Great video!! 37 years here. Playing video games since I was 4/5 years old. And Shenmue will always be the game that surprised me the most in terms of graphics, story, immersion, and above all what we could do! We had coca cola, we had jingle bells, we had supermarkets, bars, parks to train in martial arts, the first QTE system, mini-games, collectibles, a job, day night cycle, the weather change... anyway... Shenmue had a life... A life of a character called Ryo Hazuki, and we simply became him when we picked up the controller! And even when we put the controller down, those songs, those sounds, continued in my mind when I walked the streets. Absolutely incredible and one of the greatest, if not the greatest achievement in the history of video games. All the big open world games after Shenmue have used and sought inspiration from what Yu Susuki managed to create! In other words, Shenmue was a pioneer! The father! That's why I say that after Shenmue, no open world game has impressed me so much. The game of my life.
Same here brother. A one of a kind game. I will never experience that wonder and awe again. Im not even being the slightest bit dramatic when I say it changed my life.
Yes we stepped into his life and lived it. That was what I loved about it. The same for the beginning of The Darkness. Walking around, beating people up and watching TV with his girlfriend. The Riddick games were cool in that way as well. A slice of Riddicks life. Something about those games were so good.
Fantastic video. Your sentiments resonate with me, espiecially when it comes to wanting to see shenmue continue. I'll never give up hope for Shenmue 4. Thanks for keeping the passion alive with this content!
Since Shenmue 3 was profitable they might as well continue, God knows Transformers movies kept releasing no matter how bad the reviews since they kept turning a profit.
@ @ if you do your proper research you will see although it wasn’t a huge hit, between the kickstarter backers and modest post-release sales, it did make a profit, without being a huge seller or big hit.
I figured out, i loved it because it wasnt about going here and doing this mission there. It was us tryinv to figure stuff out, running into wierd stuff happening and cut scenes everywhere. It just felt so smooth. We had to use our brain to figure things out.
great video ! shenmue is special!, ive played video games all my life. and i have never been immersed in a game like what i was with shenmue 1 and 2 on the dreamcast. it will stick with me forever :)
Thank you so much for making this. I played Shenmue on the Dreamcast and then number 2 on Xbox. It completely blew me away and I haven’t ever had such a profound experience with any other game. It’s a very mysterious feeling and I have no Idea why it was so meaningful. I still remember the end of number 2 walking with that girl, it was transcendent, which is just so bizarre. I avoided number 3 as I wasn’t sure I would have the same profound sensation. Maybe it’s something to do with being older and those experiences are simply not possible anymore.
Yeah getting older deff has a part but Ill say i replayed Shenmue 2 in 2019 just before the third game came out to refresh myself. I beat it in two sittings which is crazy and it totally blew me away all over again. One of my best gaming experiences ever
@@OpticLureProductions this helps restore my faith - that some works of art do contain magic. I went from the Nintendo 64 to the Dreamcast, it seemed such a big jump. The realism in Shenmue transported me into beautiful, living world full of mystery. Somehow it really did feel like I was on an adventure discovering clues and moving forward. I can’t really play games anymore without feeling like it’s just a series of obstacles set by a cleaver developer. Anyway thank you again, I’ve watch a few of your videos and they’re brilliant. The way you contextualise the wider culture around the subject is inspiring. I’m an architect and try to design space along similar principles. Maybe that’s where art is falling down - people narrowing their worlds?
I would say ABSOLUTLEY. Ill be honest the story will leave you wanting more but you have to understand two things going in. First the budget was very low compared to the other two games and im sure a lot of side stories were left out, when you play the game you can feel where some areas were supposed to be more fleshed out but they just arent. Second is that Shenmue is a Martial Arts epic, and in every martial arts film there is a training montage. This game is essentially that. Its all about Ryo training and learning moves in the Chinese countryside. Its not as good as Shenmue 2. Not even close honestly. But it is worth playing. If you love the series, you will get something out of it. @@mauriceshapero7200
Shenmue is absolutely in my top five favorite games and most influential games ever created- As far as what it did for me at the time I got to experience it at 15 years of age… it was truly wonderful, and I would really love to meet the guy behind its creation and some of the teachings within it!! Yu Suzuki is an absolute legend-
One of my best friends and I absolutely adored this game growing up. We still repeat the amazing one liners to each other all the time. “Hereya go! Milks perfect for a schooool boy!!! Hehhegghh!!!”
