A question here: why this new prototype footage isn't shown to backers yet ???

China is a huge market and he probably had to appeal. I am sure we'll get a better version of this footage soon. Probably during an update. ;-)

Yeh I agree. We will probably see this footage in the next months update :D! I'm so hyped for it, but at the same time I really do not want to spoil anything related to the story for myself. Decisions, decisions...

Well, if you don't feel like reading what I've tried to translate (no real spoilers), here's what we get to know :

- 7PM (map changes)
- 11:30PM (back to Shenhua House) or seems like it

However, we can read Private House on the screen, so we will probably be warped there whenever we reach 11:30PM (outside of missions/infiltration parts), I suppose.

is there any reason though to believe anything chinese would be interested in funding this? china I don't think has evern funded anything gamingwise that isn't chinese

China is getting big into gaming. Offhand, they just bought SNK and have announced a new KOF, and tencent has made plenty of deals with western companies.

Plus, the series itself is a love letter to chinese culture.

so how is that changed now? I doubt it has.

The exact same way that Russia used to be a hotbed of piracy during the exact same time, and now is the top non-western market for digital games in the world. Aggressive, low-cost push by big PC players.

You doubt it's changed? I doubt it hasn't.

Peter 蔡 has responded to my request to join the dojo forums. He says he'll be here tomorrow.
Hello everyone, I am so happy to be here :D :D :D . Shenmue dojo is very famous in Chinese shenmue fans club. Today another member or myself will share some pictures about the conference, such as the gifts and paints.

Who cares that it's not on Xbox One. I own an Xbox one and not a PS4 and it doesn't make a bit of difference to me. Could be released for the Gameboy, and those who are a fan of the franchise will do what's necessary to buy and play this game.

People calm down. :)

There will be an update before the end of the year, I'm pretty sure about that.

If not about Shenmue 3 development (As others, I can easily live with it as far as we know development is on track and goes smoothly. The China conference news are more than positive from this point of view) at least about the Slacker Backer campaign.

Cédric Biscay stated several times that PC rewards will come before the end of the PayPal campaign and there are no reasons so far, not to trust him.

Beside that... I still have some hopes about a Playstation Experience annoucement/update.
This would be a perfect time to give a few more info, about Shenmue 3 or (from the most optimistic angle) even Shenmue HD and give the PayPal campaign, a final boost.

People calm down. :)

There will be an update before the end of the year, I'm pretty sure about that.

If not about Shenmue 3 development (As others, I can easily live with it as far as we know development is on track and goes smoothly. The China conference news are more than positive from this point of view) at least about the Slacker Backer campaign.

Cédric Biscay stated several times that PC rewards will come before the end of the PayPal campaign and there are no reasons so far, not to trust him.

Beside that... I still have some hopes about a Playstation Experience annoucement/update.
This would be a perfect time to give a few more info, about Shenmue 3 or (from the most optimistic angle) even Shenmue HD and give the PayPal campaign, a final boost.

Pretty much this. No need to ask for strict updates on the dot, they are not being performance managed. I'm sure something will be shown at PSX, that's just around the corner.

Why would you do an update now when you can go with more glitz at PSX.

They said roughly once a month, right? Not on the dot.

The game isn't presentable on a big stage yet, rather wait until next year if that means releasing something that will look awesome.

I think Sony wouldn't have minded giving Shenmue 3 some stage time to show a few stills from the 2015 prototype, the short video renders shown in the chinese event, or anything that could increase the public awareness that Shenmue 3 exists and being developed, especially that Shenmue 3 will be console exclusive on PS4.

The horrible marketing/public communication performance of the Kickstarter campaign continues ...
Come on . While the stuff from China was good considering the stage of development the game is at, it would have been laughed out of the room presented at something like PSX.

"Here's a spinning camera in a work in progress interior, and here are a few screenshots using placeholder materials. SHENMUE 3 EVERYBODY!"

Shenmue 3 isn't ready to show like that, and there's nobody to blame for that. Give it time.

Kinda what David said. The game will be as long as you want it. I swear at midnight, I will have had my body clock set, extended leave from work booked, a case of energy drinks in the fridge, coffee jars in the cupboard, all social media and links to the Shenmue Community blocked for when this game is released.
I will play it slowly. I mean slowly! Hopefully the L trigger will still give you access to a first person view, and I will rape the life out of it, looking at every texture, near sight, draw distance, examining every object, reading every word, listening to every sound, exploring every area and option......

It baffles me that anyone who's been waiting on the game for this long, would wanna power through it. Embrace every second of the Shenmue 3 world because we will have earned and paid for every second of it. This could be a 4 hour game, and I will still make it last over 40 hours. Replays, speed runs, notebook completion, all story pathways, all collectibles, learn everything about each NCP... The list goes on and on.

