Don’t play with our emotions like this. Seriously, this is cruel.
Just where the hell did this shaky off-screen Shenmue 4 trailer come from, and is it AI? Well, it doesn’t entirely look like it to us, but you can’t be too sure these days.
The trailer, for fans of the classic SEGA franchise, is pretty incredible with tons of narrative development. It clearly shows protagonist Ryo Hazuki in China alongside long-time allies Ren and Shenhua.
We get a glimpse of seductress Niao Sun, who famously featured in the original game’s concept art, but didn’t appear until Shenmue 3.
The video teases a variety of minigames, from mundane activities like dishwashing, through to a Street Fighter-style arcade cabinet named Shenmue Fighters. It also looks like you’ll be able to buy and wear different outfits. Surely this isn’t AI?
There is a flashback scene towards the end of the trailer which looks suspicious, but other than that this all looks consistent with the tech Ys Net built for Shenmue 3.
The copyright information at the bottom notes that this is a work in progress and, if real, that creator Yu Suzuki’s company is once again licensing the franchise from SEGA.
The trailer first appeared on a random YouTube account which has previously uploaded Astro Bot and Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree gameplay videos. It has six subscribers.
But we’re not sure what to think. It looks good, amazing even – exactly what we’d want from a new Shenmue game. But is it real? We’ve sent out some questions and will update when we know more.