What a sad story. I loved playing this game in my teens. Aside from GTA: San Andreas, Shenmue defined my early gaming life more than anything. My cousin had a SEGA Dreamcast and me and my younger brother would always look for any reason to sleepover at my aunts just so we could play Shenmue. It tooks months of nagging before my parents caved in and brought me and my brother our own SEGA Dreamcast. When they did, many a Saturdays and Sundays were spent doing nothing but playing Shenmue. Back then, I always wondered as to why Shenmue 2 took so long. Now I know as to why (we got a first PS2 around the same time, I can't believe it). I never actually played Shenmue 2 until it was realised on -- get this -- the XBOX ONE. It's a real shame. If there was a remasted version of the Original Shemue, I really do think it would revitalise the game,
I never owned a Dreamcast but I was 9 when Xbox came out and I picked up Shenmue 2 in a Circuit City, totally not knowing anything about the series. I was so blown away I actually cant put into words, and that feeling of adventure would last with me the rest of my life.
My father told me about Shenmue, he told me it was the first ever open world game and that it was amazing. He played them on Sega dreamcast and always told me that Shenmue paved the way for games like GTA. Years later on the PS4 Shenmue 1 and 2 were remastered and I decided to play them. I absolutely loved them! I became a massive Shenmue fan and have now watched the series and played the 3rd game (don't recommend) I really hope I find out what and where Yu Suzuki had in mind for Ryo, I just need to see the final boss fight against Lan Di!
Yeah I wonder myself and really hope one day we will know. I almost feel like he will never beat Lan Di and the game will be about the journey of discovering there is no point in revenge.
As someone who just learned about this series six months ago, I’m planning on buying a PS4 just so I can play the Shenmue Trilogy (and yes other games too). I hope he can complete his vision with Shenmue. The man is a true artist and deserves to share his story the way he wants to and yes I’d put my money where my mouth is on that.
There's something truly artistic about Yu Suzuki's work with Shenmue. Especially in how the game approach story telling and time. It has a much slower pace than typical games and asks the player to be more patient. Yu Suzuki wanted to create a "world simulator" within Shenmue. I don't ever think the idea was to rush through the game just for the sake of the story. Suzuki wanted you to walk in Ryo's shoes and learn the same lessons but through gaming.... Playing one hour a day would allow you to experience a whole day together with Ryo in Shenmue. To this day I still appreciate this slower pace, and the virtuous nature of the gameplay. It teaches you patience, to work hard and to be consistent. I understand why it doesn't have mass appeal in an age where gamers primarily seek out quick dopamine rushes. But ultimately Shenmue is a nice change of pace!
'He shall appear from a far eastern land across the sea" ( shenmue, released in 1999) "A young man who has yet to know his potential" (dreamcast players discovering the potential of shenmue in 1999) "This potential is a power that could either destroy him or realise his will" ( shenmue was a hope when it came out that would work or not ) "His courage shall determine his fate" (shenmue 2 has finally been released in 2001 with a risk in mind) "The path he must traverse, fraught with adversity" (unfortunately, sales were not enough and complications arose ) "I wait whilst praying "(Shenmue fans have been waiting almost 20 years for shenmue 3) "for this destiny predetermined since ancient times "(Shenmue fans are the most loyal after waiting and holding out hope, as if they knew deep down that one day the sequel would arrive as it was destiny ) "A pitch-black night unfolds with the morning star as its only light "(this light represents the hope of shenmue fans who have waited and finally got shenmue 3 and the shenmue anime as a glimmer of hope reborn ) "And thus, the saga…begins." (the shenmue adventure has only just begun and the fans have proved that 20 years of waiting can't diminish their love for shenmue ) Shenmue : The Story Goes on
Just watched your Matrix video, and I'm going through your catalogue, I really like how "deep into the weeds" you go in your videos, exploring the whole culture around the times of these games/movies. It's a very very cool and unique style that I'm really enjoying!