Finally a different top worn by Yu-sama.

I'm currently working on the Guilin music compilation video. Aiming to get it done by the end of the month.

Since their horrible Q&A stream with Yu, AJ should've been replaced. The Kickstarter would've been much better without them, and now they'll ruin the PayPal campaign. Moreover, I am not optimistic about trusting a newly-formed game company with a high-profile game like Shenmue, obviously they are still in the learning phase of the UE4 engine, and in today's market where a lot of AAA games exist, they wouldn't have a chance . One mistake after another and the Shenmue legacy we all love is being terribly shattered, and day after day I am starting to think that Sega's decision in wrapping up Shenmue after the second game might not be totally wrong after all.... I blame YS.net for all of this btw.
Now this is just descending into ridiculousness.

YSnet is not a newly formed game company, and neither is development partner Neilo. The development team consists of many Shenmue, AM2, and current game development veterans as well as experienced new faces like Nocon Kid. There is also nothing wrong with learning an engine while you develop your first game with it, even with engines with a tremendous amount of documentation on usage like UE4.

I'm mad about how the poll results were used too, but suddenly saying you think Shenmue should have just been left at two games after all? Give me a fucking break, don't be so melodramatic and grow up.

Since their horrible Q&A stream with Yu, AJ should've been replaced. The Kickstarter would've been much better without them, and now they'll ruin the PayPal campaign. Moreover, I am not optimistic about trusting a newly-formed game company with a high-profile game like Shenmue, obviously they are still in the learning phase of the UE4 engine, and in today's market where a lot of AAA games exist, they wouldn't have a chance. One mistake after another and the Shenmue legacy we all love is being terribly shattered, and day after day I am starting to think that Sega's decision in wrapping up Shenmue after the second game might not be totally wrong after all.... I blame YS.net for all of this btw.

This is over-exaggerating a bit

YSnet is not a newly formed game company, and neither is development partner Neilo. The development team consists of many Shenmue, AM2, and current game development veterans as well as experienced new faces like Nocon Kid. There is also nothing wrong with learning an engine while you develop your first game with it, even with engines with a tremendous amount of documentation on usage like UE4.

I'm mad about how the poll results were used too, but suddenly saying you think Shenmue should have just been left at two games after all? Give me a fucking break, don't be so melodramatic and grow up.

Ys Net Inc :Since its foundation in 2008, Ys Net has published "ONE" short-lived web game: Shenmue World. Source

Neilo Games :Since its foundation in 2010, Neilo Games has published "ONE" vita "dancing" game to mixed to bad reviews: Orgarhythm. Source

A game like Shenmue 3 is NOT the guinea pig to learn how to develop using a new game engine with.

Game development has come a long way since the days of the original Shenmue. You need to grow up and realise that things have moved way forward since, and you also need to grow up to understand that what used to work in the days of the original Dreamcast doesn't in today's market.
The fuck are you even talking about? Neilo and YSnet are still full of very experienced people and you can't ignore that.

Part of learning the engine is still part of modern game development too. Unreal Engine 3, first game developed by Epic to learn and refine the engine? Gears of War. FOX Engine, first game developed by Kojima Productions to learn and refine the game engine? Metal Gear Solid V Ground Zeroes. I can also assure you Square Enix development teams are learning UE4 while developing: Kingdom Hearts 3, Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part One, Dragon Quest XI, etc.

Stop being ignorant. Not every single member who comes on board for a development project has to automatically be a master of a game engine, else nothing would ever get fucking made. You get senior staff experienced in the engine who teach the engine to other staff at the same time as developing a game with it. These kinds of staff are who Yu has put a priority on hiring, and there are already staff at Neilo who know how to use the engine judging from one of the first KS videos.

Don't be ignorant, stop pretending the sky is falling, and get some fucking perspective.

What a ridiculous overreaction some posters are having to this. Sure, it could have been handled better but I think people are forgetting what the big picture is here.

I already said it, but in my opinion, they need to close the PayPal campaign as soon as possible.
The potential image damage caused by the lack of PC rewards, upgrades and now the way those polls (yes...two polls!) have been handled is not worth the funds they can gather by extending the campaign.

Unless they announce within a few days PC rewards and upgrades (which should have been available since the begining of the Slacker Backer Campaign... do I need to point this out?) the extension has no purpose anymore.

If AJ knew how to handle Marketing and communication, the funds collected could have been significantly higher, but what is done is done and maybe it's time to move on to next stage and close the budget.

