Shenmue 4 Dream!

S

SMDzero

Joined
Sep 12, 2019
I just remembered a Shenmue 4 dream I had. Maybe it was technically a Shenmue 3 dream because there was secret story stuff you could uncover in Shenmue 3.

Anyway, I dreamt that we found out more about Lan Di… and that the original Lan Di died 300 years ago and this Lan Di was a reincarnation/ghost. This reveal explained why Lan Di was essentially invunerable.

I don’t know if this seems silly but it was a such a cool reveal in the dream. Like this guy Lan Di who we’ve known about for 25 years but not REALLY known anything about was actually dead all this time. Almost like a scary plot twist.

Anyway, it would be cool and also tie into Shenhuas ancient ancestry as well.

Thoughts?
 
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Not sure.... who's to say anything we've "learned" about Iwao and Zhao is true at all... but at least it was cool to get this huge plot twist about Lan Di.

I mean, learning that Lan Di was raised by the Chi You Men in 3 was nice but not really surprising nor impactful.

In the dream, learning Lan Di was this long dead man who we're fighting the spirit of was a more satisfying plot point at least.
 
I thought the raised by Chi You Men detail was great myself - adds a certain layer of sympathy and relatability to him, whilst emphasising his brutality.

It’d be interesting if he was a ghost or whatever though - suppose time travel of some sort is hinted at a bit if you view things certain ways, guess it couldn’t be totally impossible it could be part of the story…?

I mean. I doubt it! But interesting thought.
 
SPG said:
suppose time travel of some sort is hinted at a bit if you view things certain ways, guess it couldn’t be totally impossible it could be part of the story…?
Click to expand...

I mean, there is that whole thing with the prophecy and all. Who knows.
 
Maybe there’s a reverse prophecy about Lan Di

He shall appear from a far eastern land across the sea, he’s been dead for ages and he’s not happy and he’s going to kill your Dad
 
Well the idea of Lan Di being a man who died 300 years ago could make sense….. 300 years seems more “ancient times” than 75 year old mirrors.

Coincidentally the Qing dynasty began about 300 years ago so it could fit as well. Maybe Lan Di was originally a great warrior/martial arts master who helped the Manchu gain power over China and establish the dynasty?

So many possibilities…. but in my dream this reveal was presented in a very epic/ spooky way.

The reveal we got in S3 that Lan Di was raised by the CYM was a nice detail of the lore and all but I just don’t think it really surprised anyone.
 
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I’ve just done the Hazuki basement bit on this playthrough and anything feels possible just now. White leaf being the most mysterious bit.

I wouldn’t say the raised by CYM surprised me but my first time playing them in full was all three one after the other so didn’t have the time to ruminate on it. Was lucky in that respect.
 
Oh so the first time you ever played Shenmue was after S3 was released?

Lucky indeed.

As a new player did S3 "let you down" after S2 or did it feel like a fulfilling continuation? I suppose you'd have a more objective viewpoint.
 
That’s a bit of a grey area - I had S1 and 2 on DC when they were new BUT I didn’t finish them, I bought the Xbox version of S2 also but didn’t play a lot of it - at that time I lost interest in games in general.

They always hung around as something special but I never did much about it, until we were expecting our first child in 2021, at which point I realised there were certain games I wanted to play properly, given I was aware my free time was going to be quickly limited - Shenmue being something that’d been humming around my brain for the best part of 20 years. So I dug out my half-working Dreamcast and played them, finished them, loved them, bought a PS4 specifically to play S3.

Pardon the long back story, but I dunno whether I’m an old or new fan. But in answer to your question, and coming from a completely blind point of view in terms of S3’s build-up, kickstarter, expectation, whatever:

Shenmue 3 followed the second game perfectly for me, the only gripe I really had on my first play was the story telling was a bit light (note: story telling not story) and I genuinely loved the ending first time around. My second playthrough however pulled at my heart a bit as given the knowledge I’d picked up from the franchise in the interim, I could tell it wasn’t really the intended ending. I don’t think that should detract from the game though, I think that’s just something us fanatics should just sort of swallow, especially at this point - Shenmue 3 is great.

Stamina system - ignored it, walking around was more immersive than running.

Grinding for cash - nonsense if you engage with the game.

Lack of throws - never use em in the first two anyway.

Bit lengthy, but it’s something that always confused me a bit, S3 for me absolutely was Shenmue 3, even if a bit truncated in hindsight.
 
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