Shenmue 3

[Lyris]

Am I really first in here?

My PS4 copy arrived tonight. I Kickstarted this back in 2015 (I remember it well... I was in a hotel room in Florida and was wide awake past the time I should have been, and saw the announcement filter through groggy-eyed on my phone, forked over my credit card details, and then contentedly fell asleep feeling that all was temporarily right with the world) so it's nice to get a game that I already paid for delivered.

->Open Spoiler<-

I'm surprised to see that it targets 60fps, although the performance is by no means rock solid (I'm on a normal PS4, not sure if the Pro would help here). That was a nice surprise since I thought the console version would target 30.

There were times over the last few years that I got worried at how amateurish some of the pre-release footage looked, especially the weird first-ever-look at E3. I'm glad to report that there's not really any trace of that left. The only thing I thought that looked a tad off was Ryo's running animation, where the top half of his body looks almost bolted on to the bottom - I don't know what it is, but there's something not totally right about it that looks almost fan-gamey. Other than that, it's really surprising how familiar it all feels. The fact that the first areas re-use music from Shenmue 2 almost certainly helps ease you in.

Not surprisingly, it plays basically the same way it always has. Although it's a strange feeling being able to run off the predefined paths into the surrounding fields and other areas. It's almost stressful at first realizing how much more area there is to explore, to the extent that I'm glad the game stops you from venturing too far out of where you're supposed to be at the beginning.

It's definitely Shenmue all right! I played through about two days' worth of game time and really enjoyed it so far, before deciding that was enough for one day. I definitely want to savor it and not rush through it. Hopefully we don't have to wait for Shenmue 4 as long as for 3, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

[Neon Ignition]

I don't have this yet, I still haven't even replayed the first two games but I just wanted to savour the moment... I'm writing... in a Shenmue III First Play thread. My god.

[dvdx2]

Any sailors popped up yet?

[Dogg Thang]

I'm currently listening to the Shenmue 3 soundtrack.

Shenmue 3.

Soundtrack.

Could you ever have imagined? I don't want to be overly dramatic but the main Shenmue theme here is bringing me to tears.

[Nu-Eclipse]

Any classic SEGA coin-op easter eggs in this, then?

[Yakumo]

Mine arrived last night. Didn't get stuck in till tonight though. It is pure Shenmue. Liking it so far but I've only played about 2 hours worth.

[Lyris]

It's been shorn of any Sega references as far as I can see, and so far there is no mention of sailors in China. On that note though, one of the NPCs has hinted at something between Shenhua and Ryo and just like always, he is having none of it.

[Adam]

Played this for a couple hours and love it. It's classic Shenmue, even the terrible voice acting is back It feels very odd to be progressing the plot and moving forward you know? I remember being a young man and thinking the paintings in Shenhuas house were the stuff of legend, places from mythology or something. Now I'm there playing dice and chopping wood (and I'm approaching 40). Earned enough money to change Ryos shirt to blue instead of white, and it felt wrong. Kinda got lost figuring out who I was looking for as part of the story as the first area is littered with many other distractions. Fun times.

[Dogg Thang]

Just put it on for a few minutes and it’s a weird feeling starting it. A good feeling. It feels like it’s on the Dreamcast 2. Very true to the original in all kinds of ways. I wish I had got to replay the originals before this but not to worry.

I found an old tweet from the end of 2013 where I say that 2014 will finally be the year that I accept Shenmue 3 is never happening. And look at us now.

[Tobal]

I can't decide between the classic cheesy English or better Japanese but rubbish subs clearly repeating the English va's lines which is quite off putting.