Random Shenmue III Thoughts

@chaikilla I think it's entirely possible that Ren sells Ryo out at some point, whether he's already done so or not. I like a lot of your theories, too. I personally think Ren's double-cross would be coming up, if Niao Sun actually has the phoenix mirror, and Lan Di has the dragon mirror. I agree that Ren basically needs to use Ryo in order to go up against the CYM, to have any chance at claiming the treasure. I also feel like these things would be a major part of the perspective system. My guess is that the plan for Shenmue IV is to focus substantially on the perspectives of the three main characters; That's what the final scene of SIII sort of implied to me.

I know Ren ostensibly just appears in Niaowu, but I don't find it to be all that weird, personally. He mentioned to Ryo that he would meet up with him in Guilin. If we assume that Niaowu is just the most populous area of this semi-fictional Guilin, I think it makes sense for Ren to stop there first before trekking out into the sticks. I don't really see him as much of a fan of rural areas, anyway. I think Niaowu potentially being Ren's initial destination also helps your theory that he might be working with Niao Sun, and that the reason he didn't just go with Ryo to Guilin was to cover for going to report about the phoenix mirror to her. I think it's a little unlikely, but it's an interesting thought.
 

When he says play Shenmue on YouTube, do you think he means the actual game or playing music?
 
I think they’re just having some fun.
 
I feel alone in actually really liking Shenmue III, plot and all. Mostly because what the plot set-up for the future rather than the plot of the game itself.

I mean, the stakes are freaking high. SPOILERS:

Sun has the mirror
Lan Di has been betrayed. What will happen to the Chi You Men???
The Great Wall of China
The mysteries of Shenhua's magic capabilities that are sloooowly being unveiled
The implication of a sweet three-person adventure
Maybe Lan Di and Ryo will have to work TOGETHER to get the mirror from Sun?!

There is a lot to think about.

I think Shenmue III is better than Shenmue I. But Shenmue II is better than III and I combined.

That's just me.
 
Real1 said:
I feel alone in actually really liking Shenmue III, plot and all. Mostly because what the plot set-up for the future rather than the plot of the game itself.

I mean, the stakes are freaking high. SPOILERS:

Sun has the mirror
Lan Di has been betrayed. What will happen to the Chi You Men???
The Great Wall of China
The mysteries of Shenhua's magic capabilities that are sloooowly being unveiled
The implication of a sweet three-person adventure
Maybe Lan Di and Ryo will have to work TOGETHER to get the mirror from Sun?!

There is a lot to think about.

I think Shenmue III is better than Shenmue I. But Shenmue II is better than III and I combined.

That's just me.
Click to expand...

I feel the same way to be honest.

I think if/when Shenmue 4 is announced, more people will warm up to Shenmue 3. Shenmue 3 did what it set out to accomplish, build the relationship between Ryo and Shenhua. The game was all about Shenhua and her story arc. I'd say most of us were expecting it to be all about Lan Di and the Chiyou men, but it wasn't and I think that's where a lot of the frustration comes from.

Its a very risky move suzuki has made, but if he can get Shenmue 4, then it would have paid off massively as Shenmue 3 would be the perfect build up chapter similar to Shenmue 1. Let's hope he factored all of this into his planning

But yeah I like Shenmue 3 more than Shenmue 1. Shenmue 2 is the best though.
 
a. First, my main random thought: do we know if the "very good" song for the alternative wood chopping is from a YS game? Given Van Halen's "Panama" being present/data-mined in the demo--which sounds extremely similar to this tune and corresponds well to Joy's theme as used for "excellent"-- it may well have been a place-holder for the final tune.


b. Lest I double post, also to add my two cents to the plot topic:
I stand by the fact that, in terms of pacing, 3 was just at an awkward spot in terms of plot and it seems, so to speak, perhaps the worst time to have needed a kickstarter/"come back kid" revitalization (I think some game design concession/fan service were made for this very point).
That said, of course it'll serve it's appropriate role in the whole saga. Even though I agree that the game may have suffered from budgetary/temporal limitations, it's still the case that crucial plot advances have occurred, both exterior (further into China, Chi You drama, loss of a mirror), and interior (Ryo and Shenhua, if not Ren).

