Greetings, Shenmue players!
This is what most of you have been waiting for. It's not Shenmue III, though...
It is Shenmue II COMPLETE NOTEBOOK Walkthrough !


UPDATE 2014: Got a low-profile videocard and emulators are running at 60fps! And btw Demul emulates as good as nullDC, if not better.
Anyway, the update covering Disc 2 part will be up in some weeks! Please keep in touch!


Shenmue II Complete Notebook guide became a Walkthrough .
Based on Vector's Shenmue I Complete Notebook guide
To replace Julian's Shenmue II Notebook guide , which was the best and most viewed on internet until now.

Long time no see, I started this work 4 years ago (last time updated on Aug. 25, 2009 (Tue)). It's true that I have given up so many times because the only way I can play this game is on an emulator. I have a notebook on-board graphics card which makes the game lag so bad (runs at 50-60% of speed, most of time). I never got to finish the games on a console before... Even with a lot of lag and bugs, I have been beating the game several times on PC during those years to understand how the notebook works. I DID collect all the entries from the notebook and I have written them all in a ".txt" file like the previous guides above, but Shenmue II notebook can't be guided like that, so I started out again on an upgraded ".pdf" project, where I can provide screenshots and steps with more resources and color, sort of a Walkthrough! If you get any questions about any particular notebook entry, note me right away.

The walkthrough includes, of course, the steps to unlock each entry like Vector did on his guide, but also features:
- tons of screenshots
- notes and hints (save before missing an entry)
- pointing out Xbox text revision on certain pages
- collecting all maps
- collecting all pawnshop flyers
- saving money
- selling at best pawnshops
- different paths with different notebook entries
- secret events
- learning all moves

:arrow: Complete Notebook current progress (as for May, 2013):
Main Entries
|--Disc 1-|-Disc 2--|-Disc 3--|--Disc 4-|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 100% OF THE ENTRIES COLLECTED
||||||||||||| 38% OF THE ENTRIES ON WALKTROUGH

Money Information Entries
|-Disc 1--|-Disc 2--|-Disc 3--|--Disc 4-|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 100% ENTRIES COLLECTED
||||||||||||| 38% OF THE ENTRIES ON WALKTROUGH

Shenmue II COMPLETE NOTEBOOK Walkthrough by Caique
Special thanks to:
- Resident Joel
- Ziming
- Force Vector (writer of complete notebook guide for Shenmue I)
- Julian McKenzie (writer of the first notebook guide for Shenmue II)
- You
Sorry for my English mistakes, I'm foreigner, learning English and Japanese everyday with Shenmue! Note me if you have any suggestions for grammar.

Hope that my efforts make Sega release Shenmue III right away

Comments are welcome!
See you next time

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j290/PeterC2005/fpBZJq9_zpshovs0qau.jpg




GameFAQ Online Guide - HERE






Microsoft Word Download - Shenmue II 100% COMPLETE NOTEBOOK GUIDE.doc






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STORY COMPLETION
|----------|----------|----------|----------|


MONEY INFORMATION COMPLETION
|----------|----------|----------|



TOTAL COMPLETION - 100%

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INTRODUCTION
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Many have tried, all have failed. Since its release, the Shenmue community has STILL to get a full 100% complete notebook guide for Shenmue II. All we have had so far are failed attempts, disappearing acts and a very incomplete notebook with no guide how to complete the entries by Julian McKenzie, which was attempted over 10 years ago. I cannot believe that no one has followed through with completing this project and over the past months I've been itching for a new Shenmue Project to work on. I chatted with Yama briefly, trying to come up with ideas, and whilst some are really good and may be seen in the future, with my technical limitations as well as my time limitations, this seemed fitting for this point in time. I've been researching all attempts gone before for the past month now, and also chatting to some people to gather resources to make sure the necessary ground work has been done before even firing up the game. To ensure the finished document will be absolutely verified, i attained the binary files of the notebook entries, both to aid me fill the notebook, and also to make sure nothing is missing or out of place. So, with that out of the way, lets start the path to completing this!




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100% COMPLETION?
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OK, lets get something out of the way to begin with. Firstly i have never been 100% sure on this but since starting this project i have gotten my answer. The question i have always wondered is:

"Can the Shenmue II notebook be 100% filled?".