One of my worries about Shenmue 3 is that Yu Suzuki has to much to deal with, when he should concentrate mainly on the development, talents scouting, research and storytelling. The lack of a publisher like SEGA or Sony to take care of funding, Marketing and PR is just obvious after witnessing how weak AJ have been at doing their job. Fans communities have done a lot in order to help, spread the word,organize events like raffles or 30 on the 3rd (to name a few) and last but not least damage control some bad press. Truth is, fans can't keep the PayPal campaign alive on their own.

The irony is that I'm still waiting for the upgrades to come so I can raise my KS pledge but I can easily imagine that one morning the campaign will be over with my extra money still in my pocket. Of course I could simply choose other rewards or simply donate this money... but won't I look like an idiot if the upgrades show up the day after I give my contribution to PayPal? How many fans are in my exact same situation and how much money does that mean (69'000 KS backers guys...) ?
Again, it is how it is because of the way the PayPal campaign has been handled and in my opinion... It's a shame... or missed opportunity if you prefer. :sad:

Dear Members,

In light of the recent controversy regarding the active PayPal Slacker Backer campaign and the respective polling that was conducted, we at the Dojo feel that it is important to set the record straight and to provide the community at-large with an accurate briefing on what has transpired.

Following up an initial earlier poll that was posted via Twitter, a second poll was conducted which was open to all backers of the Kickstarter campaign which terminated many months ago. This poll, which ran from 12/24/2015 to 1/01/2016, asked participants whether or not Kickstarter “Exclusive Rewards” should be made available for the Slacker Backer campaign. While the results of the polling and the responses from the over 15,000 participants were rather mixed, it was ultimately decided that the “Exclusive” Rewards would not be made available on the PayPal page as originally stipulated.

Following this announcement within the Kickstarter Project Update #51, there was much confusion and uncertainty regarding the status and validity of the entire PayPal campaign. It was postulated by some that all backers of the campaign would not receive the rewards they thought they confirmed with their contributions, with some going further to state that the backers would receive no rewards at all. This could not be farther from the truth and is a gross misrepresentation of what has been announced by Awesome Japan & YS Net. To be clear: ALL EXISTING PAYPAL REWARDS (ARE) WILL REMAIN INTACT AND ARE NOT AFFECTED BY THE RECENT POLL. THIS LATEST POLL ACTED MERELY TO ASCERTAIN WHETHER REWARDS THAT HAD BEEN OMITTED FROM THE ORIGINAL KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN SHOULD BE INCLUDED ADDITIONALLY IN THE PAYPAL CAMPAIGN. NO REWARDS ARE BEING TAKEN AWAY FROM ANY BACKERS; ONLY NO ADDITIONAL REWARDS WILL BE ADDED FOR THOSE WHO HAVE OR INTEND TO CONTRIBUTE VIA PAYPAL.

It is important to note that Awesome Japan has in-fact addressed this issue directly to fans who have inquired about their methodology. In a response to this inquiry they stated: “…While the votes in favor of removing exclusivity marginally outnumbered those against, they did not represent a majority opinion in the poll. The poll numbers do show that there are also many backers who do not wish to give up their exclusive rewards. We feel that the logical conclusion to these results is to leave exclusivity as it is because there was not enough support to justify making an exception to go back on our original promise.” While there have been instances in which Awesome Japan has presented developments regarding Shenmue 3 in a rather unclear and ambiguous manner, they nevertheless have proven to be passionate and dedicated towards the greater project and all of us in the community should continue to vest our confidence in them. As with any project with this scope and unprecedented magnitude, there are bound to be mistakes that will occur and it is essential for all us to remain united in our cause and to not pass rash judgment on them or on fellow community members; such conduct will only serve to impede the proper release of the game that we have waited over a decade to have in our collective midst.

We as a community have persevered through much over the past few years, which makes what we have achieved in the past 6 months that much more remarkable and inspiring. However, we must recognize that our journey has not yet concluded and that there is still much we can contribute towards the realization of our dream of having Shenmue 3 become a reality. A major part of this contribution is to facilitate a community which is open and embracing to all who find value through the experience of Shenmue and the sharing of what the series represents to each of us. Let us not forget about the diversity in perspective and point of view that exists within our community and let us coalesce these outlooks to make our voices heard in fruitful ways.

Thank you for your time and as always: Keep Friends.

The Shenmue Dojo Staff

Uh, didn't Yu approach Xbox first but wouldn't give him the time of day?

EDIT: Also, fuckin' lol at equating us (i.e the Shenmue community) as having half voted no. Here and on other Shenmue communities I've seen the poll decision completely disagreed with almost entirely across the board. The OP is fragile as fuck.

Magic Maze is the Suzuki's way to name procedural generation like he did somehow with F.R.E.E. for openworld as the terms didn't exist yet.

