SEGAbits Shenmue III Hype Train! Update: Funded but lets go further!

[max_cady]

Shenmue as an open-world / sandbox game has been and will always be smaller than something like Grand Theft Auto 3, Red Dead Redemption or Sleeping Dogs.


It's the level of interactions, characters, side stories and from what I understand Shenhua is going to be a companion through most of this game if the ending of S2 is any indication.

[Aki-at]

I did see that, but I'm also catching up on like 6 pages. This topic moves fast.

I also just want to brace for the worst, I feel almost as if he's since been asked to wrap it up in one game, or just wants to because he's not sure if Shenmue IV will ever happen.

Even wrapping it up into two games is cutting a lot. I really hope we don't finish the story in a little Chinese villiage and never get to travel to the Shaolin Temple in the mountains or to the big rolling fields, or wherever he was meant to travel originally.

Either way, once the story is done, I'd love for Yu Suzuki to give us all a run down of what the original vision's story was going to be.

I don't know, Suzuki is a man who never compromises on his vision I feel, very old school and everything. I feel SEGA was even willing to let Suzuki do Shenmue in the PS2 era as long as he could reign in the budget (The fact they still went on to splash cash on Shenmue Online tells you everything) so I feel we'll get at least a couple of games out of this. We know Shenmue was always meant to eventually go down the mystical route and I don't think that can be done in one game.

[Sharky]

Two things:

Mademan, Shenmue wasn't going to be globe spanning, I believe the whole story will take place in Japan, China and maybe Tibet. It's about martial arts at its core, after all. Plus those chapter carts all look as if they take place in Asia.

TA, there isn't 10 chapters left, there is 6. I hope 3 will be told in Shenmue 3 and another 3 in Shenmue 4, eventually...

I'm bracing for a B-list, indie style game if I am honest... But I don't really care much anymore I just want to finish it, though the closer to the originals the better.

[crackdude]

I'm bracing for a B-list, indie style game if I am honest...

Someone playing the first 2 today may feel that way about them.

That is alright. It demonstrates 2 things:
(1) the technological progress in the last 15 years
(2) how Shenmue was advanced for it's time

[MadeManG74]

Two things:

Mademan, Shenmue wasn't going to be globe spanning, I believe the whole story will take place in Japan, China and maybe Tibet. It's about martial arts at its core, after all. Plus those chapter carts all look as if they take place in Asia.

Maybe globe-spanning wasn't the right word, but I meant lots of wildly different locations and environments. From sleepy Japanese town to bustling Hong Kong, Sleazy Kowloon, peaceful rural village, snowy mystic tibetan area, huge temples etc etc.

I also thought I read somewhere that he'd be going to North America in some capacity (which would make sense since Tom and Nozomi were going there right?).

After 15 fucking years, just getting out of the cave will be enough though!

[Pao]

I'm surprised some of you are OK with a game lesser than the first two just so you can finish the story.
For me, Shenmue's plot isn't anything special at all, very standard revenge story you'd see in some Manga/Anime.  What makes Shenmue special is how everything comes together nicely, the combat, story, exploration, world, atmosphere, etc...

If the game turned out actually mediocre, or like Ryan says, an "Indie style" game, I'll be extremely disappointed.

[Sharky]

Na going to the USA is all speculation, I was hearting that way way back but there's no evidence for that and honestly I'd hope it remains in Asia. I think Tom returning to the US and Nazomi to Canada are a way to wrap up their plot lines... Like when your mum told you Rex the pet goldfish went to live in a farm, far, far away where you can never visit, but he's deffo happy; chasing cats and drinking moonshine-- That's America... America is where D-list friends go to die.

Given the Stretch goals mentioning various towns in China I suspect you will encounter at least 3 different Chinese villages in China, one a cold, picturesque mountain village, another an ancient slum looking place.

[MadeManG74]

I'm surprised some of you are OK with a game lesser than the first two just so you can finish the story.
For me, Shenmue's plot isn't anything special at all, very standard revenge story you'd see in some Manga/Anime.  What makes Shenmue special is how everything comes together nicely, the combat, story, exploration, world, atmosphere, etc...

If the game turned out actually mediocre, or like Ryan says, an "Indie style" game, I'll be extremely disappointed.

We just need closure.

Given the Stretch goals mentioning various towns in China I suspect you will encounter at least 3 different Chinese villages in China, one a cold, picturesque mountain village, another an ancient slum looking place.

That would be nice. Where are these stretch goals? I think I missed them, I only saw the mini-game one with 'expanded village'.

[Aki-at]

I'm surprised some of you are OK with a game lesser than the first two just so you can finish the story.
For me, Shenmue's plot isn't anything special at all, very standard revenge story you'd see in some Manga/Anime.  What makes Shenmue special is how everything comes together nicely, the combat, story, exploration, world, atmosphere, etc...

If the game turned out actually mediocre, or like Ryan says, an "Indie style" game, I'll be extremely disappointed.

Totally agree with you on that, Yakuza has it beat easily in both characterisation and plotline but what sets Shenmue apart is the depth of its world and the entire experience. They're both similar games but so very different, one is like Outrun and the other is F355 Challenge.

If it's going to compromise the vision then I'd be disappointed. (I am half expecting to be disappointed)

But worry not! My man Yu Suzuki has compromising photos of Satomi Sr and Hirai that he will use to bribe SEGA and Sony millions to get us the Shenmue we deserve!

