We're gonna have to take what we can get

YanTin

YanTin

Joined
Nov 25, 2019
The fourth game is going to be just as difficult to financially secure as the third, and knowing how passionate We and Yu Suzuki are, i think we will make it happen again, but we should at the very least, expect the game to remain very similar in terms of clunky animations, long black screens in and out of conversations and parts of the game getting cut out etc.....We should push for the game itself to be made, and not really push our luck for better mechanics, because then it'll cost millions more that we don't have, and will probably delay the project many years again.

UNLESS......SEGA decides to take on Shenmue 4. That would be a dream come true :giggle:. We wouldn't have to worry this time around about losing the opportunity. I remember when 3 was announced, i was so excited but also terrified, because i always doubted that the game would ever get completed. I reallllllllllly dont wanna go through another like 5 years of not checking up on Ryo and co.

Sorry i started rambling a little. Im just crazy for Shenmue.
 
Shenmue 4 will be better than shenmue 3 and will cost least dont worry yu suzuki already have the engine, he have all the asset, his team and him master the unreal engine now its was not the case back then, he made everything from scratch and that's really impressive with the little budget they got I'm in game developement too so I know what I'm talking about and tbh i think shenmue 3 sell better than what yu suzuki and his team expected just remember an interview Back then he said something like I would love to make shenmue 3 even if it Sell 50 copies I think it's just a matter of time now for a shenmue 4 announcement and the game can only be better if he can get another investor that would be great
 
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well, unless Microsoft steps in and buys YsNet :p joking... but they're going around saying they want to buy Japanese studios now. Of course they wouldn't pick YsNet though. Another daydream is that some of the guys of Rockstar said that they love the Shenmue series and would love to work on that. As I said, equally impossible and actually not necessary... I just want Yu Suzuki to complete his work in the way he feels right
 
Rockstar would DESTROY shenmue lol. They would end up putting businesses into the game and making us have to grind out 50000 hours of gameplay for ryo to scrape pennies, or we could just buy a "Pheonix Card" with real life money.... I could almost see it now.. I am so grateful that a selfish company like them has never even heard of an untouched gem like shenmue
 
Realistic: No direct involvement from Sega. If S4 is made it will be very similar to S3 and likely just be a continuation of the story. No innovations.

Crazy Dream Time: More Sega licensed games and collectibles. VF-style fighting move set (aka like the original games) - Tape Player/Music Test - More interaction animations like Can Machines etc. - Revisiting of S1 or 2 in story or flashbacks - A prequel mini-story DLC where you play as Iwao acquiring the mirrors culminating with an ending that ties into the beginning of S1. 100 man battle. Photo mode like S2 Xbox - Persistent saving incorporated from completed save files of S1/2 HD.

Idiocy Time: Multiplayer/Battle DLC with playable characters from the series - Passport-style game/DLC to track leaderboards/stats similar to S1 Passport on DC with extra/unique content that ties into the main game. Maybe a VMU appreciation/emulator feature. Maybe a feature that lets you play with the character models/animations (If they charged say $20 or similar for this Passport I would be crazy enough to buy it).

I am A Fool Time: Acquire Shenmue Saturn source and make a brief Saturn version of Shenmue for the collector's or folks like me who still play and love Sega Saturn.

Yeah... So there you go lol.
 
At this point I just want more story. Make it like 3 in terms of atmosphere and mini games and give us more narrative and I'll be a happy bunny.
 
Sonoshee said:
At this point I just want more story. Make it like 3 in terms of atmosphere and mini games and give us more narrative and I'll be a happy bunny.
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im gonna be attacked for heresy :whistle: but maybe they need to switch from an 100% open world game (which expensive to make), to a more "on the rails" game/gameplay? Ys could afford to be experimental in the way he is trying to tell the story and could probably tell more of it.... especially if hes struggling with budget. (dont most open world games cost $100m?)
 
red said:
im gonna be attacked for heresy :whistle: but maybe they need to switch from an 100% open world game (which expensive to make), to a more "on the rails" game/gameplay? Ys could afford to be experimental in the way he is trying to tell the story and could probably tell more of it.... especially if hes struggling with budget. (dont most open world games cost $100m?)
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Don't know why you guys want a linear game.