Well, it depends what way you look at it. If you mean a notebook with every page filled and no missing entries in your story, then YES it can be 100% filled. You can get entries which skip and block other entries if you are just casually playing through the story-mode, but if you follow my guide you will not miss an entry. However, in terms of EVERY notebook entry being activated then the answer is NO, it cannot be 100% completed. The simple reason for that is because there are instances where there is more than one way to get to a story point. I have called these instances, "VARIABLES", and they occur around 4 or 5 times throughout the game. So, if this is the case, then how can i call this a 100% COMPLETE WALKTHROUGH? Well, that's because i have spent hours and hours of taking notes, and testing out every variable to get their total entries. It may not seem like a big consumption of time that's needed for them, but it is. From failing each button in a QTE sequence to see where it leads, passing a QTE sequence, visiting locations in order to get a complete set of entries, meeting requirements before an event, and not having met those requirments...Its a hugely painstaking process.

Here, take a look:

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j290/PeterC2005/Mobile%20Uploads/20150522_011528_zpshiuvkxiy.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j290/PeterC2005/Mobile%20Uploads/20150522_011603_zpsp5prj050.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j290/PeterC2005/Mobile%20Uploads/20150522_011659_zpscmggyo5o_edit_1432175892191_zpsvpvvk4pz_edit_1432175932260_zpsnzri1uzz.jpg

Not only do i have scrap pages of notes, i have an enlarged replica diary to capture every detail i can. Any time there has been a variable in the storyline, ive had to get the scrap paper out and begin the flow charts. What leads to where, what happens if you do this, what happens in this order or that order, what happens if you have spoken to this person or not.... you get the picture. From the scrap notes, then i have fully written out notes on each variable and what to do if you want to take one path or the other. The notebook entries that appear are usually the same size in terms of their entries to their counterpart variable. What i mean by that, if you take one route that covers 4 lines on one page, then the other will also take up the same page with 4 lines filled. It doesnt affect the overall storyline, but you do get to see some different cutscenes, which may be of interest to some of you who havent experienced all that Shenmue II has to offer.
Another reason that its a painstaking task is because there is one event ive encountered so far where there is a variable within a variable!! So the possibilities that i had to figure out were multiplied. I completed all of those tonight so thankfully thats out of the way. Thats the main piece of information i wanted to address from the beginning, and as the project goes on, i will be adding more notes to this section.




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WHAT TYPE OF GUIDE WILL THIS BE?
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This is NOT a complete Shenmue II guide. There are plenty of those out there. There will be no walkthroughs to unlock Fagmeis birthday, or how to get up to the 3rd floor of the Pine Arcade etc. This is a no BS, straight to the point completion of the notebook. Where to go, who to speak to, what to do, and here is the entry. This will be very much like Force Vectors original Shenmue notebook walkthrough which you can check out HERE , but i should point out that i will not name EVERY person who will reveal a notebook entry like he did. There are just far too many NCPs in Shenmue II, and to be honest, you are just grateful to find the right person to speak to in the first place. As i mentioned above, when it comes to a variable, i will outline each option, and what to do when you have chosen the path you want to take.
Some entries may appear in the notebook ahead of where you are, but thats not something to worry about. You just move onto the next entry and follow its instruction unless i will have told you otherwise.




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COMPLETION TIMEFRAME
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With the foundations laid with the prep work, things have been going smoothly as they can for 2 weeks. I work 2 jobs so its been mostly a few hours late at night and documenting everything in my physical notebook. The pace was picked up on Monday just gone, when i had a minor operation and now have a full 2 weeks off both jobs to recover. That means bored days sitting on the sofa day and night, not even allowed to leave the house since it rains constantly in Ireland and i cant get my dressings wet. That was another reason the timing of the project was perfect. This will stop me going crazy! I am cleared next Wednesday and head to a weekend festival next weekend (29th-31st May) so my aim is to have the project completed, tested and typed up before then. I am putting in 16 hour shifts in on this, and i hope it will come through in time. I cam currently playing 3 save files on the Dreamcast version of Shenmue II, and once i have reached 100%, i will be doing a full speed test run on the Xbox version to make sure everything checks out. I also want to check and make sure the entries are unlocked on a person/location based action, and not amounts of negative comments received beforehand etc. Just basic QA to make sure everything checks out ok on a separate walkthrough, but also as well as on the Xbox.

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And thats it folks! I appreciate any comments, and feel free to discuss anything you have wondered about Shenmue II because i feel like i have seen everything so far, that the game has to offer. Its awesomeness was already at high levels, but with doing this project and seeing how much effort that the development team have put into this game has made it reach favourite game ever levels. I am off to get a few hours sleep before diving back into Kowloon in the morning :P