Regarding your first question :
None of these tiers should count towards final game sales, since they’re directly funding development. Essentially, backers interested in Shenmue 4 should pick up a retail copy of S3.

Somewhat similar topic:
http://www.shenmuedojo.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=48851

This Slacker Backer campaign is a joke that was seemingly spawned from an afterthought.
Talk about wasted potential.

...and don't get me started on Awesome Japan.

Time heals all wound guys, this will pass. Keep the faith.

My faith in Shenmue 3 being an awesome game is unwavering :)

That being said, ignoring AJ’s incompetence hasn’t done anyone any favors. They’re literally the largest source of strife surrounding the project, and they’re bound to f*ck up again in the future if given the chance.

I suppose the only valid question at this point is: could things still be different if another company was to run the campaign tomorrow? …Or are we way past the point of making any real difference (aside from preventing future fiascos)?

I‘m not so sure anymore, to be honest, though if I were in your shoes I would definitely bring up the general topic of “AJ” with Cedric. Don’t be shy: you’re one of the game’s biggest individual backers inquiring over a legitimate concern. Nothing strange there. Unless you end up tripping on something whilst running up to him with your handshake out.

The initial goal was fine; one of the only true ways for the KS campaign to have raised more $$$ would have been to have had a quality company in charge of said campaign. Not Awesome Japan.

A quality company could’ve better sold the idea of a Shenmue revival to the general public, bringing in new fans along the way. Additionally, a Sega-coordinated Shenmue HD announcement would’ve also gone a long way … and could still very well bring the Paypal campaign/extension back from the dead in the future.

As things stand, no one aside from us dedicated superfans would’ve had any real reason to donate to Shenmue III in the first place, so, no, a $3M or $4M initial goal would not have changed anything in the long run, IMO, whereas a $10M minimum goal would've probably failed.

Great conference…but damn is that sketch F*CKING INTENSE!

^ Agreed, I don’t know why voice acting is even mentioned as a point of contention.
The actors were paid 15 years ago, and all of that quality [& questionable quality] voice acting is already owned by Sega.

Chalk up Sega’s cautiousness to licensing issues and fear of financial failure.
(Though, realistically, it wouldn’t exactly take a big investment to digitally release a bare-bones HD port full of Jet-Colas. I hope/ assume Sega has grander plans in mind ;) )

If you’re in no hurry to get the system now, OP, you might as well wait until the holiday season (if not longer) before making your purchase.
By then the standard PS4 will prob, have gotten even cheaper (with larger hard drives), and the Neo will have come out.

iyapol wrote: Seeing as we're all aboard the hype train, how funny would it be if Shenmue III was a no show at PEX? : )

Well, it would be a little funny. And then I would probably start cursing out Awesome Japan to make me feel better.

(It’s always their fault… even when it isn’t)

WTF.

Not even a simple teaser trailer showing off some environments and a Ryo model.
Actually…fuck that…not even a PC reward tier for the Slacker Backer campaign.

It’s hard not to be disappointed.

I sincerely hope they just delay the game for an extra year, especially if there’s so much stuff happening behind the scenes we’re not privy to.

Well...today sure sucked.
I didn't even get my singular announcement courtesy of Joel Tess.

Another case of miscommunication.
Perhaps we as backers will get a year-end update with some new footage/ screens, etc.

In any case, not having planned to capitalize on the PSX opportunity....is just....retarded.

I expect “something” substantial to be shown at E3. Whether it’s a full trailer, a playable demo, or just a minute-long teaser, it doesn’t matter. They need to show something at a big game show.

If they don’t do shit, then, at this point, they’re either not interested in game sales, or simply don’t care about generating extra funding for the project.
(spoiler: we lose either way)

With that said, as a backer, I’d appreciate getting a year-end update with some actual progress shown. A couple of environment screens; whatever. Something that caps off the year on an optimistic note.

PS- Shensun- please change the freaking title of this post. It reads like clickbait.
No one likes clickbait.

As long as they have a dual language option, I'm good.

I have Shenmue II on Xbox but I don't have Shenmue because I don't have a Dreamcast I'm waiting for Sega to release that Shenmue I and II HD!

You know, you’re actually a great example as to why we need the HD remasters.

How the freak are we supposed to get people to pledge $$$ when the first 2 games were last seen on a dead system 15 years ago? At this stage, it’s probable no one under 26 has even played the first game.

Get your asses moving, Sega.

The Room is a great movie for all the wrong reasons.
Having said that, I wouldn’t want a sequel anytime soon; being a one-time disaster is what makes the film so good, IMO.

With Shenmue, I have to wonder why some of you are masochistic enough to want not one, but three games filled with shitty acting.

I played S1 in English, and while the dub was atrocious, I can understand why some might be attached to those memories. Then again, nostalgia only works when relegated to the past. Wanting future installments to be filled with laughable acting is…something entirely different.

To each his own, I suppose.

We’ll definitely see Shenmue re-releases at some point. Whether they’re more or less bare-bones ports or not remains to be seen of course, but yeah- someday. Hopefully sooner rather than later, and ideally preceding Shenmue 3’s release (for obvious reasons).