It's nice seeing you upload again as i've binged all your videos already! Lol. I always love the personal touches you add to your videos, be it your personal ties with them, experiences, to fond memories alike! Keep up the amazing work Optic!
Shenmue is amazing and the fact that fork lift simulator dude referred to in this video cant see art in the making that can hold up a good story in 2024 and not think it was ground breaking at the time it came out goes to show just how many people shouldn't have a mic to talk into when they don't know the difference between their ass and a hole in the ground
Jeff Gerstmann, he was big time at gamespot for many years. I actually like him but hes just so wrong on Shenmue and with his influence being so strong on so many people i find it infuriating.
I love Shenmue because the experience is so special. The vibe of the games is so unique and quickly after playing the first two I was so motivated to learn some Kung Fu. So I asked a friend who was in China and learned some fighting. Now I can Box and do some Kicks. I never used this Skills not even in a practice fight but thanks to this game I had two unique experiences: The gameseries Shenmue and my own apth of learning some fightingskills. I thought Shenmue 3 was okay, but still I would love to see part 4. Despite being 26 and the games came out when I was 2 years old. I don't care. It's an oldtime classic with unique moments.
Great video. I bought Shenmue on the Dreamcast on release, at the time it was unlike anything I’d played before. It was far from perfect but it had a unique charm about it that kept you playing.
In my opinion, Tekken absolutely blew Virtua fighter out the water when it came out, especially by the time they made it to the third game in the series where true 3-D fighting with moving into the background and foreground as well as side to side was possible!! It was finally the day when fighting games that were 3-D became legendary! Tekken3
Yeah, I personally thought Tekken 1 was worse than VF1. But, since the 2nd game, Namco seriously stepped their game up, and Tekken surpassed VF in success. Soul Calibur's another 3D fighting game that overtook VF in popularity, now that I think about it. I started with VF, but Tekken and Soul Calibur pretty much replaced that series for me. It wasn't due to a lack of interest in VF, but rather a lack of interest from the folks at Sega. There's no way to continue playing VF titles, when Sega hasn't touched the series for almost 16 years.
@@TheDr502 Tekken always felt more original to me? I agree that the first Tekken was really bare bones in the beginning but from Tekken2 onwards, it kept getting better! Plus I always loved the way it played, the Combat system, the Air Combo and the ability to come up with what feel like “your own combo’s!?” But that’s just cause of how good the system is designed! I also, always really liked how if you were good with a certain character, you could beat any other character with that character, no characters were overpowered, or over strong by default or because of their “character” all of them were tools to be used by the player I was always good with Kazuya, Mashima, and Jen, Kazama, and Paul, Phoenix, and law and even Hwoarang, and it wasn’t until my buddy Chad, who was third place in the Tekken Tag tournament2 taught me how to really play during the first tag tournament on PS2 that I really started to get good at the game! But hell, I’ve not played none of them in years …
@@TheDr502 to be 100% honest man, I was 11 years old when I got to play Tekken and ridge racer for the first time in the arcade and then that Christmas the Sony PlayStation came out and my dad got me one with both tan and Ridge racer and jumping flash and twisted metal and destruction, derby and street fighter the movie the game!!!! (it was the best Christmas I’ve ever had had to say the least, but I almost got killed earlier that year and so my parents really blew it out on me that year) But I might have a completely different opinion if we had went with the Sega Saturn ? I never got to play the virtual fighter, but I did the game that I had on my PS2, virtual fighter, four or five? I can’t really remember, but I always really liked how it played.