About the other infos we got :
Choubu (likely bigger than Bailu and Baisha) is intended to have the same size as Dobuita. Yu talked about a 2km x 2km field for the Guilin forest but he's searching a way to extend to 4km x 4km.

I glad there's better way now :)
Speaking of black bars, use this codebreaker code 01160FF4
0000E100 to remove all of them on real console, isn't it great? Just one code!!! :D
Credits to yzb37859365 and S4pph4rad from http://assemblergames.com

Could you please tell to the people new on this, like me, in how we could play the game in the Dreamcast with this code? How can we apply it? or do it? I really would like to know this! Thanks in advance!
There's probably better information in the Widescreen codes thread, at least I assume someone has posted something about it there.

You need the Codebreaker (or Xploder which is what it was sold as in Europe, or X-Terminator which is what it was called in Japan) cheat device. You can either buy this or find a copy online to burn.

Once you've booted the cheat device, remove the Codebreaker disc and insert Shenmue 2. (Or whatever game you're using codes for) It will detect the game and offer to let you add codes for it by pressing something. Just use the interface on the cheat device to add the codes you want, turn them on (they highlight in a different color when turned on) and I believe you press start once the game is selected to go back to the main screen where it will offer to save your codes to the VMU and start the game. Once the codes are saved, you'll just need to boot the game via codebreaker each time and turn the codes on. (I think it remembers the codes you had turned on last time)

It's not possible to patch the widescreen directly into the game yet if you want to burn a copy with the codes always enabled. (The black bars is a different story because yzb37859365 did that as an actual patch to the game code, whereas the widescreen ones are patches to memory.)

Hey guys,

This is great work! I am a noob when it comes to Demul but have managed to get the game running finally. I have installed cheat engine and have the Auto fixer running but cannot work out how to get it to work :$. Can someone please run me through the steps please.

I have tried multiple ways of doing it. Do I have to have cheat engine open? Do I do it all before I run the game, after I am on the Dreamcast hub screen? I'm so confused lol.I must be doing something wrong :(

Thanks guys

First make sure you install Cheat Engine 6.5 that came with the Auto Fixer. Then click and start up Demul without loading the game, after this open up the auto fixer and select the game you want to apply it on. Now you go back to Demul and load the PAL version of Shenmue 1/2. This is how I got it to work.

Framedrops are a little bit different. In that case the game skips to render a couple of frames per second.
This results in very jerky motion but everything happening in the game takes just as long as normal.

In Shenmue however, all the frames will always be drawn, even under heavy load and the game will instead slow down and everything takes longer than normal.

The last time I fully played through Shenmue II I got the feeling that there were more slowdowns than usual.
I don't know why but maybe my Dreamcast starts to show some wear from all the hours of running with the GDEMU and passive cooling (no fan, open lid).

The Dreamcast really doesn't like the fire in the crag and especially the light from the torch when entering the cave.
Disc 4 is generally the most prone to slowdowns, even though there are mostly only two characters on screen.
The enviroments really push the hardware.

It might just be me being super confused and all, but didn't he Tweet that this year? I thought he was referring to NEXT year, aka Jan 2017?

Yeh. I just checked, he tweeted that out on January 7th 2016. I hope I'm wrong cause I wanna see new screenies too :D!
That's just a quirk of him not being a native English speaker.

Yoshitaka Amano and Viktor Kalvachev will attend the MAGIC press conference in Paris 20th January!
https://twitter.com/MagicMonaco/status/685017507598569472

He's definitely talking about the event today.

Bet anyone 5 bucks this image is the next update from Awesome Japan.

I used my own Kickstarter account to ask them your question.

From the articles I read, YSnet has normally to pay the extra fees and you don't need to pay more than 20 dollars.

Not to mention they hired Kid Nocon, who seems to be extremely familiar with Unreal Engine. I'm sure he's not the only one on the team that is.

Have faith.

The game isn't going to look like an out-of-the-box Unreal Engine game. We're fretting over nothing.

I finally finished the shenmue phoenix and dragon mirrors. These are modeled from scratch with the texture file as a reference and it is a 1:1 replica of the mirrors. I modeled these to be a flat plane and when I print them i will hand paint the phoenix and dragons on the mirrors on the raised parts. ITS GOING TO LOOK GREAT! just wanted to share it with you all. hopefully soon i can begin the 3d printing process and painting i may put a few up for sale as well in the future.

https://cdn.pictub.club/2016/01/30/reJa.md.jpg

to see the full HD image head over to my portfolio RYOHD.CARBONMADE.COM

sword handguard crest work in progress almost finished.