We just need closure.

I don't, the good guys win and the bad guys lose. I know that much. I want Shenmue for the experience.

[MadeManG74]

Totally agree with you on that, Yakuza has it beat easily in both characterisation and plotline

Plotline?


Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Yakuza plots are pretty laughably bad if I'm to be honest. Amnesia, rubber bullets, long lost twin brothers, etc. I still love the games and they have fun plots, but oh my god it's the dumbest shit ever. I guess that's part of the idea though. I think you described it as a soap opera for men (that isn't pro rasslin)

Characterisation I'll give you though.

I don't, the good guys win and the bad guys lose. I know that much. I want Shenmue for the experience.

I didn't mean so much for the storyline itself as the what happens with the games and the series. Just having it kind of in limbo for so long was painful.

Obviously we all want the unique gameplay experience to come back, but even if it captures only part of what made the first two special it'll be great for a lot of fans.

[segaismysavior]

The faces look like fan made models.

Here's why Ryo looks weird:

1) Ryo now has more realistic features. Rather than creating a face based on just vertex positions and edge connections, this model is also digitally sculpted to add cheekbone, laugh-line, jawbone, and chin definition. He is less chubby-looking in the face because they have better character creation toolsets to work with today. It is a stranger face than we're used to, but it's not necessarily "lesser" than what came before it.

2) Unreal 4 has real-time lighting and shadowing, the original Shenmue games only had vertex lighting and shader tricks on characters to quickly simulate shadows. Modern engines generate texture maps to overlay as shadows. The shadows add so much gradation to his face that it only looks wrong cause we're so used to the older model and it's limitations. The new lighting system is likely also brightening his eyes to a hotter brown, cause that's the first thing I see as "off" compared to the original.

3) The texturing is sharper, so there's lots of small details that I can't tell if are meant to be pores or painterly style brush strokes.

4) There might be subsurface scattering in his skin, based on how bright and pink it is versus the unchanging, more yellowish skin from the original games. This simulates how light can enter a surface, such a skin or a leaf, and then brighten up the underlying materials. If you look into a mirror and press a flashlight into the back of your ear, you'll see the light scatter throughout your skin and make it glow bright pink.

These characters do look better, but it'll take a while to adjust to them since they've been updated to modern standards.

[Aki-at]

Plotline?

Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Yakuza plots are pretty laughably bad if I'm to be honest. Amnesia, rubber bullets, long lost twin brothers, etc. I still love the games and they have fun plots, but oh my god it's the dumbest shit ever. I guess that's part of the idea though. I think you described it as a soap opera for men (that isn't pro rasslin)

Characterisation I'll give you though.

It's a soap opera for men but even so, it's got a much better story structure and plotline than Shenmue. The two don't even really compare.

Stuff can be crazy but as long as it's in the realm of the universe then it's fine. Watchman for example is a fantastic plotline but are we really going to say the stuff that happens in it isn't shit crazy and actually farfetched, but if it fits in the realm of the universe what's wrong with it? Stuff like Batman Begins and The Dark Knight get away with logic but it fits in the what the universe is portraying so nothing wrong with it : P

I didn't mean so much for the storyline itself as the what happens with the games and the series. Just having it kind of in limbo for so long was painful.

Obviously we all want the unique gameplay experience to come back, but even if it captures only part of what made the first two special it'll be great for a lot of fans.

Even so without the gameplay being everything it should be it would be a massive disappointment. I have faith in Yu to deliever and even if he doesn't game of the forever Yakuza 5 still exists.

[Pao]

Here's why Ryo looks weird:

I think it's just a bad model.

[Centrale]

The new lighting system is likely also brightening his eyes to a hotter brown, cause that's the first thing I see as "off" compared to the original.

This is the first thing that jumped out at me, too. But if you look at the image of Ryo on the back of the Xbox Shenmue II box, you can see a similar coloration of his eyes.

The proportions of the features seem a bit different. But ultimately they'll get the model dialed in to a better likeness, I'm sure.

BTW, the Kickstarter is now within $15,000 of the $3mil mark.

[MadeManG74]

It's a soap opera for men but even so, it's got a much better story structure and plotline than Shenmue. The two don't even really compare.

Stuff can be crazy but as long as it's in the realm of the universe then it's fine. Watchman for example is a fantastic plotline but are we really going to say the stuff that happens in it isn't shit crazy and actually farfetched, but if it fits in the realm of the universe what's wrong with it? Stuff like Batman Begins and The Dark Knight get away with logic but it fits in the what the universe is portraying so nothing wrong with it : P

Even so without the gameplay being everything it should be it would be a massive disappointment. I have faith in Yu to deliever and even if he doesn't game of the forever Yakuza 5 still exists.

I'm not talking about far-fetched, I'm talking about just plain lazy or bad writing. I guess the tone of the game makes it okay for the most part, since it's really silly and outrageous though.

As I said, I love the games and the characters regardless, and I feel most of the time the plot fits, but I also don't think I would ever describe it as particularly good.

What are you expecting from the gameplay of Shenmue III? I'm already expecting the fighting to be gutted really badly, unfortuantely. If they keep at least the exploration and the QTEs good it'll go a long way.