The Tekken and Soul Blade/Calibur games are super dumbed down, almost skill-less fighting game series that are made to be accessable to everyone and appeal to the lowest common denominator. The Virtua Fighter games required skill and precise timings to beat wheras the Tekken and Soul games are just mindless button mashers that any skill-less player can beat.
This is a really good video. Shenmue was amazing back in the day. I was 14 when this game came out, got it for Christmas and I had played nothing like it before. This game definitely goes on my list of games that has influenced me over the years. I will always love it. I definitely prefer shenmues type of open world rather than grand theft autos. In Shenmue it literally felt like each person had a name. You could pick up all these objects in the world and just exist in it. In grand theft auto it was more about just killing people and driving cars.
It wasn’t until playing the Witcher three wild hunt, that I truly had another gaming experience that was similar to in comparison to the feeling and experience I got from Shenmue the first time playing it?? But I don’t think any game whatever have the same impact and the same level of an effective amazement that came with uncovering all the detail and layers and layers of heart and love within the world of Shenmue
I live in the uk, so I brought 1 and 2 the day they came out, loved every second, even the 3rd!! yes I knew it wasn't goin to be as good but thats not goin to make me spit my dummy out and say I'm done with the series, I'm committed to this journey and eagerly await the next chapter
@@OpticLureProductions 2was and is amazing.. love it...every winter I start the series from start to finish then I start metal gear series from start to finish
Great retrospection man! 😊I think(hope) we'll see Shenmue IV reveal this year and the game somewhere in 2024. There are still many fans that want it and some new fans too. 😎 The hd remaster and the anime helped a bit for some new interest in the games.
As far off as it seems something tells me we will get Shenmue IV. I will absolutely freak out at that announcement. Which Shenmue game is your current Fav?
I think my favorite right now is the third game. I finished it 4 times from 2019 until now and I'm starting to get sick of it. (but it's soo beautiful...) I need a new Shenmue game ASAP.😆 Maybe I need to play Shenmue 2 again. I've played the second part a long time ago and there are some moments that I don't remember very well.
@@PetarVazharski Oh you definitely do! It holds up incredibly well and the story is to die for. I agree thought that 3 was the most beautiful game. I played through it twice. I think im ready for another go soon although ive been holding out for 4's announcement to replay all the games back to back
I really hope that Suzuki learns from his mistakes in 3 if we get 4. I really like Shenmue. In a sea of ironically action packed bore fests its success would be a good sign to companies that we are kind of done with that kind of gameplay. We can only hope but I want Shenmue to have one last dance.
We can only hope at this point. Its been a long time already after 3. However part of me does believe we will see shenmue 4, however I dont think the story would conclude until 5
I really hope we see a Shenmue4 with the original creators and designers back at the helm?! It’s hard to imagine how they could create a game this day and time that had the same impact that the original Shenmue had at the time a bit released, but I have every bit of faith that they could do it!!
the best thing Yu could do at this point is do Shenmue 4 to conclude the story but put in a time skip 1 hour FMV to explain how the hell Ryo becomes strong enough to compete with Lan Di
@@sirskippalot i think they could do it on a budget, they can reuse assets from shenmue 3 now. it's possible, i have faith, even if it's in another 7 years it'll happen someday
I’ve now heard multiple different TH-camrs claim that “Shenmue two is their favorite game of all time“ and as such I guess I’m going to go ahead and finish the game I started in it back in 2019 when the remasters came out?? When the remasters came out I went ahead and platinum Shenmue on the PS4 pro and then I turned around and got all the achievements for it on the Xbox one because I love the game easily as much as to play it numerous times over and over!! But I did not like number two as much due to the fact that the first job you get is pale in comparison to the forklift driving job with it every day race that starts out before you do your shift?!!? Either way, I love the first one enough of that tonight I am going to continue my game which is already at about maybe halfway through anyways..