Only thing bugging me is Sega’s complete BS excuse (“licensing issues”- GTFO with that sh*t. Jet Cola, bitches), which means that they either aren’t ready to make an official announcement just yet (hey hey!) ….or simply don’t consider Shenmue to be a priority in any way, shape or form (ie ‘you’ll get them when you get them’).

Either way, they're stalling. Let’s hope they don't disappoint.

can i watch this one or is the original one necessary? :-k

Watching the original should come first. Watch either the Director's Cut, or the Final Cut (the latter being Ridley Scott's preferred version)

Regarding Blade Runner 2049- everything looks amazing. They really found the perfect director in Denis Villeneuve. Full confidence in the flick....as long as Harrison Ford isn't his 21st century grumpy self.

Hot news. Sega is currently investigating the possibility of potentially thinking about considering a would-be release at some point in time.

And revenge.

I'd say it's obviously real. A 4-hr work day using money stockpiled in Yu's garage just sounds accurate to me.

Brilliant translation ;)

To be honest, in hindsight, the original Dec. release date seems all the more puzzling now.

I suspect that Suzuki & co originally low-balled the backer minimum ($2M), almost expecting to make an interactive movie of sorts. The backing then quickly took a legendary turn, with the team now tasked to meet an almost impossible release date. At this point…when do you announce a delay? Certainly not towards the beginning, as the “press” would have jumped all over it.
(I can see the “Shenmue Trouble: Suzuki asks for patience (and money)” headline already.)

All in all, I’d say the timing here was as close to “perfect” as possible.

Then again, perhaps they really did try to meet this impossible release date for the longest time (sleeping at the office/ etc/ etc), before finally giving in to reason and planning ahead accordingly. Who knows.

One thing is for sure: this entire KS has been nothing short of a fascinating experiment.
Whatever happens, it’s been one hell of an exciting ride. For everyone.

…Only thing missing now is that fabled HD remaster announcement ;)

I don't remember when and which exact words Yu said this but if the kickstarter had earned a little more than 2 million only, Shenmue 3 would have been closed to an interactive movie, or a very linear game at least. Way before this, releasing Shenmue III as a comic was even a possibility.

I remember this as well; we certainly dodged a bullet with the $2M 'game'.

A shenmue comic...Jesus...times were certainly desperate for a while.

In their defense, those head injuries were probably caused by consecutive hype trains that derailed ;)

Remember when everyone was universally wowed by Nocon Kid’s awesome remaster?
Had the Shenmue 3 team used a similar Ryo, this debate would be nonexistent.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CLfOOUqUsAAG0z5.jpg:large

It’s especially frustrating knowing that he’s on the team, and yet they’re choosing to go in a completely different direction…which is nowhere near ‘there’ yet.

I was really surprised to see such a long teaser at this point, especially given the big delay that was recently announced.

Still, WIP or not, it felt pretty surreal to watch the video.
It's incredible to see new footage after 15+ years.

Anyway, I think Shenmue fans are understandably happy… but I question how non-fans will take it. Are gamers used to watching incomplete trailers at game shows? Will they even give enough of a shit to realize that this is very much WIP footage? (Not explicitly labeled in the actual video)
It certainly is a ballsy gamble.

Shenmue 3 is a tricky one; everyone’s trying to find their pace, place and space in this crazy KS project.
Baptism by fire.

Assuming all ends well, Shenmue 4 should basically be a breeze development-wise.

I think the main difference may be the audio quality this time around. I remember the audio from the original Shenmue being terribly compressed and muffled, to the point where I switched TVs multiple times thinking it was that.

You're right, but that was only in the English version; the Japanese audio was perfectly crisp, sound-wise.

(Side note- I really hope they pull off dual language tracks this time around.)

Man this is all sounding really good.
Unreal 4 + Deep Silver's investment = we win.

^ That and full voice acting.
A mostly text-based Shenmue just sounds....weird.

Truth be told, I find it hard to believe that, in the 21st century, Suzuki & co wouldn't be able to include full voice acting in the final game. Sure, it probably cost an arm and a leg in the 90's, but come on. We live in a different century now, which should make the process much cheaper, easier and more convenient.

^ That's because this listing is for the retail product.

-If you want to help Shenmue 3, then pre-order a copy via the Slacker Backer
-If you want to fund Shenmue 4, then you need to buy the final (retail) product upon the game's release.

As Shenmue fans, we basically need to do both ;)

However, if Shenmue I and II were released as they were on the Dreamcast then I believe they'd get a perfect score of a 10/10 or at least a 9 or 8/10.

No they wouldn't.
It's a polarizing franchise. Always has been. Porting a 20 year-old game and leaving it 'as is' probably won't make anyone 'see the light' anymore than it would have back in 1999.

It's Shenmue...you either like it or you don't.

Resurrecting this topic, as the movie has not only been released...but is on its way to becoming a cult favorite, much like the original.

As far as I'm concerned, I thought it was flippin' incredible.

