Random Shenmue Anime Thoughts

How long has the Shenmue anime been in development. Haven't they been developing since the announcement of Shenmue 3. I was hoping the anime would release this year. Man Covid is ruining everything.

#🖕Covid
Iirc, they finalized the deal around the time of S3’s release, not its announcement. Even then, pre-production probably took quite a bit of time; especially as there was no real reason to rush things. People need to remember that while this is a huge deal for us, it’s one of many projects they’re working on and probably one of the least anticipated to boot. It will come when it comes, but I still wonder why they announced it so early.
 
If the anime releases in 2022, maybe it could coincide with a S4 announcement?

In all honesty, I doubt they have any concrete plans either way right now, but I can't imagine a world in which we get S4 next year. If they only had a pitch demo at the start of 2021, 2023 seems like the earliest it could possibly happen, and that's if they've already found a publisher and have got the ball rolling, etc.
 
Ideally it would make sense to try and coincide the anime with Shenmue 4 but development cycles are never certain, especially given all the Covid disruptions over the last year. If one project is ready before the other they'd probably want to release it anyway as soon as possible. The hype generation by the anime or conversely Shenmue 4 is going to generate hype that will only help the other once it finally released.
 
If the anime releases in 2022, maybe it could coincide with a S4 announcement?

In all honesty, I doubt they have any concrete plans either way right now, but I can't imagine a world in which we get S4 next year. If they only had a pitch demo at the start of 2021, 2023 seems like the earliest it could possibly happen, and that's if they've already found a publisher and have got the ball rolling, etc.
I was thinking this too. It reminds me of Persona in a sense. They would do a concert and at the end a new announcement is made. They did a similar thing at the Final Fantasy concerts too. It would make for maximum exposure at any rate!
 
I think a good way to combat having enough airtime for each game would be to have shenmue 1 be shown in 6 episodes and having 2 be another 6 episodes.
That way their’s enough time shown for each game.
 

Kusanagi Background Art VIII (Japanese) Tankobon Softcover​


The 8th in the "Background Art Book Kusanagi" series that conveys the charm of background art. The background image in the animation is not the main character, but the background drawn carefully one by one is more attractive than complimenting the work. Titles to be published (The published works are subject to change) Chapter I Non Non Biyori Chapter II Non Non Biyori Repeat Chapter III Movie Version Non Non Biyori Vacation Chapter IV Konohana Kitan, Chapter V Hakumei And Mikochi.

I recently bought this artbook from a studio called Kusanagi that makes some amazing background art for animes and in it there are some amazing background artwork that reminds me a lot of Shenmue so I decided to share it with you guys because it definitely gives us an idea of how the background art may look like in the upcoming Shenmue Anime series; so enjoy :D .


20210414_165331.jpg

This one reminds of the Hazuki House and also the Dojo.

20210414_165504.jpg

This one reminded me of the outside door to the Hazuki residence.

20210414_165443.jpg

This one reminds me of one of the rooms in the Hazuki residence.

20210414_165410.jpg

The iconic concrete walls in Yamanose and Sakuragaoka.

20210414_165452.jpg

The stairs to the Shrine where we find Megumi with the kitten.

20210414_165610.jpg

This one looks similar to the Shrine.

20210414_165619.jpg

The Hazuki resindence at night.

20210414_165741.jpg

The leafs from the trees in Shenmue 2.

20210414_165839.jpg

Yamanose in the winter with snow.

20210414_165903.jpg

The Hazuki residence with snow.

20210414_165931.jpg

Inside the Bus heading to Yokosuka harbour.


20210414_165950.jpg

The Cherry Blossom Tree next to the Hazuki Dojo.

20210414_170010.jpg

Inside the Hazuki residence.

20210414_170025.jpg

Street of Sakuragaoka !?

20210414_170130.jpg

Sakuragaoka house vibes.

20210414_170137.jpg

One of the restaurants in Dobuita.

20210414_170222.jpg

This reminds of the trunk of the Shenmue Tree.

20210414_170310.jpg

The Koi Pond at the Hazuki residence.

20210414_170330.jpg

Hazuki Dojo exterior.

20210414_170354.jpg

Another room of the Hazuki residence.

20210414_170405.jpg

Nozomi's Room in the Anime !?

20210414_170412.jpg

Another shot of Nozomi's Room !?

