Random Shenmue III Thoughts

hyo_razuki said:
If they want to use some of the backer feedback they will get from the demo, I think it will hardly be possible to put that on the disc version of the game and much more likely to be worked into a day 1 patch or a patch which will come out briefly after the release.
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I don't think collecting feedback was ever the intention with the backer trial, only to let fans play it ahead of release. They've had testers playing the game for months now and probably have a good sense of the positives/negatives.
 
yeah i dont think that the backer trial is really for feedback. i mean since 2015 there was not even one survey
or something like that where they asked us about specific things. sure they noticed the feedback for the ingame models,
but they didnt ask us about our opinion, so its possible that they knew that the final models would look different -
with fan feedback or not. thats why i doubt that they will collect any user reports for the demo,
except if a lot of players find something that is clearly broken.
 
People have been playing Shenmue III from outside the development team for years. Collecting feedback has never been an issue, and isn't really the point of the backer trial either.

But that's not to say Ys Net won't be paying attention, and I expect the general temperature of reaction to the backer trial may inform what work gets priority in the final month of development. I don't think very much - if any - of the feedback will be new or surprising to them.
 
Hopefully a bunch of the trolls don't just throw a bunch of destructive and infantile criticism at the backer trial. I could imagine the "refund now crowd" will no doubt change their tune to "lol the demo sucks ass, it plays like a buggy PS1 game", regardless of whether they have even actually played it or if they have received a refund.
 
danielmann861 said:
“I was a Shenmue fan...but because they made this game look like Shenmue for the fans who asked for more Shenmue then I’m gonna act like a pissing moaning baby and take my ball and run. That’ll show ‘em!”

RIIIIIGGGGHHHHT!

Either a troll looking for a rise or a kid who thinks he is so edgy for hating stuff on the internet.
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I don't think he's a troll. He just seems not aware that Yu Suzuki has to cope with the reality. In a perfect world, Shenmue 3 would be more ambitious than it is today, with mind-blowing interaction, great fight animation and faithful continuation of the original artistic direction, competing on par with Death Stranding or Cyberpunk.

It's the eternal schism between classicists and modernists.

On the one side, you have the orthodox who think Shenmue gamed design is perfect as it is, and only needs some subtle innovations and fixes like Shenmue 2 did from Shenmue 1.

On the other side, you have those who think that the formula has room to improvement and feel that game design needs to evolve because Shenmue was synonym of innovation. They want a newer and fresh experience while following the Shenmue and Yu's principles.

We had a quite similar schism in Tomb Raider. Tomb Raider was popular because a lot of people viewed the licence as the main reference in action-adventure genre while other were straight attracted by its realistic approach of platform genre. If Tomb Raider 11 was straightly faithful to Tomb Raider 1.2,3,4 formula, I'm not sure the same people would buy the game. (Btw, I'm not saying old TBs are bad or new ones are good. Tomb Raider 4 on Dreamcast is still a great experience if not the best TB ever made)
 
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Yokosuka said:
I don't think he's a troll. He just seems not aware that Yu Suzuki has to cope with the reality. In a perfect world, Shenmue 3 would be more ambitious than it is today, with mind-blowing interaction, great fight animation and faithful continuation of the original artistic direction, competing on par with Death Stranding or Cyberpunk.

It's the eternal schism between classicists and modernists.

On the one side, you have the orthodox who think Shenmue gamed design is perfect as it is, and only needs some subtle innovations and fixes like Shenmue 2 did from Shenmue 1.

On the other side, you have those who think that the formula has room to improvement and feel that game design needs to evolve because Shenmue was synonym of innovation. They want a newer and fresh experience while following the Shenmue and Yu's principles.
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Long and short of it...I think it’s a case of damned if you do, damned if you don’t (to some degree). Make more Shenmue the way it was known and loved then you’re criticised by those who wanted an evolution. Change Shenmue until it becomes a mere shell of its former self then you piss off the people who wanted more Shenmue. Find a balance between new and old?...now there lies the true challenge.

Yeah, I get that. I've been saying for a while now that I will be happy if one of two things are fulfilled.

1.) They give us more of what I liked about Shenmue
2.) They give me an evolution of Shenmue I know and love.

And from what they've been saying. It does seem to have done that (or at least based on what they've been saying as we haven't seen some of these things yet)

One of the things that I am most interested in is this "Affinity" system that Yu has talked about. How if you spend more time with Shenhua...it will build your relationship and it will change the way people treat you in Bailu. Or if you push her away, it will make you a stranger in paradise. That stuff sounds like an evolution of what they were kind of toying around with in 1 and 2 but never quite achieved. You could kind of build a friendship with Fang Mei in 2 and that was really interesting if not clunky and something I wanted to see refined...so I hope this "Affinity" system builds on this premise.

Based on what we've heard so far...it seems like they're going for a mix of old and new. Or at least ideas they clearly wanted to build upon based on the first two games.

To me, if they get either of the two aforementioned options then they will have achieved what I wanted from it.