Yu wants to make Shenmue games open world. Allow him to do that.

Shenmue was more about playing a game that it's world felt alive rather than a game with great story.
 
Dg1995 said:
Don't know why you guys want a linear game.

Yu wants to make Shenmue games open world. Allow him to do that.

Shenmue was more about playing a game that it's world felt alive rather than a game with great story.
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Speaking up on this. One of my fears when Shenmue 3 got kickstarted was it not being open world.

I’m all for more open world. Even if the stories end in a cliffhanger. I’d rather remember Shenmue for the world it offered not just its stories.
 
It's a tough line to straddle for sure, but I completely understand the sentiment that the future of the series should sacrifice some of the "open-worldness" in favour of emphasizing the story, even a linear one.

On one hand it would make for a worse game, but on the other hand this series does need to end at some point. The reason most people wanted Shenmue 3 and now 4 is to continue and ultimately conclude the story. There would be no reason to revive a dead franchise at this point other than to do that.

Dg1995 said:
Don't know why you guys want a linear game.
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I don't think most people want that. I think it's more the realization that Shenmue is never going to be a big budget game again and the future installments may have smaller budgets than Shenmue 3. If the budget is small then compromises have to be made somewhere no matter what. A lot of people, myself included, were not happy that those compromises came from the narrative department.

Would I like that personally, no. But I would still prefer it to not getting an ending to this series at all.

I've said before that when Shenmue is all said and done, whether that be a proper conclusion or a cliffhanger or even a graphic novel or something, I would push for Suzuki to release the original scripts. I really want to know what Shenmue was supposed to be like originally. Then we could all sit back making up the dream game in our heads and wonder what could have been.
 
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gamesbloke said:
Realistic: No direct involvement from Sega. If S4 is made it will be very similar to S3 and likely just be a continuation of the story. No innovations.

Crazy Dream Time: More Sega licensed games and collectibles. VF-style fighting move set (aka like the original games) - Tape Player/Music Test - More interaction animations like Can Machines etc. - Revisiting of S1 or 2 in story or flashbacks - A prequel mini-story DLC where you play as Iwao acquiring the mirrors culminating with an ending that ties into the beginning of S1. 100 man battle. Photo mode like S2 Xbox - Persistent saving incorporated from completed save files of S1/2 HD.

Idiocy Time: Multiplayer/Battle DLC with playable characters from the series - Passport-style game/DLC to track leaderboards/stats similar to S1 Passport on DC with extra/unique content that ties into the main game. Maybe a VMU appreciation/emulator feature. Maybe a feature that lets you play with the character models/animations (If they charged say $20 or similar for this Passport I would be crazy enough to buy it).

I am A Fool Time: Acquire Shenmue Saturn source and make a brief Saturn version of Shenmue for the collector's or folks like me who still play and love Sega Saturn.

Yeah... So there you go lol.
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Dream Scenario: Ryo finds a Sega Saturn in Shenmue IV like in 1 and 3, purchase a game literally titled "Shenmue" at the Tomato Convenience Store and when you put it in the Saturn, you get the actual Shenmue Saturn game. Or even unseen footage of the game would be nice.

Let's speak this into existence guys!
 
My dreamscape now has a sun that shines with a radiance that captivates all the senses: -
darksniper said:
Dream Scenario: Ryo finds a Sega Saturn in Shenmue IV like in 1 and 3, purchase a game literally titled "Shenmue" at the Tomato Convenience Store and when you put it in the Saturn, you get the actual Shenmue Saturn game. Or even unseen footage of the game would be nice.