20210414_170503.jpg

This one Reminded me of Niaowu in Shenmue 3.

20210414_211417.jpg

Abe Store full of sweets for the kids and gatcha machine at the entrance for Ryo :ROFLMAO: .

20210414_170527.jpg

This one really looks like the outside of the Hazuki Residence.

20210414_170535.jpg

This one looks like the pathway next to the Hazuki house that leads to the Dojo.

20210414_170544.jpg

Another outside view similar to the Hazuki residence complex.


This is the youtube video that made me buy the this artbook.


Kasunagi Studio website link: https://www.kusanagi.co.jp/
 

Kusanagi Background Art VIII (Japanese) Tankobon Softcover​


The 8th in the "Background Art Book Kusanagi" series that conveys the charm of background art. The background image in the animation is not the main character, but the background drawn carefully one by one is more attractive than complimenting the work. Titles to be published (The published works are subject to change) Chapter I Non Non Biyori Chapter II Non Non Biyori Repeat Chapter III Movie Version Non Non Biyori Vacation Chapter IV Konohana Kitan, Chapter V Hakumei And Mikochi.

I recently bought this artbook from a studio called Kusanagi that makes some amazing background art for animes and in it there are some amazing background artwork that reminds me a lot of Shenmue so I decided to share it with you guys because it definitely gives us an idea of how the background art may look like in the upcoming Shenmue Anime series; so enjoy :D .


View attachment 11073

This one reminds of the Hazuki House and also the Dojo.

View attachment 11074

This one reminded me of the outside door to the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11075

This one reminds me of one of the rooms in the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11076

The iconic concrete walls in Yamanose and Sakuragaoka.

View attachment 11077

The stairs to the Shrine where we find Megumi with the kitten.

View attachment 11078

This one looks similar to the Shrine.

View attachment 11079

The Hazuki resindence at night.

View attachment 11081

The leafs from the trees in Shenmue 2.

View attachment 11082

Yamanose in the winter with snow.

View attachment 11083

The Hazuki residence with snow.

View attachment 11084

Inside the Bus heading to Yokosuka harbour.


View attachment 11085

The Cherry Blossom Tree next to the Hazuki Dojo.

View attachment 11086

Inside the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11087

Street of Sakuragaoka !?

View attachment 11088

Sakuragaoka house vibes.

View attachment 11089

One of the restaurants in Dobuita.

View attachment 11090

This reminds of the trunk of the Shenmue Tree.

View attachment 11091

The Koi Pond at the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11092

Hazuki Dojo exterior.

View attachment 11094

Another room of the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11095

Nozomi's Room in the Anime !?

View attachment 11096

Another shot of Nozomi's Room !?

View attachment 11097

This one Reminded me of Niaowu in Shenmue 3.

View attachment 11098

Abe Store full of sweets for the kids and gatcha machine at the entrance for Ryo :ROFLMAO: .

View attachment 11099

This one really looks like the outside of the Hazuki Residence.

View attachment 11100

This one looks like the pathway next to the Hazuki house that leads to the Dojo.

View attachment 11101

Another outside view similar to the Hazuki residence complex.


This is the youtube video that made me buy the this artbook.


Kasunagi Studio website link: https://www.kusanagi.co.jp/

Wow, this is really amazing stuff. I love background art and these are all just beautiful. Definitely shares DNA with Shenmue's environments. Thank you for sharing this, would love to pick these books up.
 
I recently watched through Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation on Crunchyroll, and went from reasonably excited for Shenmue: The Animation, to full of trepidation about the Shenmue story being told in this medium.

For those who aren't aware, PSO2: The Animation was a short-run, 12 episode series that was made by the same group working on Shenmue, and which ties into Episode 4 of PSO2 the game. Episode 4 on its own is a pretty disastrously bad arc in the overall PSO2 story, but it has a couple of redeeming moments with the new characters introduced in it. The Animation takes all the weird 'real-world' Earth people plopping their avatars into the Oracle fleet of PSO2, while thinking it's a game world, and marries it with even more high school drama (TM).

Long story short: I was kind of intrigued initially, because I figured it would show how Matoi, the heroine of PSO2 saved Aika (some random ARKS NPC, don't worry about it) and had to go back into cold sleep while the MC was in a two year cryostasis. It did not in fact particularly show that, and the whole thing was very rushed and aimless. Maybe it's all right for people who like typical high school anime, but that's not what I'm into.