Don't think i've seen this posted yet, for those of you who want to hear it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQPm_frCP7k&index=34&list=PLpeu5UWssrIcOE-3m9Wf74Je7JzMoH7Q0

Love the new arrangement. It's a shame that shenmue only had one track whilst other series had 2 or more but beggars can't be choosers i suppose. Would have loved to have heard earth & sea in there or something.

I'm extremely pleased with how they came out I'm seriously considering selling a blank kits eBay for cheap of both mirrors for the Shenmue community so you guys can all make your own to your something similar to the things you find in stores where it is a blank little Chibi character. Wonder if anyone would be interested anyway these look great on display next to my ryo hazuki statue and soon my Lan di! Thanks everyone for the great reference photos and encouragement finish this project much appreciated if anyone's interested let me know I may print out a few more and list them on the Internet with the stands and if I do list them they will be blank so people can paint them themselves

https://cdn.pictub.club/2016/02/07/x3X7.jpg

A bit of speculation beneath.

I imagine the time skip is to compensate for the fact that Shenmue 2's ending can be anywhere between January to? (June perhaps?). Considering the range of Shenmue 2's ending date, I would imagine the time skip will be set after the last possible date you could finish Shenmue 2 in order to have a fresh start in regards to the date the game starts on.

That could potentially mean, for the people who got through S1 and S2 quickly, that Ryo would appeared to have spent several months around Shenhua's house before the start of the game. (Since the start dates of Shenmue 3 players have to be the same regardless of the date S2 players finsihed the game - especially since we've skipped a generation, have no save files and we're on new consoles.)

Most likely it means Shenmue 3 will, just like S1 and S2, have a time cap and bad ending to prevent players from taking Shenmue 3 past its allotted months. From the screen shots we've seen so far many of the plants/flowers are in full bloom, so we're looking at Summer (1987) when the game starts. June-July-August. Perhaps late Summer. This matches the ending dates for Shenmue 2. Anything past this would have Autumn colors. Since the earliest footage has full bloom colors rather than an Autumn set, it seems this is the case.

The only other alternative would be literally an entire year, to allow the game to begin in the Spring in 1988, which seems a little far fetched. The significance of discovering another culture for Ryo, and for the player simultaneously, would have less of an impact if he's lived there a whole year. That synonymy between Ryo and the player in S2 allowed the experience to be new for both of them, Ryo can be surprised for the player as he stands in for the player, to some extent. I'm pretty sure it will be the Summer of 1987.

Now let's take bets on the day everyone. Saturday... no Sund-

I hope you enjoyed the conference and the questions I've specially prepared for it.

Seems like people like the new images etc. That's what we wanted to show and if I ever get the chance again to work on a similar project, I'll try my best to provide new content again.

Thanks to the Shenmue Dojo members for the quick live updates and huge thanks to all the lovely fans I had the chance to meet today. You guys are awesome and I am looking forward to meeting you again.

Until then. ;-)

I interpreted that comment as that they'll be making Ryo and Shenhua look more like they do in the Dreamcast-era art, not that they're LITERALLY going to use the old models.

Someone from Shenmue Dojo also warned PC Gamer about a mistake. They believed the paypal made 6 million instead 200k.

Hi all,

I’m the other guy that attended the dinner yesterday. I don’t know if it was the best day of my life, but definitely one of them! Couldn’t have hoped for a better reception and atmosphere, and everyone there played their part in creating an unforgettable experience. Making many new friends along the way, Amir, Rob and I were very lucky indeed...

(As Amir said, I’m unable to disclose much of the actual details of the meeting or post pictures, at least until I have been given permission by YsNet and Shibuya Productions, so please bear with me. Good things come to those who wait 8) )

Throughout the day Suzuki-san gave me the impression of a father figure - a kind leader who always looks out for others, yet very humble and unassuming himself. You can’t tell by looking that he’s a superstar in any way. He’s also very curious, from inspecting details of the Eze buildings to asking about us (jobs, hobbies etc), and you cannot help but feel inspired by his energy.

Once we got down to business (so to speak), you can see another side of his character: dedication. Shenmue is his legacy, and seeing what we’ve seen (incredible, by the way), there’s no doubt that he’s giving his all to the project. Given his talent, and with passionate comrades like Mr Biscay, we should have a lot of faith about the quality of the finished article, so please be patient!

Thank you Dojo-ers all again to make this project a reality, I know everyone would have jumped at the opportunity to experience what I have, but perhaps different circumstances prevented you from doing so. To be honest I didn't initially choose this reward, but considering how life-changing Shenmue is to me, I felt compelled to sacrifice my savings to help Suzuki-san. It's taught me values which I took for granted, and I think has made me a better person as a result. And what's money worth when compared to one's own values?

If you believe the same way, and do still have some capacity to help (money or otherwise), then please do so. Suzuki-san is grateful already to the contributions you have given to him, but with more support Shenmue III can become even better!