Let's speak this into existence guys!
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darksniper said:
Dream Scenario: Ryo finds a Sega Saturn in Shenmue IV like in 1 and 3, purchase a game literally titled "Shenmue" at the Tomato Convenience Store and when you put it in the Saturn, you get the actual Shenmue Saturn game. Or even unseen footage of the game would be nice.

Let's speak this into existence guys!
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ditto for Dreamcast Shenmue 3/Shen2 cuts
 
hmjohnny said:
I don't think most people want that. I think it's more the realization that Shenmue is never going to be a big budget game again and the future installments may have smaller budgets than Shenmue 3. If the budget is small then compromises have to be made somewhere no matter what. A lot of people, myself included, were not happy that those compromises came from the narrative department.
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You guys care too much about the story.

Gameplay is the main aspect of Shenmue games. If story was the focus then Yu Sazuki could easily just made some comic book/novel adaptation to end the story instead of making more video game for the Shenmue franchise.

It's called a video game so it has to have a good gameplay.

A story focused Shenmue game without the open world is not a Shenmue game.
 
Dg1995 said:
You guys care too much about the story.

Gameplay is the main aspect of Shenmue games. If story was the focus then Yu Sazuki could easily just made some comic book/novel adaptation to end the story instead of making more video game for the Shenmue franchise.

It's called a video game so it has to have a good gameplay.

A story focused Shenmue game without the open world is not a Shenmue game.
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I completely disagree- 'The story goes on', 'the saga continues'... The reason there was still so much excitement in the industry and the gaming community around S3 when Yu announced at E3 was firstly how unlikely it was but also was the continuation of the story one of the biggest cliffhangers in gaming (heck, even beyond gaming).

To say people care too much about the story is to dismiss the whole reason S3 was backed so strongly by fans and therefore why it even exists!

I've said in other posts that I appreciate gameplay and story go hand in hand but when push comes to shove I think story is the most important aspect of why people wanted S3.

Your comment that ''A story focused Shenmue game without the open world is not a Shenmue game.'' doesn't acknowledge that the narrative and characters form a key part of making it a Shenmue game also.
 
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Dg1995 said:
You guys care too much about the story.
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Joka made a good response already but I want to add to clarify what I meant.

There is really no reason for Shenmue 4 to come out if it is going to sacrifice its story. Ultimately people want closure on the mysteries, the fate of the characters etc. If YSNet were to have a huge budget then of course I would want him to make a great game but that's just not realistic anymore. There is a good possibility that Shenmue 4 will have an even smaller budget than Shenmue 3 so the priority needs to be set.

Ultimately I would be happy if Suzuki made a graphic novel/visual novel or equivalent. Not because that's what I want, but because if it's between that or nothing I want closure to the plot. It's the only reason I care about Shenmue anymore and the reason I backed Shenmue 3.

Discussing/theorizing about the story is also the primary reason I became active again on this forum.
 
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hmjohnny said:
want him to make a great game but that's just not realistic anymore.
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I very much believe Yu can still make a great game out of IV. All the foundations have been laid in III, so all the resources spent learning the engine, developing assets, gameplay, etc could now be allocated to developing the story and giving it more depth. All the groundwork has been done, so IV could very well end up exceeding our expectations.
 
I don't think you can seperate Shenmue's story from the open world experience. The story isn't just about what happens with Lan Di and the mirrors, but about Ryo's journey across China and the experiences he has along the way. I want to see all 11 locations from the concept art map as fully realised playable locations as they have been so far. If we get just the plot segments without the enviroments it would be like watching a movie halfway and then skipping to the ending scene. The story might get "concluded" but that way it will never be fully told.

So far we've seen Yokosuka, Hong Kong, Kowloon, Bailu and Niaowu. That leaves six more locations and realistically I don't think Suzuki can squeeze six chapters into a single game. Therefore, I expect we need Shenmue 4 and 5 with both featuring three of the six remaining chapters. But even if we need two more games instead of one, I would prefer for Suzuki to do all he can to conclude the story properly.
 
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