Obviously the director isn't the same as for Shenmue, and it's a very different property all together, but I couldn't help but feel the gulf between how stories can be told in games vs TV series while watching the end of PSO2: The Animation. TV series are so limiting. I'm sort of back to where I started with mild fear of how inappropriate a medium an animated series could be for Shenmue.

After saying all that, earlier today I found a place I can legitimately watch PSO2 Episode Oracle, which was what I was hoping to figure out before I settled on The Animation. Episode Oracle retells the story from Episode 1-3 of PSO2. It's 25 episodes, so they've reworked a lot of things, and the editing is still a bit faster paced than I would like, but so far it seems to be a pretty good adaption. I suppose the other thing that gives me pause is that Episode Oracle came out after The Animation, and Sega tapped Gonzo for its production. So when it really matters, Sega went for a different animation studio--the animation quality still seems a bit cheap to me, though.
 
I recently watched through Phantasy Star Online 2: The Animation on Crunchyroll, and went from reasonably excited for Shenmue: The Animation, to full of trepidation about the Shenmue story being told in this medium.

For those who aren't aware, PSO2: The Animation was a short-run, 12 episode series that was made by the same group working on Shenmue, and which ties into Episode 4 of PSO2 the game. Episode 4 on its own is a pretty disastrously bad arc in the overall PSO2 story, but it has a couple of redeeming moments with the new characters introduced in it. The Animation takes all the weird 'real-world' Earth people plopping their avatars into the Oracle fleet of PSO2, while thinking it's a game world, and marries it with even more high school drama (TM).

Long story short: I was kind of intrigued initially, because I figured it would show how Matoi, the heroine of PSO2 saved Aika (some random ARKS NPC, don't worry about it) and had to go back into cold sleep while the MC was in a two year cryostasis. It did not in fact particularly show that, and the whole thing was very rushed and aimless. Maybe it's all right for people who like typical high school anime, but that's not what I'm into.

Obviously the director isn't the same as for Shenmue, and it's a very different property all together, but I couldn't help but feel the gulf between how stories can be told in games vs TV series while watching the end of PSO2: The Animation. TV series are so limiting. I'm sort of back to where I started with mild fear of how inappropriate a medium an animated series could be for Shenmue.

After saying all that, earlier today I found a place I can legitimately watch PSO2 Episode Oracle, which was what I was hoping to figure out before I settled on The Animation. Episode Oracle retells the story from Episode 1-3 of PSO2. It's 25 episodes, so they've reworked a lot of things, and the editing is still a bit faster paced than I would like, but so far it seems to be a pretty good adaption. I suppose the other thing that gives me pause is that Episode Oracle came out after The Animation, and Sega tapped Gonzo for its production. So when it really matters, Sega went for a different animation studio--the animation quality still seems a bit cheap to me, though.
I think Shenmue can definitely work as an anime, they just need to take their time and have worldbuilding play an essential part instead of speeding through the story (take notes from slice of life animes for Shenmue 1 basically) though sega’s anime adaptations haven’t always been the greatest so that’s a good reason to be skeptical.
 
I think Shenmue can definitely work as an anime, they just need to take their time and have worldbuilding play an essential part instead of speeding through the story (take notes from slice of life animes for Shenmue 1 basically) though sega’s anime adaptations haven’t always been the greatest so that’s a good reason to be skeptical.
If they had 30-40 minute run-times to work with per episode, I might not see it as insurmountable, but chopping things up into what will probably 21 minute episodes-- I'm just not sure I see that working out. Not for me, anyway,
 

Crunchyroll is asking fans their dream “lineup” for VCRX, so thought I’d share it. Shenmue was announced there last year so if were to get any sneak peaks of it this year then it’ll likely be here. Hoping Suzuki makes an appearance here
 
I've been searching for some anime backgrounds that could look like the ones in the Shenmue anime.
Here are few that i've picked up:

