Kickstarter Update #60: Dinner in Japan Reward Report

[Peter]

Ummm..... what to say....

Meh, to be honest.... I know there's been a lot of discussion about character models over the past year and again, to be honest, I don't really care right now? Its not on my list of top priorities in the grand scheme of things at this point in time when I think about this game as a whole. They will look fine by the time the game is released, of that I have no doubts. I can say there is a lot of progress made, but that's about it. But it's not a concern I have at all. I think they are still in mocap stage and once that's all captured then I feel the pressure will be on to really focus on the models, but until then, they are all still in "testing", so I am not concerned with what models they use on websites, leaflets etc. We are not even halfway through production yet so, for me, I am not even thinking about models.

Just my 2 cents.

[LanDC]

I think it's still the old model. They looked like the same old models in the footage we saw too. I should also note that Shenmue I and II characters were walking around in Choubu. Obviously placeholders, so the models just haven't been the priority yet. I'm assuming they wanted to flesh out the environments and work on gameplay mechanics first.

[Himuro]

There are Shenmue 1 and 2 models in Choubu? In what footage? All I've seen is Ine.

Also great to see you LanDC.

[Spaghetti]

I think it's still the old model. They looked like the same old models in the footage we saw too. I should also note that Shenmue I and II characters were walking around in Choubu. Obviously placeholders, so the models just haven't been the priority yet. I'm assuming they wanted to flesh out the environments and work on gameplay mechanics first.

If that's the case, I can see why they're not really showing much footage or new models.

I guess one of the downfalls of Shenmue III being a Kickstarter is that we consciously or unconsciously apply the same PR cycle model of other games to it, which is why some (myself included, sometimes) expect to see a little more than YSnet are willing to show right now.

If Shenmue III were being fully funded by a publisher on their PR cycle timeframe, I doubt it'd even be revealed until late this year/early next year even if they started development at the same time as KS Shenmue III.

Himuro - He means the footage the Yu dinner Backers got to see the other week. We've not seen any of Choubu publicly yet, I don't think.

[ShenSun]

Thanks for the info Landc & Peter. Sounds like you guys had an epic trip. I know you were based in Tokyo, but did you guys get a chance to visit Kyoto? That was my favorite part of Japan when i visited by a clear mile. Lovely scenery, culture and also felt very Shenmuish....I get excited just thinking about it. So good.

[SMDzero]

I've always been pretty sure we'd get a trailer or at the very least a teaser this December.

[Rikitatsu]

LanDC and Peter, if I may ask... You say you saw Choubu and baisha?

1- How urban did they look? Or were they very rural?
2- Did you get a sense for Chobu's size? Is it as big as, say, Dobuita?

[Hazuki00]

I think it's still the old model. They looked like the same old models in the footage we saw too. I should also note that Shenmue I and II characters were walking around in Choubu. Obviously placeholders, so the models just haven't been the priority yet. I'm assuming they wanted to flesh out the environments and work on gameplay mechanics first.

Thank you SO MUCH! And to Peter as well!

Knowing that they progress "very fast", do you think they will meet the deadline and release it in december 17?
Could you say something about the size of Shenmue 3? Could it be as big as Shenmue 2?

We're lucky having you all with us!

[Amir]

Thanks Peter and Matt, interesting to hear that they're working on Choubu and Baisha already; maybe this is part of the AGILE development process that Suzuki says he's employing. I guess they want cutscene artists ASAP so they can produce something for PSX. While I would love to see the footage you guys saw, I'm not sure how it would be received by non-Shenmue fans; they're gonna want something more "cinematic".

[Monkei]

Aw man, knowing what you guys saw kinda takes the magic away from that picture.

[Yokosuka]

Thanks Peter and Matt, interesting to hear that they're working on Choubu and Baisha already; maybe this is part of the AGILE development process that Suzuki says he's employing. I guess they want cutscene artists ASAP so they can produce something for PSX. While I would love to see the footage you guys saw, I'm not sure how it would be received by non-Shenmue fans; they're gonna want something more "cinematic".

Thought the same about the agile methodology. It's impressive that YSnet are still working in test phase.

About the upcoming trailer, I guess we'll see something similar to the environment trailer of Shenmue II https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZqnAUgfiYk

[ShenGCH]

Aw man, knowing what you guys saw kinda takes the magic away from that picture.

Then why read it?

Seriously, though, I think we should all be incredibly relieved about how the development process is going judging by LanDC and Peter's words. To think it was almost one year and four months ago when the game was finally announced, complete with that extremely early (and, admittedly, somewhat shoddy) prototype footage, and now look where we are. For such a small team to have done so much in so little time is truly commendable, and I think it's safe to say the game is in the best possible hands, as are we, the fans. The best is certainly yet to come.

[Kiske]

Thank you so much for those exciting insiders news Peter & Matt!

I can't believe some are moaning about this Kickstarter update... we got more info about the current status and quality of the project than in any update before!

Bailu, Choubu & Baisha are real, folks!!!

[Amir]

Thinking back, they've probably been working on Baisha from the start if we think back to that early screenshot with Ryo facing off against a guy in a suit in what looked like a tulou. I think Choubu is the only area where we haven't seen any footage publicly.

[Hyo Razuki]

Thanks for sharing your experiences, Matt & Peter.