I feel like Shenmue left a bigger impact than people realize. The first game had the absolute best graphics for its time, but the gameplay left a lot of people disinterested. Now we live in a time where video game graphics look absolutely incredible, but the gameplay is boring at worst and serviceable at best. Shenmue 3 had the potential to be better than what came before it, but it was created by a man who really doesn’t understand video games. He tried to make a series that tries to emulate reality to a fault when that isn’t why we play video games. We play them to experience a world different from our own. To do things that wouldn’t be possible in our world. To meet characters that don’t exist in our world. If he had just cut back on the slower monotonous aspects, the game would’ve been a lot better. Like the opening section in the village: you can still have all those mini games to try and earn money and everything, right? But you could’ve also added one where you charge people to fight you and test your combat skills. Suzuki should’ve asked “what can Ryo do that I can’t?” and build the gameplay around that so it not only engages the player, but builds up Ryo’s character.
Good point but also some of those slower aspects are on purpose. Shenmue was built to replicate life....but someone elses life. Like the ultimate escapism. At the end of the day not everybody cared for that idea and I totally understand it. Id say Shenmue 2 balanced it the best of all
I've watched this video so many times; it's that good! I love the " historical documentary" vibe to it. You take a very professional approach to this video. As for the possibility of Shenmue IV, what I'll say is that I think it's more likely than a Half-Life 3, a new Earthbound title, or a new F-Zero game. If nothing else, Shenmue's creator is still determined to finish the series' story line, unlike those other 3 examples, where the creators who worked on those have zero interest in going back to them. When there's a will, there's a way. It's a cliched statement, but everyone can see the strong will that Yu Suzuki has to complete this story line, hopefully within his lifetime. Although I might find Yakuza a funnier and shinier game, I find Suzuki's passion for Shenmue to be quite infectious.
Thanks so much for the comment! Glad you enjoy the video! And yes I think somehow someway he will get it done. Im hoping at least. It just seems so wrong that we wouldnt get to see the story end. But I'm scared how much time has already passed without a word.
@@OpticLureProductions To be honest, I think he should pick a different format other than video games to complete the story. Video games are too expensive, and I don't think the money is there to release a new Shenmue title, much less ~13 games, as he originally planned. He convinced 2 companies to grant him budgets to make 3 titles for a passion project, the first 2 of which had pretty impressive budgets for their time. He sold ~69,000 Kickstarter backers on sending him $6+ million of their disposable income to fund a 3rd game. I don't think he'll convince another company or another group of Kickstarter backers to fund another Shenmue. It's safe to say that the bank is closed. Seriously, I'd be satisfied with an anime (okay, didn't work out, but not like they can't try again), a manga, a visual/text novel, a podcast drama, etc. Hell, even CliffNotes or Windows Notepad would work. I'd just like to see how this story ends. That's all. I don't think that's too much for us Shenmue types to ask for.
It really deserved to be as big as the Metal Gear Solid series. But this game just kept getting delayed. Hideo Kojima at least got his games delivered on time and in budget. To me Shenmue feels like a Saturn game. Something about the polygon count on scenery and the overall scale of the environment. So none of these games ever really got finished. Shenmue 2, when it came out, had dated graphics. The interactive elements needed more work. If the first game hold sold properly, then the second game would have been a more polished product and had the attention this game really deserves.
@@OpticLureProductions I think for what it is, it's not doing enough, for 2001. This is a game about looking. That's the primary gameplay mechanic. So more needed to be done with lighting and particle effects to remove the very hard edges, visually. Devil May Cry on PS2 (2001) really tears Shenmue 2's graphics a new one.
@@ShenmueVillage987 well yes it does. Pigeon Square looks kind of nuts sometimes. There are alot of repeating textures and wide open spaces with simple geometry to play to the DC's strengths and I was meaning by DMC looking 'better' was that it is more in motion with a safe art style and theme.
