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Shenmue III To Honor Refunds And Open Up The World

Gabriel Stanford-Reisinger 1 Comment

 Shenmue III was part of a controversy as the developer previously refused to offer refunds to those who donated to their Kickstarter. When they changed to an exclusive PC release on Epic Games Store, people in line for a Steam key were left out. But, it seems like that has come to a complete stop. Announced in a post on Kickstarter, the developer, YS NET, updated the community on the game’s future and also that refunds will be available.

Along with Deep Silver and Epic Games, we have agreed that should the above proposal not be acceptable to backers, refund requests will be honored.

It’s important to note that they can’t promise a full refund. These cases include tiers that have in-game content as a reward.

Shenmue III

Some of this game might not have come to fruition if it weren’t for Deep Silver, which has a close tie to Epic Games. With the funding they received from them, they had more money to spend on improving their game. The only true downside is the Epic Games Store exclusivity deal. This caused a mass of people wanting refunds, but never truly getting them. It appears that will change, but we have to wait and find out.

The announcement notified players there will be more cinematic scenes and flashbacks alongside a better open world.

Initially, the Guilin area was to be organized into three areas: Bailu, Choubu (Niaowu), and Baisha, but to accommodate major additions and changes to game elements, Baisha became Fortified Castle area, and focus shifted to expanding Choubu (Niaowu). We have in effect been able to achieve a scale greater than that of Shenmue II and bring the fun of an “open world” to life.

Shenmue III will be released August 27, 2019, for the PS4 and PC (via EGS).

What do you think? Do you think it’s cool that even unachieved stretch goals may be added to the game?

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RUMOR – Shenmue III will be a “Multi-Week” Game

Gabriel Stanford-Reisinger 2 Comments
Shenmue III

Back in August 2018, we reported that Shenmue III will be coming this year. Now, it appears that this newest entry to the franchise will be longer than its precursors. According to a Shenmue Dojo forum post, the game is going to be a “multi-week” adventure, whereas its creator, Yu Suzuki, mentioned the first and second entries to be “single-week” games.

This information, of course, could be false since the translation was done with machine translation, which isn’t always the most reliable. Nevertheless, if it is true, we could be looking a vastly longer game.

The same post also made note of other information, such as side quests. According to the post, side quests are tied more to the story then the first to. This feature was something the team over at Sega AM2 wanted to do with its originals, but the technology wasn’t there at the time.

Shenmue III will release August 27, 2019, on the PS4 and PC.

What do you think? Are you excited to see how this game goes? Do you think it will succeed?

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Gamers, You Had Best Prepare For A Low-Budget Shenmue III

Ben-Dutka 34 Comments

All you Shenmue fans might want to start considering the possibility that you won't get exactly what you want.

After the gaming world erupted during Sony's E3 press conference thanks to the announcement of the Final Fantasy VII Remake , Yu Suzuki wowed everyone again by revealing a Kickstarter campaign for the long-requested Shenmue 3 .

It went on to become the highest-funded video game project on Kickstarter, dragging in $6.3 million. However, that may not be anywhere near enough, as Suzuki has told Eurogamer that he "could use more money" and in fact, he doesn't yet have enough funds to deliver a visually stunning experience:

"I could do with a bit more money. The game itself doesn't have to be gorgeous visually – a lot of the money these days goes into the graphics. If we perhaps compromise on the graphics and put more into the story, we can make a good game. The most important thing, to me is that the game's interesting, and that it's something people want to play."

Developer Ys Net, founded by Suzuki in 2008, will get the assistance of Sony and Shibuya Productions but when you consider that previous entries in the series needed $70 million, and most AAA productions these days need between $50 and $100 million, you have to come to some conclusions. The bottom line is that a measly $6 million is nowhere near enough for any big-time video game these days and while Suzuki could get more, we should probably reconcile ourselves to a certain…inevitability.

Better cross your fingers.

Related Game(s): Shenmue 3

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Shenmue 3: How Receptive Will Young American Gamers Be?

Ben-Dutka 18 Comments

It's the elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about.

It's hardly a secret that the video game industry is drastically different now than it was in Shenmue 's heyday. In fact, one could say we've seen almost a complete reversal.

Japanese games dominated the market not long ago and despite a few remaining blockbusters, that simply isn't the case anymore. When I was a teenager, it didn't really matter if you were intrigued by Japanese culture; if you wanted to play video games, you didn't have much choice. Well, you didn't have much choice with console software; Western developers made bigger splashes sooner on PC.

But these days, we have all kinds of choices. Younger individuals just getting involved in the hobby have no reason whatsoever to indulge in highly Japanese-centric games unless they're interested. They can just keep buying Western-made products that – let's face it – probably appeal more to them. We all know that projects like Shenmue 3 and the Final Fantasy VII Remake will thrive on nostalgia, and the former title set the all-time Kickstarter record ($6.4 million) for games. A great sign, right?

Perhaps. But one has to wonder how consumers under the age of 30 are going to respond, and I also wonder how critics will respond. There are lingering trends in Japanese games that are simply seen as outdated and amateurish these days (and a lot of times, such analyses aren't wrong). If Shenmue 3 retains those old and cherished, yet widely frowned upon, aspects of yesteryear, what will the reviews look like? And is it fair to say that the only way the uninitiated – those who have never heard of the franchise – are going to consider a purchase is if scores are crazy high?

I think all of these questions are worth asking.

Related Game(s): Shenmue 3

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Shenmue 3 Sets All-Time Kickstarter Video Game Record

Ben-Dutka 10 Comments

Well, it won't hit $10 million but it has shattered the previous record, as many anticipated.

The Kickstarter campaign for Yu Suzuki's Shenmue 3 has now earned the most crowdfunded money in history: The project currently sits at $5,618,314 from 62,253 backers with 11 hours remaining.

The original goal of $2 million was eclipsed within hours and while funding died down after the initial spark, the new record has been set. Shenmue 3 has beaten Koji "IGA" Igarashi's Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night campaign, which ultimately brought in $5,545,991. Overall, the new Shenmue 3 is 8th, behind The Veronica Mars Movie Project ($5,702,153), Ouya ($8,596,474), and Exploding Kittens ($8,782,571).

If you're wondering, the highest-grossing crowdfunded project ever was Pebble Time- $20,338,986. WTF.

Related Game(s): Shenmue 3

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Will Shenmue 3 And FFVII Remake Attract Brand New Fans?

Ben-Dutka 16 Comments

Ever since they announced Shenmue 3 and the Final Fantasy VII Remake at E3, I've been wondering:

Is there any chance these new incarnations can attract the younger generation? In other words, will either game appeal to anybody who is unfamiliar? If you never played the original games, what are the chances that you're going to care?

I guess there's a slim chance. Square Enix has already said the FFVII remake won't be the same game , which probably means they're planning some real-time action-oriented mess that doesn't even remotely resemble an RPG. But whatever. It's what they do. As for Yu Suzuki and Co., I think they might produce something that's closer to the original game(s); it might be better that it didn't hit the $10 million goal, actually.

If Square Enix wrecks FFVII, nobody will want it. The fans will just ignore it and try to pretend it doesn't exist, while newcomers will only see "Final Fantasy" in the title and likely be scared off. If you want the action crowd, it's hard to convince them to buy a franchise they've always associated with role-playing, no matter how flashy and bombastic you can make it. As for Shenmue 3 , I have a bad feeling it can only be effectively marketed towards Japanese gamers. Young American gamers will only see "some old Japanese game" they don't care about.

But who knows, right?

Related Game(s): Final Fantasy VII Remake, Shenmue 3

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