Well, I certainly don’t need google translate to make the following assertion:
Shenmue 3 isn’t going to change society.

It is, however, going to be an awesome niche game that this community will love exploring/ picking apart.

…I just hope that the game attracts enough of an outside audience to secure a 4th installment in the series.

I find the Dojo a lot more enjoyable nowadays, to be honest. Sure there are less discussions (reflecting the overall lack of updates), but at least the vibe is easygoing and pleasant again.
The toxicity is gone.

Re: the update…well, it’s nothing“new” per se, but proof of life is always good.
I do hope they’ll release something a bit more fun at the end of the year, as a nod to the original release date.

^ Yeah, that was the reasoning...which is kind of retarded.

If YS wants to update the 17 year-old logo of a game that's pretty much nowhere to be found, then I suppose there's some merit to the idea (as much as I hate to admit it)...but then again, Suzuki might also do well to remember that Shenmue's target audience tends to be able to read/write cursive to begin with. Just saying.

^ Yeah
It's a strange decision for Sega to ultimately not fund/publish/etc the game in any way. Regardless as to what the ultimate product may be, I doubt Shenmue 3 would completely "flop".

Shenmue’s voice acting is legendary…in terms of being shit.
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is better
The Room is better.

I feel sorry for all the Xbox owners who had to endure something which warped their experience completely. At least DC owners got a taste of the good stuff when importing Shenmue 2 EU ;)

Whatever…let’s just hope part 3 gives access to both languages on disc…

Saw it finally, and enjoyed it immensely.

Definitely a heavier experience than that of previous films in the franchise, but that only means that a second viewing is in order. Somewhat reminiscent to how The Two Towers made me feel.

I don’t really understand where all the hate is coming from; I suppose a lot are hyperbolizing and nitpicking over where the story/ characters were taken (fair enough), but, in spite of its flaws, you’d really have to be a moof-milker to not recognize the film as a worthy addition to the saga, IMO.

Before Ep. IX comes out, I look forward to seeing what kind of reception the “fans” have in store for Shenmue 3 ;)

I really like the extended trailer!

Re: Magic- It's a microcosmic conference held in Monaco. The only reason it's being (artificially) hyped is because Biscay has a vested interest in the event itself.

Let's hope that bigger and better events will give us more to chew on, in terms of substantial content.

I really like the extended trailer!

Re: Magic- It's a microcosmic conference held in Monaco. The only reason it's being (artificially) hyped is because Biscay has a vested interest in the event itself.

Let's hope that bigger and better events will give us more to chew on, in terms of substantial content.

True. They didn't really show much at last year's either, did they?

I just let myself get hyped up. I figured that because A) It's been in development for 2 and a half years now, B) It's been ages since we've had a real progress update and C) They announced it and hyped it up; that all this meant we would be getting a proper update there. That was my own presumption though :(

Not at all. Your reasons are completely valid; the hype was very real.

I think that some of us may have suspected it in the past… but didn’t really want to believe it until today:
Magic Monaco is basically worthless. With or without Biscay’s BS.

Using the Shenmue 3 campaign to justify the promotion of an event that you are spearheading is fine...as long as you deliver the goods in the end. With 3 stills and a 6 month-old trailer, I'd say we’re pretty f’ing far from that being the case right now.

I feel sorry for those who actually wasted real $$$ to attend this in person.

Well…at least Yu’s getting some vacation time out of this. Good for him :-D

At the same time, the disclaimer clearly states that it's WIP; there's (hopefully) still time to get those updated textures!

That means $23.99 if you live in the US and have a Best Buy gamers' club discount.
Awesome deal.

^ Your Mon Mothma suggestion is great (Laura Dern could’ve filled in for the actress as well); not to mention that as audience members already acquainted with the character, we might have given more of a shit about the Vice Admiral’s decisions and ultimate fate in the end.

A brief Lando appearance would’ve been perfect as well.
Something like:

Finn (who doesn’t know shit as a new member of the ‘resistance’) asks Maz Kanata for help finding a code breaker, who in turn directs him to Lando. After a roughly similar sequence of events on the casino planet, Lando finally pops up and says something like “sure, I’ll help you”… before chucking both Finn and Rose in jail….where they meet Benicio del Toro’s character. The rest is history. Lando is still a cool guy, and Benicio’s character makes more sense all of a sudden.

I’m fine with the sequence in the movie, but something akin to the above would’ve satisfied me more as a longtime fan.

The later the better, especially if Shenmue 3 gets delayed again (which I hope happens).

I want both teams to take their sweet, sweet time with each game in order for us to get the highest quality version possible.

Zooming/cropping is a godawful idea.

Honestly, the only “concern” I have at this point is that Yu Suzuki isn’t involved in these remasters.
Being the architect behind the entire saga, it’s a shame that, for a multitude of reasons, this wasn’t/ couldn’t be the case.

Hopefully, ___ years from now, when the Shenmue saga is completely over and modern times (popular demand?) call for a Shenmue remake, then things will be different. One can hope!