I had to go back and read what I wrote, since I don't remember it. I can't even remember 2019 unless I get specifics. Life became a blur that year, both for good and bad reasons.
When you wait for something for 18 long years, and engage with something so passionately that it becomes a part of your life, it will never hit the high standards you will have set for it. Unfortunately Shenmue 3 will never be a good experience for me to remember due to what I had going on personally, and maybe in a way, that's a good thing since it offers me a genuine excuse. I want to love Shenmue 3 like I do the two original instalments, but I never will. Despite that, I really want to play it again, for the first time since my fateful first playthrough.
As time as went on, I developed a sense of neutrality to the third game. I don't read negative comments about Shenmue 3 and feel personally attacked, as is the nature of being a "fanboy" of something. The simple reason is that I can see the issues raised, even if I don't agree with them. I can also understand the counterarguments for those issues. I guess I just choose not to get involved.
I do, however, feel that the scenario writing of Shenmue 3 did fail. I am not sure how it was discussed or planned out, but it has caused me to wonder why, and I am drawing to the conclusion that in the nature of the Kickstarter, finances, and most importantly, time, that the entire narrative of the game was unfortunately compromised. Just to be clear on this, I am not talking about the overall story of Shenmue, as laid out in the scripts. I am talking about all of the character building, scenario scripting, conversation patterns and emotional pathos within the game itself. Both as a standalone Shenmue 3, as well as references to the two previous games. It should have been fine, especially with Masahiro Yoshimoto on board. I should also stress at this point that when I mention the word scripts, I am not talking as someone in the know. Yes I do have the script sets for the first two games, bit I have not read them, or even translated them to read them in the first place. They are away, under lock and key.
I am just talking about my own opinions, and as an amateur screenwriter. I have dabbled in it over the years, and currently have 4 Doctor Who scripts written, just from imagination (I was simply inspired to do this as a fan of the show, and couldn't believe what the current showrunner/lead writer Chris Chibnall has done to the show. Be thankful Yu-san is still calling the shots to his story, instead of some Muppet coming in and retconning the 20 year lore of Shenmue). It's not easy to write a screenplay at all, honestly. You need to really understand your characters as individuals, their relationship with other characters, and what you want to achieve over the course of your story, both narratively and most importantly, emotionally.
This is where I believe Shenmue 3 dropped the ball. Not on its overall story, but in its character development. The small details. The relationships. The shared emotions, combined with individual characterisation. You could spend months crafting one or two lines which, to a non Shenmue fan, would mean nothing, but to us, would greatly help us feel an attachment in an instant.
A quick example of this is when we arrive in Bailu Village, Ryo can partake in Lucky Hit. He will chat to the vendor, and have a go. Whilst it may seem like nothing, I would have inserted this line;
"Oh. Lucky Hit? I know this game. I played it when I was in Hong Kong".
A simple line, which may seem like nothing, but as someone who has played Shenmue 2, you will instantly think of playing Lucky Hit in Hong Kong or Kowloon. You are taken back to when you, as the player, played the re-release a couple of years ago, or, 15 years ago on your Dreamcast. It makes the player feel like they are right there in Bailu Village with Ryo, but also that they have came along with him on his journey. It also gives Ryo a slight bit of development, in reminicing about past experiences, as well as establishing a little bit of a closer relationship with the vendor, as he isn't some blown in mug tourist who is ripe for a hustle. Check out the YouTube channel by
@BlueMue for ridiculous random NPC dialogue which gives them all character backstory, insight and development. I know we didn't have the budget for that, but for Shenmue 3, it's main character roster should have had this level of dedication.
As a lead in from that, I have to address one more thing which I seen as a problem for even the detachment to characters when they were at least given some individual quality; sidequests.
This would have went a long way to fixing the issue. I did not enjoy the sidequest sectioning of both characters and in the notebook. It pigeon holed their relevancy, demeaning their actual story. Whilst I cannot remember her name, I will just refer to her as the Shrine Maiden. Whilst she shows up to help at the end of the game, it feels out of place, and I don't feel an attachment to her by that point. That is despite having interactions with her both within the main story, as well as a standalone sidequest. The simple solution would have been to marry her sidequest (and all sidequests with significant characters for that matter) into the actual storyline. Whilst it's just a glorified fetch quest, it would have meant so much more to actually be forced to complete that, as part of her story in the game. Make it so you cannot progress without doing that for her. With a few extra lines of dialogue and a bit more care, her relationship with Ryo would feel a lot more natural, and carry more gravitas to her involvement at the Castle. Because her sidequest is tucked away in that section of the notebook once complete, it's just a modern day gaming box checked, and becomes worthless.
Even if it's not done well, the big guy in Lieu He Hall's relationship with Master Bei is an absolute scrape over the line for his reasoning for being at the Castle. He wants to help, even if we don't have any connection to his reasoning. But the Shrine Lady.... It's not hard to give her a little more motivation on an emotional level. I dunno, off the top of my head, give her an estranged brother who she hasn't spoken to in years, because he is a member of the Red Snakes gang. Automatically, she is invested emotionally into Ryo's pursuit of the gang, even if it isn't for the same reasons. We, as a player, are therefore also invested. Not just at a base level, but because it leans itself more to the lore of Shenmue. He will have fallen into the dark path, a choice which is heavily emphasised to Ryo along his journey. It also shares connotations, and teases what has been set up with Xiuying and Ziming in Shenmue 2, and what future events found come in the series. You could do anything with this little addition, which would have great payouts for you as the player.
I could ramble on about this stuff for days but I fear this post is already too long, and doesn't begin to scratch the surface of how I feel about this specific issue with Shenmue 3. It is my only issue with the game, and for me, unfortunately the biggest. I don't have a problem with anything else, even if I recognise others' issues with things like the combat system, voice acting etc. Even without the game being greenlit, the writing for Shenmue 4 better be underway a long time ago, and I am not talking about the major scenes or overall journey. That's already locked in, and should essentially write itself. I am talking about character development and interlinking relationships. Something which the first 2 games excelled in.