I love this game still have my xbox copy the good thing about it is that they included a dvd of the first gave as a movie. You had to watch the movie which is the first game and when started the 2d game you picked off where the first ended. I literally just saw shenmue 3 for ps4 and was able to download it on my pc ❤ just started the game but its also a shame that the game is left wirh a clif hanger 😢
Great topic, fairly niche stuff in the grand scheme of things but you handled it so well. Excellent overview of the series & where it stands now. I'm still on board for Shenmue 4
Shenmue is the very first game I bought with my own money. I was 13 and had a part time job after school. When the game was released I didn't know what it was but it looked interesting. Needless to say my mind was blown by the interactive experience, QTE system and expansive world. Not to go on a tangent but had dreamcast not been so glitchy, I think it could have blown Playstation out the water. Their games were just better. As I like to remind my friends who love basketball, the nba 2k series began on dreamcast
I know PlayStation wasn’t entirely to blame for segas downfall but Sony definitely played a large part in it. So I personally hate Sony the games industry has become stagnant because of Sony. Sega always tried new things a bit like Nintendo but sega was more wreck less
When I first walked into an arcade and saw Virtual Fighter for the first time... I thought it was the ugliest shit I've ever seen. 😂 I recognised the attempt and what they were doing with the technology, but holy shit it was ugly. I turned around and went back to play Samurai Shodown and MK2.
@@OpticLureProductions Yeah for me it wasn't until texture was possible that 3D games got my attention. I had the same reaction on Star Fox on Snes. I was not impressed. During that time, 2D pixel animation was at it's peak and 2D fighting games were so gorgeous.
Shenmue III was a massive disappointment, and it is now clear beyond a shadow of a doubt, we will never see an end to the series. The reason the first two games were so good was that, even though the games were a slow burn experience, we were consistently being fed great (and unique) gameplay, characters, fighting, intense QTE cutscenes and story. Shenmue III failed in almost all those areas-weaker characters and character development, a watered down fighting system based on tedious mini game stat increases rather than a robust fighting engine, poorly implemented QTE segments, and virtually no story progression.
Super Eyepatch Wolf's video on Shenmue 3 is probably the worst review of Shenmue 3 that I've ever seen. It's because of his video that people have such a misinformed idea of what Shenmue 3 and the entire Shenmue series is about. And people think that his video is actually good.
Nice work.
Whoa Shenmue Dojo...no way! Thanks for watching!
@@OpticLureProductions Not at all. Cracking video.
@@ShenmueDojoVOD
Based ❤
Great video!! 37 years here. Playing video games since I was 4/5 years old. And Shenmue will always be the game that surprised me the most in terms of graphics, story, immersion, and above all what we could do! We had coca cola, we had jingle bells, we had supermarkets, bars, parks to train in martial arts, the first QTE system, mini-games, collectibles, a job, day night cycle, the weather change... anyway... Shenmue had a life... A life of a character called Ryo Hazuki, and we simply became him when we picked up the controller! And even when we put the controller down, those songs, those sounds, continued in my mind when I walked the streets. Absolutely incredible and one of the greatest, if not the greatest achievement in the history of video games. All the big open world games after Shenmue have used and sought inspiration from what Yu Susuki managed to create! In other words, Shenmue was a pioneer! The father! That's why I say that after Shenmue, no open world game has impressed me so much. The game of my life.
Same here brother. A one of a kind game. I will never experience that wonder and awe again. Im not even being the slightest bit dramatic when I say it changed my life.
Yes we stepped into his life and lived it. That was what I loved about it. The same for the beginning of The Darkness. Walking around, beating people up and watching TV with his girlfriend. The Riddick games were cool in that way as well. A slice of Riddicks life. Something about those games were so good.
Fantastic video. Your sentiments resonate with me, espiecially when it comes to wanting to see shenmue continue. I'll never give up hope for Shenmue 4. Thanks for keeping the passion alive with this content!
