Who do we know is confirmed to return from old cast to S3?

[500yen]

Hi all, long time lurker here. Can't hold my excitement for S3 anymore so I decided to join.

I wanted to ask you guys: other than Ren and Shenhua, do we know for sure at this point who from S2 will be returning to S3? (besides Ryo )

Since Ren is in, is it likely that Wong and Joy will be back too? Any news on Xiuying?

[James Brown]

Chai is confirmed. Niao Sun is pretty much a given going by the concept artwork for the chapters for Shenmue 3 and how much she has been hinted at and Lan Di was sorta confirmed already (he was a given, surely), if I remember right. Then there's the phone calls Ryo can make to characters from Shenmue 1 like Ine-san, Guizhang and Nozomi (was Fuku-san confirmed? Can't remember). I personally hope Guizhang shows up at some point, if not in 3 then in 4. I don't need anymore returning characters aside from that.

Nothing on Joy, Wong or Xiuying yet but out of those I think Xiuying is the most likely, although Joy and Wong may show up in a later Shenmue game depending where Ryo ends up.

[KidMarine]

I think it's safe to say none of the people you can phone are going to be in the game proper. Joy, Fuku-san etc.

We'll almost certainly see Xiuying and Guizhang again and some point, but not necessarily during Shenmue 3.

Same goes for Master Baihu, he's far too intriguing to just be a minor character we'll never see again.

Maybe Wong will come along with Ren?

[500yen]

I knew about the Nozomi call option, but not the others...interesting to imagine the awkwardness of Ryo callin Joy. "Hey there, I didn't care much for you when you were around, but here I am calling"

[RenDur89]

Yes Xiuying should be there hopefully, because of Ziming especially. Helping Ryo more maybe.

[Testament]

I think when I was younger I would have loved to see a lot of characters return, but thinking about it now, the concept of Ryo travelling and meeting an entire fresh cast of characters with each wildly different location is very interesting. Not only do we have the concept of a man so bent on revenge he's leaving behind all the places and friends he makes, but also a concept where each entry (or chapter if you will) represents almost kind of a new "world" each time, with new people to meet inside of them.

[shengoro86]

I think when I was younger I would have loved to see a lot of characters return, but thinking about it now, the concept of Ryo travelling and meeting an entire fresh cast of characters with each wildly different location is very interesting. Not only do we have the concept of a man so bent on revenge he's leaving behind all the places and friends he makes, but also a concept where each entry (or chapter if you will) represents almost kind of a new "world" each time, with new people to meet inside of them.

I agree with this, and I think that's the direction Yu is taking. He's spoken pretty openly about Shenmue having strong themes of personal growth through engaging in different cultures with new people, I can't see that being thrown away to keep fan favourites in the game.

[shengoro86]

I think when I was younger I would have loved to see a lot of characters return, but thinking about it now, the concept of Ryo travelling and meeting an entire fresh cast of characters with each wildly different location is very interesting. Not only do we have the concept of a man so bent on revenge he's leaving behind all the places and friends he makes, but also a concept where each entry (or chapter if you will) represents almost kind of a new "world" each time, with new people to meet inside of them.

I agree with this, and I think that's the direction Yu is taking. He's spoken pretty openly about Shenmue having strong themes of personal growth through engaging in different cultures with new people, I can't see that being thrown away to keep fan favourites in the game.

Also you wouldn't be spending time talking to Shenhua about "friends" and remembering them for them to just be like "EH YO WE BACK HEYYYYYYYY" Would just be lazy story telling.

I for one welcome a new arrangement of characters as it keeps in line with Suzuki's vision and also adds even more depth to the series. I can not wait to meet Ming Ming.

[Hyo Razuki]

I reckon it's gonna be such a weird feeling, to finally be able to meet Niao Sun and perhaps even Ziming Hong. Those are characters we have known for so many years, be it only through the final picture of Shenmue 2 or Project Berkley promo material or through flashback scenes.

Especially Niao Sun. I've been waiting for her to make an in-game appearance for so long.

[ShenGCH]

I reckon it's gonna be such a weird feeling, to finally be able to meet Niao Sun and perhaps even Ziming Hong. Those are characters we have known for so many years, be it only through the final picture of Shenmue 2 or Project Berkley promo material or through flashback scenes.

Especially Niao Sun. I've been waiting for her to make an in-game appearance for so long.

I really hope we encounter Ziming in a big way in Shenmue III, not just because we've known about him for so long and he simply oozes mystery and badass-ery in equal measure, but exactly how Ryo's relationship with Xiuying will play a part in his relationship with the former. I've always seen Ziming as someone who is incredibly misunderstood, doubtful, and found himself wandering down a path he doesn't feel entirely comfortable or agree with, but did so because, like Ryo, he was in search of something, the magnitude of which he couldn't possibly have imagined. This is further emphasised in the comic where Ziming is seen reflecting upon himself, thinking about his sister, clutching the other half of the pendant. I wouldn't be surprised if Ryo's appearance on the scene prompted Ziming to turn his back on the Chi You Men at some point.

Niao Sun gives off a somewhat dark, malicious vibe in my opinion. She is described as the "Deadly siren of the Chi You Men", so we're going to see some really interesting things from her for sure.

[TheExclusiveMan]

Its a bit dissapointing that calling Nozomi is locked behind a kickstarter backing, but I hope we can call Ine san, Fuku san and Gui Zhang.