Shenmue III

Opinion: SEGA fans will look back on September 2019 very fondly

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Sometimes you just have to take a moment to appreciate those special moments in fandom. For me, as a longtime SEGA fan, they come infrequently but when they hit they REALLY hit. Standout moments for me include getting my SEGA Genesis bundled with Sonic the Hedgehog during Christmas 1991, buying my Dreamcast with my own money in November 1999, visiting SEGA of America’s (now old) offices in July 2013, interviewing Tom Kalinske and Al Nilsen in 2014 and attending Sonic’s 25th anniversary party in San Diego where I met many members of the fan community for the first time in person. I now can easily say that September 2019 is joining those special SEGA moments.

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Shenmue III Backer Trial Version releasing this weekend

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A Kickstarter update from YS Net has revealed that Kickstarter backers who supported the Backer Trial Version tier will be receiving their PC download codes very soon, this coming weekend to be exact! The trial will come in the form of an Epic Games Store download code, and the trail will be a day in Bailu Village. Players will experience storyline elements, battling, mini games and more. The trial ends when you either defeat a key character in battle or when the in-game time reaches 9 PM. I wonder if Ine-san calls you long distance to scold you?

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TGS 2019: Shenmue 3 “Spirit Of The Land” Trailer

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YS Net shared two new trailers for Shenmue III from Tokyo Game Show 2019 which features the spirit where the long awaited sequel takes place with a great view of beautiful landscapes, the detailed setting of Bailu Village in Guilin and its people. The second trailer is the previous released video in Japanese which can be watched here. Shenmue III is set for November 19, 2019 for Playstation 4 and Epic Game Store.

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Shenmue III will get a Backer Trial Version in September 2019 on Epic Games Store

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It looks like YS NET is now giving us more information on the Shenmue III Trial Version that they promised when the kickstarter launched (if you backed the project at the tier to try it before release). Lots of fans have been upset that YS NET has been pretty hush on the whole ‘beta’ version of the game, but now YS NET says it will be coming out on the second half of September 2019 via the Epic Game Store. The issue here would be that its only for PC, not PlayStation 4? Seems lame for fans who are only playing on PlayStation 4.

According to the site the Shenmue III Backer Trial Version will have a PDF along with the trial download that will guide you through the demo. You play as Ryo in Bailu. It is also confirmed that Trial saves will not transfer over to the full game. The Trial Version will also have a ‘expiration date’, so if you don’t hop on quickly it might expire. The demo is suppose to have at least an hour of gameplay.

Shenmue III is suppose to come out November 19, 2019 on both PlayStation 4 and PC. You know, after all these years.

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Shenmue III will not have a Steam key option on launch for backers

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Poor YS Net has upset some PC fans when they announced a few months ago at E3 2019 that Shenmue III would be Epic Store Exclusive. This lead to people getting upset that after the Kickstarter was done, the studio asked fans what PC service they would want keys on and most people said Steam; it seemed that the studio got a better deal from Epic Games Store.

YS Net has confirmed that there will be four versions of Shenmue III which includes the PlayStation 4 physical, digital and of course the same for PC. But for PC both physical and digital will come with Epic Game Store. But if you want the game on Steam, there will be an option for it if you select ‘delayed steam key’, which means you will have to wait about a year from launch to be able to play it. Yeah, this will obviously piss off backers, especially those that paid extra (100+) for a beta they never got! You can also change the platform to PlayStation 4 if you don’t want to deal with all this nonsense.

But don’t worry, if you are angry YS Net is allowing users to get refunds for Shenmue III backers that expected a Steam Key day one. They still don’t have a way of doing it and will update us on how to request a refund soon. Here is the statement after the jump:

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Shenmue III will only complete 40% of Ryo’s story

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If you funded Shenmue III assuming that we would be getting a closure to a story that we (at least most of us older fans) have been following since early 2000s, but that doesn’t seem the case. We all know that Shenmue was always mean’t to be 11 chapters, but considering budgets and restrains, a lot of us assumed that Yu Suzuki had planned a more condense version of his story. I guess not:

During a interview with USgamer, Yu Suzuki revealed that Shenmue III will be about 40% of Ryo’s story:

“Whole story of this bottle, about here [sic],” Suzuki said via translator. I asked if he meant halfway. “40 percent,”

About the game’s length, Yu Suzuki had this to say in a Reddit AMA:

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SEGA News Bits: Shenmue III E3 Gameplay & Epic Store Exclusive Reaction

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While Shenmue III just got a delay into November, it doesn’t mean that E3 isn’t the biggest event for YS Net and Deep Silver to promote the upcoming kickstarter backed game. We got a ton of news at E3 2019 including a brand new trailer with facial animation, over 13 minutes of gameplay, a new Limited Run Games collector’s edition, and finally the game going Epic Store exclusive on PC. We share our thoughts on all the news, let us know what you think in the comments below.

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Watch 15 minutes of Shenmue III gameplay footage from IGN Japan

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IGN Japan has released two videos showcasing Shenmue III mini-games, training and fighting. The video above features the previously revealed mini-game system of exchanging money for gameplay tokens, and games include lucky hit, turtle racing, a dice game called roll it on top and capsule toys. Despite the runtime of the video, it appears to play twice. After the break, check out practicing and sparring in which Ryo tries out some moves and fights a monk.