Best regards,

Chao

Gameblog : We recently got an interview with Phil Spencer. He told us that he met Yu Suzuki before things have been settled with Sony, that some things happen and some other ones not, that all cannot be done. Then you reacted pretty curtly on Twitter . Can you tell more about what happened ?
Cédric Biscay : What it made me a bit annoyed is that he was like to say it was our fault. But it's not. Things haven't been made because he didn't have the arguments which would have make this possible. He didn't have the adequate offer to be considered.

So, he made you an offer but you found it inadequate ?
CB : Well in any case, the content of the discussions was not enough. At the timing level, they also woke up a bit late.

Then while you're discussing with Sony, you felt a lot more of enthusiasm ?
CB : Sony has immediately been a super partner. They wanted to do it. They proposed to do something exceptional at the E3. Like them or not, they really support Shenmue III.

source : http://www.gameblog.fr/news/57133-shenmue-iii-pourquoi-la-ps4-et-pas-la-xbox-one-cedric-biscay

The remaining part tomorrow.

Cédric Biscay interview at MAGIC Monaco 2016 by Gameblog.fr

http://www.gameblog.fr/interview_948_shenmue-3-notre-grande-interview-de-yu-suzuki-et-cedric-bisc
(read Yu Suzuki interview here )
https://i.imgur.com/rkB6NXo.jpg

Julien : Beyond the great spotlight they put on you at the E3, what is the Sony's role?
Cédric Biscay : First of all, they're "facilitators" for the PS4 release, which is a console exclusivity, so it's Sony who will manage the Shenmue III release on that machine.

So is that about marketing means?
CB: Yes. A lot of marketing means.

So that's their financial investment. Is that all?
CB: No but I can't tell you just like that.

But Sony has also a "direct" financial investment there, hasn't it?
CB: I can't tell you neither, sorry! Really, what is certain and what I can confirm is that their marketing investment is true.

https://i.imgur.com/DtYi3gC.png

All right. So since the tremendous hype has been generated by the Shenmue III announcement, are there new publishers or investors who came forward to join you?
CB: There are people who came up yes but anyway, we have already a team in place. There are interests, indeed, because there was a lot of hype but I cannot disclose this kind of information.

So, beyond the media hype, do you confirm there is a business hype too?
CB: On the business side too, yes absolutely.

Do you still receive requests on your side ? Additional financial means? A support in other areas?
CB: No there aren't specially requests. There was a request for a second campaign (Paypal) because that's the wish of the fans but originally, it was not ever planned. We really followed the fans request since they wanted to back more. Yu also said more he gets funds, more he can make a bigger game but really it's the only reason of why this second campaign exists.

Well in any case, Shenmue III is fully funded now, isn't it?
CB: Yes.

Then the release is still planned for December 2017, do you confirm again?
CB: Yes. In any case, that's what is planned at the present time.

https://i.imgur.com/CSuyvCQ.jpg

After 14 years of waiting, all the fans are happy but keeping ask themselves about the following story since Yu stated clearly that Shenmue III will not be the story end, meaning the necessity to make at least Shenmue IV, maybe more... So I ask: Is a new Kickstarter campaign going to be needed or a relative success of Shenmue III might be enough to fund it?
CB: I will talk very personally and independently from the Yu Suzuki's opinion. In my opinion, if the game is a big success, obviously there won't be troubles to get the sequel. Obviously if it's not the case, chances to get that sequel will really grow slimmer...

When you said "big success", do you mean a lot of sales plus the kickstarter ones?
CB: Yes, exactly.

So what is the goal in concrete terms ? Business side, you have obviously an idea of what you need to reach, haven't you?
CB: Yes I've the idea. Obviously, I can't share you the information but we have to sell it as a "normal" hit.

Do you mean like an "AAA"?
CB: Hmmm, I would say like a good game.

Globally, at least one million sales worldwide?
CB: Ah, that would be cool yes. It's a friendly target for us.

Enough to say "it's certain, Shenmue IV is happening"?
CB: No, I can't tell you just like that. But we would really like to reach that one million sales level, that's for sure.

It's clear this adventure represents a risk for you since the IP does not belong to you but Sega. And considering they lend you the IP, they obviously expect some result too. So, are they involved that much?
CB: They're not specially involved. They give us the IP so we are committed to release Shenmue III, and that's all actually. They indeed own the IP but we earn a return from the sales. It's licencing so a part of the sales is intended to them, logically.

