Shenmue I & II Re-releases

Bishie · 12 Jan 2017 at 16:52

I was scouring the web for Shenmue related news and discovered this:

Amid the burgeoning hype for Yu Suzuki's long-awaited and successfully crowdfunded Shenmue 3, Sega—publisher of Shenmue and Shenmue 2—announced it was "investigating" the possibility of remasters for the original games last May. While noting it was "not as simple as porting the games to the current platforms," it appears Sega Europe has since registered the domain names ShenmueHD.com and ShenmueRemastered.com.

Source: http://www.pcgamer.com/shenmue-hd-remaster-domain-names-seemingly-registered-by-sega-europe/

syks · 12 Jan 2017 at 17:29

I LOVED the Shenmue games, the first one was one of the best games ive ever played and the second was amazing as well, I would love to see them remastered to a high standard and released, would defo hope for them to come to pc as well

almoststew1990 · 12 Jan 2017 at 17:50

I don't see what the fuss is about about Shenmue. I bought the first one for my Dreamcast about five years ago and have tried to get into it numerous times but it is just so slow and dull! Just trudging back and forth asking people questions with crap voice acting. There are virtually no tutorials about how the fighting works (I think the game assumes you're up on your virtua fighter techniques).

No doubt it was very impressive for its time but open worlds and story driven games have moved on so much since then that a HD remaster will not make the game good- the graphics are still adequate, and not what the game's problem is!

And I say this as a big dreamcast fan!

syks · 12 Jan 2017 at 17:55

the game didn't have any problem lol i LOVED playing every second of it from start to finish, the story was great and it truly was in a category all of its own

DONOHUE07 · 12 Jan 2017 at 18:41

Don't tease me me with this,

If this is true it's time to leave my family and live in cave with what ever system it's released on

TNA · 12 Jan 2017 at 19:56

Would definitely buy. I enjoyed playing them when they first came out

kinger8938 · 12 Jan 2017 at 22:52

I bought shenmue for my dreamcast earlier in the year but have yet to fire it up! Never played it back then either! At the time it was the most expensive game ever made and almost destroyed them financially

Amatsubu · 12 Jan 2017 at 22:55

I wonder how many Shenmue fans have played the Yakuza series;p

kinger8938 · 12 Jan 2017 at 22:58

Yakuza 0 is getting promising previews! (Ive never played one)

Amatsubu · 12 Jan 2017 at 23:05

I'm a long-standing fan of the series and I'm actually playing 0 in Japanese now. It's a massive game, easily 150+ hours to do everything. A great spiritual successor to Shenmue in a slightly different vein

Also feels very oldschool, which I like, and balances serious moments with fantastically quirky and hilarious substories

Needless to say, this is what you'll be able to do in the game regarding combat in two weeks

:

Not putting all of the heat actions here not to spoil the fun for newcomers

Bishie · 13 Jan 2017 at 01:32

Shenmue is nothing short of a masterpiece. A generation of gamers are beholden to the series. Yakuza doesn't hold a candle to Shenmue's artistry.

Amatsubu · 13 Jan 2017 at 09:25

Bishie said:
Shenmue is nothing short of a masterpiece. A generation of gamers are beholden to the series. Yakuza doesn't hold a candle to Shenmue's artistry.

To each his own. Yakuza has a crapload of fans as well and actually expands on many concepts in Shenmue and is overall the better game. Shenmue just came earlier and is seen through nostalgia glasses. Yeah, it has a more "epic" story. Gameplay mechanics, sidequests, fun factor, and the amount of stuff to do all go to Yakuza. Plus, the story is rather good, albeit a bit cheesy at times (excluding 5).

I love both series but I'm seriously struggling to visualise the gap in quality between Shenmue and Yakuza you're talking about, except the "dreamy" artistic story but that's just an aesthetic choice.

VincentHanna · 13 Jan 2017 at 09:45

almoststew1990 said:
I don't see what the fuss is about about Shenmue. I bought the first one for my Dreamcast about five years ago and have tried to get into it numerous times but it is just so slow and dull! Just trudging back and forth asking people questions with crap voice acting. There are virtually no tutorials about how the fighting works (I think the game assumes you're up on your virtua fighter techniques).