I think @danielmann861's recent post elsewhere was a sobering hermeneutic point: if these mirrors really are so shrouded in mystery, greed, and confusion, of course we'll get conflicting reports in our "detective work", even in 3. Ryo is relying on people who may claim to know more, but merely may have their own biases in interpretation. (So too, how often do we remind ourselves that the "narrator" of this story is a revenge-focused, hitherto culturally-isolated 18 year old?) None of these people had internet, however banal it is to frame the point. He wants the same answers we do, and we'll get them, in some form, in time.
 
Real1 said:
That's just me.
Click to expand...
It's not just you. I feel the same way.


Nigel said:
a. First, my main random thought: do we know if the "very good" song for the alternative wood chopping is from a YS game? Given Van Halen's "Panama" being present/data-mined in the demo--which sounds extremely similar to this tune and corresponds well to Joy's theme as used for "excellent"-- it may well have been a place-holder for the final tune.
Click to expand...
I've been really curious about that song, because it was the only one of the four that I couldn't place at all, but kept forgetting to ask about it.
Didn't know that about "Panama." That's pretty interesting.
 
Nigel said:
a. First, my main random thought: do we know if the "very good" song for the alternative wood chopping is from a YS game? Given Van Halen's "Panama" being present/data-mined in the demo--which sounds extremely similar to this tune and corresponds well to Joy's theme as used for "excellent"-- it may well have been a place-holder for the final tune.
Click to expand...
It was definitely not a placeholder for anything in the final game.

Comparing the final game to the original backer trial data, no audio tracks that exist in both versions are different. Everything present in the final is 100% the same as the demo. The initial release of the demo had additional music files that corresponded to content that wasn't in any release of the game before the extra files got removed in the demo patch.

Van Halen's Panama was associated with a map not present in any releases of the game, Li River. As you might know, the music that plays during the Niaowu intro is called "The Li River’s Flow" (also Shenmue Saturn video theme). This track was present in the unpatched demo with the same track ID and was the same song as the final game. Does it suggest that the river trip to Niaowu was originally a separate map? I don't know. You're right that Panama was likely a placeholder for something, but it wasn't for anything in the final game because the Li River map doesn't exist. Likewise there are references to the Baisha map which also never made it to the final product, but in the case of Baisha we got no leftover audio, and although there's a folder for Baisha textures the ones present in the final game are there because they were used in other places. Most of the Baisha textures in the final game are part of the cave scene at the beginning.
 
Anyone know the connection between the game Republique and the developer, Camouflaj?

And has anyone played Republique?

I feel like I knew the connection at some point but I've lost that information.
 
Not sure I understand the question. What do you mean about the connection between Camoflauj and Republique? Didn’t Camoflauj develop Republique?

As far as Shenmue 3 is concerned, the lead programmer and supposed CTO of Ys Net worked for Camoflauj. Ryan Payton, who was also involved with Camoflauj and Republique, is also the person who got Yu Suzuki to Kickstarter Shenmue 3. Not sure if that is what you’re asking.

Lead programmer - https://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,755672/
 
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Sorry, I worded that oddly. Yes, Camoflouj did develop Republique. Should have said "connection between Republique/Camoflouj to Shenmue 3"...

But you did answer my question. Ryan Payton. Thank you.

www.mobygames.com

Ryan Payton - MobyGames

Game credits, biography, portraits and other game industry information for Ryan Payton - MobyGames
www.mobygames.com www.mobygames.com
Shenmue III (2019) (This project would not exist if it wasn't for the kindly support of)

I've had Republique in my backlog for ages. Wish I had more time to play games...
 
I still find it pretty weird a 24-25-year-old American is the lead programmer on Shenmue 3. He must be really good at what he does.
 
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