Shenmue III could yet get a Blu-ray release on the PlayStation 4, as Yu Suzuki explained during a Twitch livestream overnight that he's eager to make it happen. The veteran developer told fans that he's currently considering ways to get the disc produced, and pleaded patience while he figures out the final details. We reckon that this has to be announced before the end of the Kickstarter campaign, as it would really help to drive pledges.
Elsewhere in the live Q&A, the series creator reiterated that Sony is one of the project's most important partners, and that the platform holder won't be receiving a cent from the crowd funding campaign. He explained that approximately 35 per cent of the money raised will be spent on fees and rewards, while the remaining 65 per cent will go directly towards development. The PlayStation maker is contributing to marketing, promotion, and some production funding.
He also showed a new Ryo Hazuki character model, which is better than the one on the Kickstarter page, but is still not up to scratch. He explained that he wants to extract more personality from the character through facial expressions, and that he's in talks with the hero's original English and Japanese voice actors in order to get them to reprise their roles. New reward tiers are on the way, including a replica of the protagonist's watch.
Lastly, the SEGA legend hinted that the game may feature multiple playable characters, with Ren of Heavens and Shenhua candidates. He clarified that should the campaign stay where it is, the title will be focused more on story, while moving closer to $10 million will allow it to incorporate various open world aspects, as per the Stretch Goals. Oh, and one more thing: Shenmue III, as always anticipated, will not conclude the property's overarching plot. Sigh.
[source News: Live: Watch Yu Suzuki Talk Shenmue III Right Here]
Comments 13
This has been a PR disaster. Sony and YU I feel could have done a much better job of being transparent with the public. However I hope it gets made.
@BLPs
This is clearly done with Shenmue 3,4 and 5 in mind. This guy just loves the attention and not a day goes by that he isn't telling people how everyone asks him to make another Shenmue all the time. Suzuki- san finally found a way to get back in the limelight and he doesn't wanna let go. When 3 is done, we obviously need a part 4 cause more questions were raised, but then he needs more funding to truly finish it....which he doesn't because he wants to make part 5.
I was an actual DC owner from the first hour and I loved Shenmue because back then there was nothing like it. Now however Shenmue is surpassed in many ways and it's not like a Mighty no:9 where the base gameplay is always solid, it's more like passing Goldeneye with its original graphics off as the next best thing in FPSs. They clearly took advantage of the hype and you saw the backing slowing down quickly after more details were released. I don't blame Suzuki for wanting to feel like the top dog once more, I blame Sony for not taking full responsibility on this one. Eventually they'll have to sink money in it and Suzuki knows it: their name is on the line now. If you want the applause when it's revealed, you also gotta roll with the punches when it doenst turn out to be a succes!
He must read pushsquare with the amount of times ive called for the ps4 retail copy. £50 and I'm in
Looks like the happiness for this game eroded pretty quickly.
I hope it turns out well so the developer gets another shot, but the series has always been ambitious, and it's bitten them once before.
Yu Suzuki and me both, I can't wait for shenmue 3 I still remember the day I bought shenmue on dreamcast
I'm growing tired of backing Kickstarter projects only to find out later they're getting a physical release which I then have to buy separately.
Mighty No 9 cost me $30 to back it and another $30 to buy the disc. Bloodstained I paid $60 out the gate to get the physical copy, but most projects don't offer physical at first.
But even if they do offer physical it's cheaper for me to wait and buy it through gamers club unlocked at Best Buy for 20% off. Which means one of two things are going to happen- either they need to offer physical to backers for $40 or less, or I need to stop backing Kickstarter projects altogether.
Im not concerned, you dont have to fund the game if you dont want to, just buy it at release, or not if you dont like Shenmue.
This game is finally getting made and there may be more, I would have been happy with a graphic novel, Ive just wanted to know where Yu Suzuki has planned the story to go for all these years.
Each passing day this sounds less interesting. If this fails then we will be in the same spot again, waiting for him to finish the story.
Agreed with @Boerewors, Shenmue 3 wont be impressive by modern standards, specially with a limited budget. It will be more like a curio for people who never played the originals.
I noticed that the kickstarter project wasn't offering a physical copy on ps4 which I thought kind of sucked but then I've never thought any rewards on kickstarter were worth it (hey, rather than a tee shirt, how about you just give me a share of the profits!?!?).
I do find this story a bit concerning. The person running the project has been "considering ways" to get a disc version produced. This begs the question has he never produced a game on a disc before? Does he think it's somehow massively difficult or expensive? If he doesn't know how to get a bluray pressed and distributed (and if he thinks that now is the time to worry about this type of detail) then I would question how likely it is that this game will ever actually get made (getting a disk pressed is waaaay easier than delivering the software that actually goes on the disk).
I wonder if a lack of confidence in the project is why Sony is keeping the whole thing at arms length.
@Ristar42 I know, seriously what's with all the negative bs here LOL, so it didn't hit 5 or 10 million in 10 days. It will likely hit 6 and give us a half decent game. Shenmue I and II were 5 chapters of a 16 chapter saga, any fools that expected the game to be tied up a d done with aren't really Shenmue fans.
@Pipr Sony's lack of effort is worrying though, while the game is being funded now, where is the big Shenmue advert on PSN???? They could atleast offer a PS4 theme for all $5/10 backers, available straight after close of funding. It's a shame that between Yu
Sony and the rest they have a real lack of imagination when it comes to promoting what could be an amazing game.
So much gosh-darned negativity! Where does this massive sense of entitlement come from? I'm sure the same thing is going to happen with final fantasy 7 as soon as it differs from people's expectations. Don't forget the point of playing games is to have fun and not to have your ego (or anything else) stroked. Guys like BLPs - you seem like a good guy but why does it seem like you always have an agenda? Gaming is a heck of a lot more enjoyable when you just focus on the games themselves and tune out the background noise.
@hi_drnick here here old boy, there isn't any way this game is going to be on the level of ground breaking triple A masterpiece the first two were, let's just support and enjoy it while we can, it's been a 14 year wait those sailors and shipping crates deserve better.
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