But realistically...how evolved could you go with it before it stops feeling like Shenmue and starts feeling like every other game out on the market? Like people always say that Sega should have gave them the Yakuza engine to make Shenmue...but then people would have complained that Shenmue no longer felt like Shenmue and instead felt like a re-skinned Yakuza. How far can you realistically go before it stops feeling like Shenmue and becomes something else?

The guys who made Yooka Laylee had this same problem when it came to reviews. They made what they promised. They made a modern day N64 collect-a-thon....and reviews were somewhat mixed to the idea of its outdated nature...despite the fact that it was exactly what the developers promised and no more. Shenmue III is sort of in that same position...they're giving us more Shenmue but on the one hand, you have to keep it Shenmue or risk losing everything that made Shenmue what it was in pursuit of a modern day audience. I say make the game the fans wanted but also give them something new sprinkled in as an evolution of the formula.

Shenmue does have its own unique flavor. Even if that flavor is seen as outdated by some, it's still the flavor that makes Shenmue what it is....so I don't know how you could evolve it too much without the risk losing that unique flavor it had to begin with.

That's why I think, based on what we've heard so far, they've gone for a blend of old and new. If they can pull it off then I'll be more than happy with what we get. But I do kind of understand the need to see it evolve. I'm sure if it had continued on many years ago, it would have evolved with every new release...they showed that from Shenmue to Shenmue II.

But so much time has passed and so much has come and gone that you're stuck in a position of do we evolve it and lose what made Shenmue or do we make something that is true to Shenmue and please the fans while potentially alienating everyone else?

See Duke Nukem Forever...a game stuck in development hell that had no singular vision behind it. It had so many flavors added to it based upon what was the trend in other contemporary games that it ultimately lost everything that made Duke Nukem in the first place. See the Doom 2016 reboot, Gave us the straight flavor of Doom we all and know love with a little extra sprinkled on top and it was loved by fans for sticking true to its roots.
 
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There will be a serious backlash even if the final game turns out to be a masterpiece in the eyes of critics. Why? Usually the backer's rewards like the collector's edition will only be shipped way after the retail's release of the game. It's typical of any Kickstarter game project. As example I haven't received my Bloodstained rewards yet aside from the copy of the game, even though the retail version has been out for a couple of months already, but no one is really talking about it. But because it's Shenmue 3 it will sure be torches and pitchforks raised, so you all have been warned. There will be a lot of crying. Bring tissues.
 
Guppy said:
There will be a serious backlash even if the final game turns out to be a masterpiece in the eyes of critics. Why? Usually the backer's rewards like the collector's edition will only be shipped way after the retail's release of the game. It's typical of any Kickstarter game project. As example I haven't received my Bloodstained rewards yet aside from the copy of the game, even though the retail version has been out for a couple of months already, but no one is really talking about it. But because it's Shenmue 3 it will sure be torches and pitchforks raised, so you all have been warned. There will be a lot of crying. Bring tissues.
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Nah, I disagree. I doubt anyone (the press at least) will care about that kind of thing once the game is released. Hardly any kickstarter campaigns are mentioned once a game is actually released, especially if it's reasonably decent (which I fully expect Shenmue 3 to be).
 
I have this strange, baseless theory that Chai is going to try to curry the favor of Niao Sun and will do her bidding to gain entry into the Chiyoumen.

Initially, I think he'll be tasked with capturing Shenhua, as per Niao's request. We see Niao's reflection in Shehua's eyes at the end of Shenmue 2 and I think the connection between Niao and Shenhua could parallel Ryo and Lan Di's relationship, with each being responsible for taking away their respective parent.

My theory is that Niao Sun initially intended to capture Shenhua but settled for her father when she discovered that Shenhua wasn't in Bailu village at the time. If the bad ending of 2 is anything to go by, the Chiyoumen have intel on Shenhua's special powers and we even see Lan Di actively seeking Shenhua out to take those powers. Niao Sun could have came to the village for similar reasons to take Shenhua.

This is where Chai comes in. Chai, at the very least, has links to the Chiyoumen, as we know that he was responsible for arranging Lan Di's transportation from Japan to Hong Kong. It therefore isn't out of the realms of possibility that he knows how to find the Chiyoumen higher ups in China, especially with his stalking skills! I think this is where he'll meet Niao Sun, who will instruct him to kidnap Shenhua.

But! Chai will hold back the information about Ryo holding the phoenix mirror back because if he can manage to steal it, we all know that's his gateway to joining the Chiyoumen (well, if the failed warehouse no 8 qte is anything to go by).

Long story short, I think Ryo's gonna (eventually) beat Chai's ass again and thwart his plans. Niao Sun is going to show up, randomly just afterwards and she'll kill Chai on the spot. From the brief description we got of her, we learned that she is 'cruel...and crushes people like bugs'. Once Chai no longer serves a purpose for her, she will dispose of him. I think an introduction like this will reinforce how merciless she (and the chiyoumen leaders) can be to Ryo. Not only that, it will get Chai off Ryo's back for good (which, in my opinion, can only be done if he's killed). A beating isn't enough to put Chai down, if he doesn't die in this game he's going to be stalking Ryo until Shenmue 6 :ROFLMAO:
 
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