The footage very much feels like Shenmue, with sharper visuals of course. Funny how they retained the awkward conversations. What are your thoughts on the new footage? Let us know in the comments below!

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Shenmmue III getting Collector’s Edition from Limited Run Games

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First with the news that the PC version is going exclusive to Epic Game Store, now we have another collectors edition announced, which was part of early Kickstarter pledges. But now we have another, actually very cool looking Collector’s Edition being done by Limited Run games that comes with:

  • The Game (pictured above is PC)
  • Phoenix/Dragon Mirror
  • Five clothing Patches from within the game
  • Sickers from art from the game
  • Light box style lamp

The game will only get 4,000 units on PlayStation 4 and 1,000 units made for PC! Deep Silver has confirmed that all physical copies will have Epic Game Store codes. The Collector’s Edition is also only being sold within North America. AYou can ‘unravel the mystery this November’. What are your thoughts? Are you mad that you backed the game early considering it seems a lot of things are changing?

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Shenmue III is going Epic Store Exclusive on PC

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Shenmue III dropped a new trailer showing off a more completed version of the game, but most people online seemed to be focused on the fact that the trailer showed a Epic Store logo and not a Steam one. As someone that backed the project, I vividly remembered that it said that the PC version would be a Steam key. Will they do what Metro Exodus did and fulfill all Steam pre-orders? Who knows, Shenmue III kickstarter isn’t the best with communication. Here is all they said on it being exclusive:

“The PC Gaming Show just wrapped up with some big news for Shenmue III. The new trailer was unveiled and it was announced Shenmue III for PC will be an Epic Games Store exclusive!“

You would think they would have clarified if all the Kickstarter promised keys would be Epic Game Store keys. It seems the internet is having mixed opinions on this. One side defends the move saying PC gamers just have to download a new launcher, the other side either hates Epic Game Store moves like this or wants the key on Steam as promised for backing the project. As always the PlayStation 4 version will remain unaffected. What do you think?

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Shenmue III delayed to November 19, 2019

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Today, Shenmue III Kickstarter backers received a simple update informing them that the game would be delayed from August 27, 2019 to November 19, 2019. The message also said: “Whilst almost ready, the game simply needs a little more refinement before being truly finished. We feel that the extra time we have will help us deliver the true Shenmue experience players around the world deserve!”

A delay felt almost inevitable, given how little press has gone out for a game that was to be due out in less than three months. At least it isn’t a significant delay, just a little under three months tacked on to the release date. I will admit, I think the content of the updates and lack of any real behind the scenes information has been really disappointing. I don’t doubt that the game is being worked on and will release within 2019, but the amount of information shared with backers and the interaction between the development team and supporters has been really underwhelming. Hopefully as November nears, we learn and see a lot more of the game and see the supposed trial version.

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Famitsu reveals more Shenmue III details and shows the return of the forklift!

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The latest issue of Japan’s Famitsu magazine has a new interview with Yu Suzuki discussing the upcoming Shenmue III, and the highlight is an in-game image of Ryo once again riding a forklift. The website Twinfinite details some of the information Suzuki reveals in the interview, with the focus being on mini games and how the system works in the game. It seems China is once again impacting our entertainment, as the real world strict gambling laws in the country has changed the way mini games function in Shenmue III.

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Shenmue 3 pre-order page up on Amazon

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Its crazy that Shenmue II released on September 6, 2001 for the SEGA Dreamcast. Ever since then, fans have been begging SEGA for a 3rd entry and now, almost 20 years later we have an Amazon pre-order page. I used to tell people Shenmue III would never happen and now I get to eat crow.

The only thing I would complain about is that Deep Silver and YSNet are going to charge full price for a game that was basically kickstarted by fans? I’m OK with them charging what they want, but personally think it should have launched at a reasonable price of $39.99.

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Shenmue III latest trailer finally shows off some gameplay and fully voiced cutscenes

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Shenmue III released the latest trailer that debuted at MAGIC 2019 event. The trailer finally shows off fully voice acted cutscenes, mocapped faces and a tiny bit of the combat gameplay. I have to say, the way this trailer was directed was very close to the originals but I’m still not sold on the face models they are using for this game. The trailer also gives us a very small glimpse at the new fighting mechanics, they look pretty engaging in the trailer and just hope its as engaging when your actually playing.

Outside of that its a lot of mystery still on how Shenmue III‘s open world will work, how the mini-games will play like and a lot more. I guess it should be a interesting few months considering that Shenmue III launches on August 27, 2019. Whats your thoughts on the new Shenmue III trailer?

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Shenmue III shows off new Lan Di model

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YS Net has updated us on Twitter, revealing the brand new model for Lan Di. We got just the screenshot above. It was also revealed that we will be getting a brand new trailer at MAGIC 2019 in Moncao on March 9th.

If you guys didn’t know, Shenmue III is due to release on PlayStation 4 and PC on August 27th. Yeah, not that long away and we still haven’t seen the game running at close to retail level. I guess we shall see what the new Shenmue III trailer brings…

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