By the way, I believe there is a subject that is dear to you. It's the Saturn version of Shenmue which really exists and is partially playable. I was told that you're personally involved to make the Saturn version a kind of bonus...
CB: Infact, what I would really like, it's not specially Shenmue Saturn as a bonus. My real dream - and I'm not saying that's impossible but I'm aware that's complicated - it's to make Shenmue III on Dreamcast. That would be awesome. Can you imagine this, in your collection? It's one of the first things I told to the team, and they stared at me saying "are you crazy ?!". Because obviously it's difficult in regards of the Dreamcast technology, the IP rights. It's really complex but If I would have a dream about Shenmue, that's it. But it's really hard to set up something like that.

Despite what you said, could it be ever possible ?
CB: For now... I don't feel any particular enthusiasm ! (laughs) That's something I want but it's a fan's fantasy I must admit. After all, you can see how we really are. Above all, we are enthusiasts. Look, I organize the MAGIC and I made the entrance free. We really want that people enjoy themselves. Same here, I want people pleased with Shenmue III on Dreamcast. That wouldn't be a question of business, because if we produce a Dreamcast version and sell 3000 copies, no money can be earned, or you would have to sell it as 150 euros per copy.

https://i.imgur.com/vN8d9f4.jpg

To quickly focus back to my question about Shenmue Saturn, it's about the assets owned by Sega. I wonder if they really open their door for you?
CB: Yes of course thanks Yu Suzuki. They opened their door but obviously you cannot make everything you want. You have to negotiate with them to know what can be used or not, and goes on.

So you logically talked to them about Shenmue 1 & 2 HD... What can you tell us about that?
CB: I can't tell you much about this. What is certain is that Sega can make it. They're aware of the Shenmue III campaign success, so I'm telling myself, as an independent businessman, with all the hype, releasing the HD versions would make sense. But again, it's only my opinion. They told us nothing special. It's not like they're showing little enthusiasm, it's just a different topic than Shenmue III. Sibuya Productions is charged of the Shenmue III production and we have no relation with what it remains. We don't have any information with extra Shenmue III stuff neither.

We can also imagine that Sega is awaiting the result of your work on Shenmue III, to note the good sales and finally come forward to say "Ok guys, let's go together!"?
CB: We can imagine everything but we're building castles in the air, really we know nothing.

Did they ever tell you "if you reach some goal, we invest with you about such and such subject"
CB: No, we never have discussions like this.

https://i.imgur.com/JKIPjhy.jpg

We recently have an interview with Phil Spencer. He told us that he met Yu Suzuki before things have been settled with Sony, that some things happen and some other ones not, that all cannot be done. Then you reacted pretty curtly on Twitter . Can you tell more about what happened?
CB : What it made me a bit annoyed is that he was like to say it was our fault. But it's not. Things haven't been made because he didn't have the arguments which would have make this possible. He didn't have the adequate offer to be considered.

So, he made you an offer but you found it inadequate?
CB: Well in any case, the content of the discussions was not enough. At the timing level, they also woke up a bit late.

Then while you're discussing with Sony, you felt a lot more of enthusiasm?
CB: Sony has immediately been a super partner. They wanted to do it. They proposed to do something exceptional at the E3. Like them or not, they really support Shenmue III.

Getting back to Kickstarter, how the backers from the outset are going to chose between the PC and PS4 version? Will the procedure take place shortly before the release of the game?
CB: Sorry I can't ask you because I'm not in charge of this.

https://i.imgur.com/o1Up4mr.png

Concerning the Kickstarter rewards, the figures, etc., do you know when we're going to see them? Are the designs been validated?
CB: Yes of course. All the Kickstarter rewards have been validated before. We can't propose things that are not possible to make.

But concretely, are these prototypes real?
CB: Yes, yes of course.

Did you have a look at the figures yet?
CB: Yes obviously, we have private informations right now.

For instance, why not to share some photos with the backers then?
CB: For now, we don't think it's the right time to do so but the time will come.

What are your next communication plans? Are we supposed to expect a dead time until E3 2016?
CB: We do like to please the fans. For now, nothing definite has been done until the E3. I can't even tell you whether something will happen at E3 but perhaps we'll decide to show something new. We really intend to maintain the contact between us and the fans. They're important for us so the desire is strong. It's like the MAGIC which is specially made for the fans. We really want to show up stuff. Same intention for the big international events like E3. Here it's a very little exhibition but it's ours, so we enjoy ourselves!

By the way, are you happy to see all these people here, who come from everywhere?
CB: Oh yes completely, we have 50 people who come from United States. There are also the media, the great newspapers...

And Gameblog!
CB: Yes, and Gameblog! It is busy and we can feel a real excitement.

Is it the beginning of a great move upmarket for MAGIC?
CB: Yes because last year was the first edition which needed 5 months to be made and we had great guests like Yuji Naka, Yoshitaka Amano, Shinji Hashimoto from Square Enix... Now we're really focusing on Shenmue - and Life Is Strange too - but for the following year, yes, perhaps we'll get even more stars from video game world... Each year we try to upgrade the formula. Anyway, we have already announced great things.

