Shenmue Dojo

Not sure what section I was supposed to start this in but I guess the future of Shenmue is somewhere where you guys might have a better chance of reading it.
During my mid teen 14-16 I studied Kung Fu ( I am 39 now) and was described by my sensei as very talented and amongst the best he has seen for my age. Sadly upon leaving school ( we leave at 16 I the UK unless we choose to stay for further education) I started shift work in a local factory and abandoned my club. Despite this I have always remembered my training and have continued to have an interest in martial arts by being big into beat em ups, esp Neo Geo 2D fighters and Sega 3D fighters.
So after once again completing Shenmue 1 & 2 at Xmas on Dreamcast which I have done every year since about 2008.I also for the first time completed the Xbox Shenmue 2 via my 360 for the first time and was pleasantly surprised how good it was ( apart from Rens voice ). But this time I found myself thinking more deeply about the martial arts side of the game and the training/discipline involved in them. Karate appears to be what Ryo is taught by his father despite him saying Ju Jitsue although both are of Japanese origin.

So after 24 years out the game I decided to join a local Karate club, due to the influence of Shenmue, although I dident tell my instructor I was tak8ng it up because of a videogame. After only a month I am very surprised by the similarities of Wado Ryu Karate and the moves Ryo uses in Shenmue. In fact so much of it makes sense and I feel the Shenmue vibe when training as so much of it seems familiar. My instructor has commented how I seem to be naturally picking up Karate but he doesn't know how I believe it is because of Shenmue. This may sound a little sad or egocentric to some of you but I think it shows just how powerful Shenmue is a game and way of life.

On a different note I have had a Shenmue tattoo this morning and will post a picture next week after the scab/swelling has gone down.

props dude. Shenmue inspires.

good job!

Hello STE C! I read your post. I want to say something in response to your message.

You wrote "So after 24 years out the game I decided to join a local Karate club, due to the influence of Shenmue, although I dident tell my instructor I was tak8ng it up because of a videogame."

The way I see it, you saw something in Shenmue which inspired you. The video game is simply the form (or medium). I mean, when I was younger I also was greatly inspired by Shenmue. I too, also took up the martial arts (partly) because of Shenmue. Before that, I was actually well aware of some martial arts (Karate, Judo, Taekwondo, Boxing, Kung Fu arts, etc.). I saw them in video games, movies, documentaries, etc. My point is that I believe you saw something within Shenmue which appealed to you on a very personal level. I myself have inspired my friends to at least TRY the martial arts. It's important we try something and really get experience.

Let me give you another example. On television there are so many different kinds of programs. You channel surf, and you find somthing you like. Sometimes you just try a tv program because you want to give it a chance. But some things just appeal to you on a personal level.

Through my life experiences, I personally believe that we eventually find the things we are looking for if we diligently seek them out. "Seek and ye shall find", that kind of thing.

Well its one thing to ignore a fan base and another to acknowledge it. And these people arent just working in PR when they do so. A Vice President, the Head of 3rd party relations and the Head of Software Product Development. Its much better then a nameless PR drone.

Thats gotta count for something. Some phone calls, some meetings...oh look what do you know..they're already doing that in front of us!
I think its ok to have a positive outlook on this even if it does lead to nowhere. Atleast we can direct our energy somewhere people will listen unlike with Sega.

Now let's get sweaty!