
 
Dietsoap said:
I suppose I can forgive them with the 18 year hiatus and all. :p Maybe they wanted to knock all the rust off before going all in with the story again. Let's just do everything in our power to make S4 a reality.
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And this is just it right? Some things are gonna be great, others not so great. But what us Shenmue fans should be (and ARE) capable of is constructively helping make Shenmue 4 a better game. We have the right attitude. Yu and Team can listen to and take on board our feedback (the good and not so good).

We've all played a huge role in bringing this series back and we will play our role again for Shenmue 4 and beyond.
 
Not gonna a lie I'm pretty bummed that so many people got the game early because I couldnt help myself and read all these impressions. Nothing too intense spoiler wise but nonetheless things I wish I discovered on my own, not too mention hearing people are dissatisfied and disappointed. It's my own fault though for coming to the internet. Feels like all that waiting for nothing. Hopefully I can still enjoy the game for what it is. Anyone else feel like that.
 
lol who is disappointed and dissatisfied? it seems like almost everyone is loving it. i mean i know there's some stuff about the ending, but overall I felt the tenor of these threads was pretty optimistic...
 
I think most should’ve known beforehand that 3 wouldn’t bring us this grand-scaled epic, considering it is not even at the “climax,” that is, in the traditional story structure sense (only 40% through). It’s building toward something bigger — Shenmue 4!
 
Truck_1_0_1_ said:
Indeed; if one follows the GDC cards, chapters 4, 5 and 6 give the impression that its fighting and training, with characters being repeated (Lan Di and the Big Brute, along with Shenhua) and the only new person being Niao Sun, who also is in the next chapter card and more prominent.
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This is a great point, actually. Anyways, as one of the weirdos that prefers the autistic minutia and pacing of the first game over the second, I do like the sound of some of the comparisons @code l name has made.
 
Brandon Howard said:
Not gonna a lie I'm pretty bummed that so many people got the game early because I couldnt help myself and read all these impressions.
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I’m genuinely sorry you read more than you would have liked. I think we can attest part of the beauty of Shenmue is finding those small moments on your own. That’s why I’d like to keep this thread for general impressions, observations and thoughts.

Regarding plot intensive discussions, the ending and future chapters are best served by the other thread and boy do I have a lot to get off my chest.

So after you complete
the game you can load essentially new game plus which carries over your Kungfu levels, move scrolls token and money. You can decide starting from Bailu or going straight away to Niaowu

Completely unrelated but I want to see if anyone can get soccer ball from pail toss guy. And if so please write me a guide!
 
Now THAT is a WONDERFUL spoiler; will save a ton of time for the trophies, which will allow future playthroughs to be more relaxed and less worrying about these things.

Excellent.
 
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