Alright, see you in the next year and thanks you for your time.
CB: Thank you!

fittersau wrote:Was Eurogamer there? Seems like they should have been invited as well as DualShockers.

Eurogamer with all their click baiting on Shenmue since last year, personally I hope they weren't there.

During the MAGIC conference Suzuki talked about wanting to introduce Southern Chinese martial arts in Shenmue III, having focused on northern Chinese styles in Shenmue II. These have more rapid small movements for close-quarters fighting, and as such he wants to have fights taking place in tight spaces such as corridors and stairways. After showing a slide of a courtyard with a table and chairs he also said that fights in such areas would see said objects flying about.

Well hello everyone, As Peter did After the MAGIC 2016, I also did some kind of summary of this... Well "MAGIC" day but in video format. :)
I though it could be interesting for people wanting some backstage information...

I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did when I recorded / edited it ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVoQa0EiH7U

(do not forget to turn english subtitles on as it is a french video)

I don't think it really translate the pleasure I had in participating in that adventure but it is there for your enjoyement ! :D

Enjoy :heart:

A.) Time - They likely had a fire lit under them after the success of the Kickstarter, but a HD remaster takes time and effort if you're going to do it right.

B.) Legal complication - There have been mutterings about legal complications stopping SEGA properly making a Shenmue remaster happen. Some say they're related to the branding tie-ins (Timex, etc), and others that middleware used to make the game no longer have identifiable owners due to insolvency and asset stripping of the original owners. Neither of these have been substantiated by fact, but it could be true.

C.) Legacy - Shenmue was wrongly a scapegoat for the death of the Dreamcast. Like a game of telephone, inaccurate and inflated budgets have been passed on as fact, and the true cause of death of the Dreamcast (bungling all hardware from the Megadrive onwards) was disguised by executives. SEGA have recently gone back on this though, especially since the KS success put significant egg on their face. They're acknowledging that Shenmue III is a big deal, and they know Shenmue sells judging by how much they've been farming it out for merchandising and allowing cameo appearances from Ryo.

D.) Tie-In - They want to ride Shenmue III's hype, and likewise Shenmue III wants to ride the wave of renewed interest a Shenmue collection would bring, but Shenmue III isn't due for another 21 months at the earliest, and they want to be released close to each other for maximum effect.

Wrote an article about the Eze tour and Monaco dinner: https://medium.com/@MoosaviAmir/a-weeke ... f4d9d9edb6

Nolife TV interview with Yu Suzuki

https://youtu.be/bGTG4rTTSFU

direct link: http://www.mediafire.com/download/0r6k4pdakly5c97/NoLife+TV+16+3+17+interview+Yu+Suzuki+%28Shenmue+3%29.rar
source: http://noco.tv/emission/31674/nolife/interview/suzuki-yu-shenmue-iii

raw text: It was one of our topics earlier in the week, the MAGIC show was recently taking place in Monaco. Among the many guest artists, we could distinguish Yu Suzuki, the famous creator of the Shenmue franchise including the upcoming third episode, 15 years after the second one.
Over the last 15 years, the Shenmue III rumor spred out one time per year at least. Always around March or April. I responded : "Let me know when it happens". But this time, it's real.
It's an absolute iconic game but Shenmue was considered as a commercial failure since its release on Dreamcast in 1999 despite his reference status for a lot of players around the world. Shenmue is still remembered for having introduced the modern bases of open world and QTE.
At the beginning, I named this game "FREE". I wanted the player to be able to do everything he wants as far as possible. That's the reason I made Shenmue. When I saw a lot of similar games coming out, I realized that it would become an unique genre. That really made me happy. I didn't expect this at all. Furthermore, these games have often big budgets. I was rather surprised. About the QTEs, we made it for the players who don't always have a good skill so they could still immerse themselves in the story. That time, I had the feeling this system would become very common.
After a resounding announce during the last E3 and a crowdfunding campaign with tremendous success, the third episode of this legendary saga is currently under production. While the public exceptations are obviously high, the Yu's objectives remain clear:
For Shenmue III, our goal is to deepen the characters. Shenmue II has widen up the scope of possibilities. Now I want to focus on more specific points. The thematics are still love, courage and friendship but the episode 3 will focus on Shenhua the heroine and deepen every aspect of her character.
If everything goes well, we have to wait until December 2017 to discover the story of Shenhua who succeeds to Ryo Hazuki as main character. But no doubt one and a half year is worth the 15-year wait...

We'll have the English version of the Shenmue Master interview up later today.