Shenmue 3 is all about Shenhua. Many of us who enjoyed Shenmue 3's story did so because of the subtle changes in her character throughout the adventure. From the start of the game to the end, you get these very small snippets of her "power" which is very, very easy to miss. Let's go through them. ...
Nice pictures
... My interest lies, not only in her powers, but her lineage. Where does she come from? Who were her real parents? How did she end up in Bailu? What link is there to previous dynasties? ...
Maybe the puzzles can be solved in Shenmue IV?
... I believe that her name in Chinese mythology was what inspired Yu Suzuky in the creation of her character. There is definitely some connection between her character and the meaning of the name Shenhua in chinese mythology. Here are some links that may shed some light on her character or raise even more questions about her !?
shenhua definition at Chinese.Yabla.com, a free online dictionary with English, Mandarin Chinese, Pinyin, Strokes & Audio. Look it up now!
chinese.yabla.com
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I always feel uncomfortable about Shenhua since knowing her name was being changed, now my concern comes to real. First, I appreciate you and everyone's mindful to Shenhua, and the translation website is very good, your drawings are beautiful too. However, people may not get what we're looking for, meaning of her name. Shenmue is a Japanese game after all, suggested Shenmue is a Japanese word. Shenhua is Chinese and her name is more accurate spelling as Shahua, as suggested in Shenume I, I'm good in Chinese. So, Shenhua is a Japanese word. "Sha" is simply a name, people's name or other things' name, in most cases, without the meaning of god or mythology, unlike Shen does. Shen in Chinese will be 神, not 莎. Sha is usually a name, like the Sha in Shakespeare. I do like Shenhua's name which is originally very artistic, and gentle.
... Shenhua is definitely one of the most fascinating characters in the entire series due to the mysteries surrounding her. What connection does she have to Luoyang, The Mirrors, (if this is still canon) or to Chiyou? Hopefully, if Shenmue continues into the future, we will get an answer to these questions. On a personal level though, I hope the answers given do not take away from the low fantasy vibe the series conveys.
I agree I like Shenhua so much, without her I will probably not buy Shenmue III. Each episode of Shenmue has different girls icon, Shenhua maybe gone in Shenmue IV like Nozomi who knows, or Joy etc.
That's pretty interesting. The traditional form of the third entry ('shinwa' in Japanese) is mainly used in reference to stories of Greek/Norse/etc gods. I'm kind of curious if it's more than mere coincidence. The characters used for her name in game just refer to the flower of the nut sedge plant, as opposed to the sedge tree, "Shenmue." I really like that aspect of those names, that sort of suggests she's like a child of the Shenmue. ...
Shenhua is some form from Shenmue, I like that. Can I make friends with you? I'm not good in Japanese, and there are too many games in Japanese out there, you know
Forgive me for skipping the rest of comment because I'm a Shenmue III newbie, knowing not too much about the game yet, I may need your helps in the future to progress the game so please take care of me