Sakuragaoka
19a6af1f8640e8be0d4cfb54b72230e8.jpg

Restaurants in Dobuita.
70ca0694141bd103748fdb81d1b1272d.jpg

Rainy night in Dobuita.
1467d6e25407a09534375393e2eda7a9.jpg

Sakuragaoka.
bc8f1bbd83e4f5df97e69f045b45e9c2.png

Shops in Dobuita.
d373727962ead4226fc82a094cf6eb00.jpg

Dobuita at night.
fd1679fa0176b5f71698c0d3c08c9eb1.jpg

Snowing in Yamanose.
607803591c7d9f7bab1734b934145976.png

Sunny day in Yamanose.
b01ad5a675d17a59582a2b2586d9476a.jpg

Main avenue to Yokosuka Harbour.
45044740022696884bbae8c634a62dba.png

Night in Sakuragaoka.
8bf2187d7280c782990e65cebea806b0.jpg

Sunshine in Dobuita.
ca7d8627f7fe82ac0a1e006836088362.jpg
 
I've been searching for some anime backgrounds that could look like the ones in the Shenmue anime.
Here are few that i've picked up:

Sakuragaoka
View attachment 11246

Restaurants in Dobuita.
View attachment 11247

Rainy night in Dobuita.
View attachment 11248

Sakuragaoka.
View attachment 11249

Shops in Dobuita.
View attachment 11250

Dobuita at night.
View attachment 11251

Snowing in Yamanose.
View attachment 11252

Sunny day in Yamanose.
View attachment 11253

Main avenue to Yokosuka Harbour.
View attachment 11254

Night in Sakuragaoka.
View attachment 11255

Sunshine in Dobuita.
View attachment 11256
That's really cool
 
I can never put my finger on what makes this style of art so... pleasing? It's just plain comforting and even weirdly fauxstalgic to look at. Especially this one for some reason:

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I suspect a lot of it is down to the lighting and colour pallete, but there are definitely other factors at play too.
 
I'm oddly fascinated by what type of weather each of the scenes will have
 
Last edited:

Kusanagi Background Art VIII (Japanese) Tankobon Softcover​


The 8th in the "Background Art Book Kusanagi" series that conveys the charm of background art. The background image in the animation is not the main character, but the background drawn carefully one by one is more attractive than complimenting the work. Titles to be published (The published works are subject to change) Chapter I Non Non Biyori Chapter II Non Non Biyori Repeat Chapter III Movie Version Non Non Biyori Vacation Chapter IV Konohana Kitan, Chapter V Hakumei And Mikochi.

I recently bought this artbook from a studio called Kusanagi that makes some amazing background art for animes and in it there are some amazing background artwork that reminds me a lot of Shenmue so I decided to share it with you guys because it definitely gives us an idea of how the background art may look like in the upcoming Shenmue Anime series; so enjoy :D .


View attachment 11073

This one reminds of the Hazuki House and also the Dojo.

View attachment 11074

This one reminded me of the outside door to the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11075

This one reminds me of one of the rooms in the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11076

The iconic concrete walls in Yamanose and Sakuragaoka.

View attachment 11077

The stairs to the Shrine where we find Megumi with the kitten.

View attachment 11078

This one looks similar to the Shrine.

View attachment 11079

The Hazuki resindence at night.

View attachment 11081

The leafs from the trees in Shenmue 2.

View attachment 11082

Yamanose in the winter with snow.

View attachment 11083

The Hazuki residence with snow.

View attachment 11084

Inside the Bus heading to Yokosuka harbour.


View attachment 11085

The Cherry Blossom Tree next to the Hazuki Dojo.

View attachment 11086

Inside the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11087

Street of Sakuragaoka !?

View attachment 11088

Sakuragaoka house vibes.

View attachment 11089

One of the restaurants in Dobuita.

View attachment 11090

This reminds of the trunk of the Shenmue Tree.

View attachment 11091

The Koi Pond at the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11092

Hazuki Dojo exterior.

View attachment 11094

Another room of the Hazuki residence.

View attachment 11095

Nozomi's Room in the Anime !?

View attachment 11096

Another shot of Nozomi's Room !?

View attachment 11097

This one Reminded me of Niaowu in Shenmue 3.

View attachment 11098

Abe Store full of sweets for the kids and gatcha machine at the entrance for Ryo :ROFLMAO: .

View attachment 11099

This one really looks like the outside of the Hazuki Residence.

View attachment 11100

This one looks like the pathway next to the Hazuki house that leads to the Dojo.

View attachment 11101

Another outside view similar to the Hazuki residence complex.


This is the youtube video that made me buy the this artbook.


Kasunagi Studio website link: https://www.kusanagi.co.jp/
this looks incredibly shenmue !
 
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