No doubt it was very impressive for its time but open worlds and story driven games have moved on so much since then that a HD remaster will not make the game good- the graphics are still adequate, and not what the game's problem is!

And I say this as a big dreamcast fan!

I played it in 2000 and it was unlike anything else at the time, but I did find it hard to remember fighting combos and there was a lot of interactive stuff that has no bearing on the story (but at the time that was pretty cool)

I think they would need to remake it rather than remaster it though, it really could do with an overhaul in places for a modern gaming audience.

Sprucing up the graphics and keeping the gameplay exactly the same might appeal to the hardcore fans but people like yourself who have struggled with it or those who've never played it just won't see what the fuss is all about.

dacads · 13 Jan 2017 at 09:47

Rofl @ that video, brutal but awesome

cheesyboy · 13 Jan 2017 at 09:51

almoststew1990 said:
I don't see what the fuss is about about Shenmue. I bought the first one for my Dreamcast about five years ago and have tried to get into it numerous times but it is just so slow and dull! Just trudging back and forth asking people questions with crap voice acting. There are virtually no tutorials about how the fighting works (I think the game assumes you're up on your virtua fighter techniques).

No doubt it was very impressive for its time but open worlds and story driven games have moved on so much since then that a HD remaster will not make the game good- the graphics are still adequate, and not what the game's problem is!

And I say this as a big dreamcast fan!

There was simply nothing like it at the time. Now, everything is like it, but more advanced.

The gameplay hasn't held up, because it was never that good in the first place. It was the world and story and the 'newness' of the whole thing.

Of its time.

Columbo · 13 Jan 2017 at 10:38

almoststew1990 said:
I don't see what the fuss is about about Shenmue. I bought the first one for my Dreamcast about five years ago and have tried to get into it numerous times but it is just so slow and dull! Just trudging back and forth asking people questions with crap voice acting. There are virtually no tutorials about how the fighting works (I think the game assumes you're up on your virtua fighter techniques).

No doubt it was very impressive for its time but open worlds and story driven games have moved on so much since then that a HD remaster will not make the game good- the graphics are still adequate, and not what the game's problem is!

And I say this as a big dreamcast fan!

I was the same, saw everyone touching themselves up over it and first time I played it I actually fell asleep with the controller in my hand, second time it was just a bore fest with utterly boring story and garbage voice acting.

Bishie · 13 Jan 2017 at 11:09

Columbo said:
I was the same, saw everyone touching themselves up over it and first time I played it I actually fell asleep with the controller in my hand, second time it was just a bore fest with utterly boring story and garbage voice acting.

Your preference does not detract from the fact that Shenmue was a technical marvel for it's time, and is still commonly regarded as one of best games ever made.
For me, it's up there with the likes of Ocarina of Time, The Elder Scrolls, and the Witcher 3.
I'm a sucker for well crafted open-world adventures!

Columbo · 13 Jan 2017 at 11:24

Bishie said:
Your preference does not detract from the fact that Shenmue was a technical marvel for it's time

Yes it was a 'technical marvel' I agree, but technical marvel a good game does not make.
I also agree with you on Ocarina of Time and Witcher 3 but they have the all important trait of being fun and entertaining which was totally missing from Shenmue.

kinger8938 · 13 Jan 2017 at 12:16

What is Yakuza then? From screenshots and not much knowledge it always looked like a GTA style game? Is that the right idea?

Amatsubu · 13 Jan 2017 at 12:53

Nope, it's actually a far cry from GTA. It's a mix of an open-world story-heavy adventure brawler with rpg elements and lots of side content. In this regard, it's much closer to Shenmue.

It's main focus are street fights, the map is a lot smaller but dense, you can visit shops, eat at restaurants, drink in bars, go to karaoke, play darts/pool/bowling, race RC cars, play arcade classics at Sega game center and other stuff.

In 0, there are even two big side stories involving property management for Kiryu and taking charge of a kyabakura (a sort of a hostess club) for Majima.
There are 100 substories in the full game which are properly hilarious.

There is much more emphasis on the setting and atmosphere.

It's really not similar to GTA at all.

EDIT: The only similarities to GTA I can think of are the perspective and criminal themes (although you don't actually play as an active member of the Yakuza for most of the series)