Right on brother. Ive loved your channel for a long time now! Best takedown of Supereyepatchwolf ever. Loved it
Hope it will continue and get back to the quality standards of the 2 1st titles
Since Shenmue 3 was profitable they might as well continue, God knows Transformers movies kept releasing no matter how bad the reviews since they kept turning a profit.
"Profitable" don't make me laugh 😭🤣 although there's hope with that new publisher
@ @ if you do your proper research you will see although it wasn’t a huge hit, between the kickstarter backers and modest post-release sales, it did make a profit, without being a huge seller or big hit.
Correct @@SharifSourour
It made profit??? For real???
@ yup! Just not a lot.
I figured out, i loved it because it wasnt about going here and doing this mission there. It was us tryinv to figure stuff out, running into wierd stuff happening and cut scenes everywhere. It just felt so smooth. We had to use our brain to figure things out.
great video !
shenmue is special!, ive played video games all my life. and i have never been immersed in a game like what i was with shenmue 1 and 2 on the dreamcast.
it will stick with me forever :)
Yeah it really is something that hit some of us differently. Hard to described to those who didnt have the experience
Thank you so much for making this. I played Shenmue on the Dreamcast and then number 2 on Xbox. It completely blew me away and I haven’t ever had such a profound experience with any other game. It’s a very mysterious feeling and I have no Idea why it was so meaningful. I still remember the end of number 2 walking with that girl, it was transcendent, which is just so bizarre. I avoided number 3 as I wasn’t sure I would have the same profound sensation. Maybe it’s something to do with being older and those experiences are simply not possible anymore.
Yeah getting older deff has a part but Ill say i replayed Shenmue 2 in 2019 just before the third game came out to refresh myself. I beat it in two sittings which is crazy and it totally blew me away all over again. One of my best gaming experiences ever
@@OpticLureProductions this helps restore my faith - that some works of art do contain magic. I went from the Nintendo 64 to the Dreamcast, it seemed such a big jump. The realism in Shenmue transported me into beautiful, living world full of mystery. Somehow it really did feel like I was on an adventure discovering clues and moving forward. I can’t really play games anymore without feeling like it’s just a series of obstacles set by a cleaver developer. Anyway thank you again, I’ve watch a few of your videos and they’re brilliant. The way you contextualise the wider culture around the subject is inspiring. I’m an architect and try to design space along similar principles. Maybe that’s where art is falling down - people narrowing their worlds?
@@OpticLureProductions oh I forgot to ask the big question - should I play Shenmue 3?!
I would say ABSOLUTLEY. Ill be honest the story will leave you wanting more but you have to understand two things going in. First the budget was very low compared to the other two games and im sure a lot of side stories were left out, when you play the game you can feel where some areas were supposed to be more fleshed out but they just arent. Second is that Shenmue is a Martial Arts epic, and in every martial arts film there is a training montage. This game is essentially that. Its all about Ryo training and learning moves in the Chinese countryside.
Its not as good as Shenmue 2. Not even close honestly. But it is worth playing. If you love the series, you will get something out of it. @@mauriceshapero7200
@@OpticLureProductions ok thank you - just bought it for £2.60!
Yes shenmue is the origin of Open world games. Yu Suzuki called it FREE Full Reactive Eyes Entertainment
Shenmue is absolutely in my top five favorite games and most influential games ever created-
As far as what it did for me at the time I got to experience it at 15 years of age… it was truly wonderful, and I would really love to meet the guy behind its creation and some of the teachings within it!!
Yu Suzuki is an absolute legend-
Its one of the best games of all time no doubt
A legend indeed
Awesome job man. We need more people like you
Thanks brother! And we need Shenmue 4!!
One of my best friends and I absolutely adored this game growing up. We still repeat the amazing one liners to each other all the time. “Hereya go! Milks perfect for a schooool boy!!! Hehhegghh!!!”
plenty of quotables thats for sure
What a sad story. I loved playing this game in my teens. Aside from GTA: San Andreas, Shenmue defined my early gaming life more than anything. My cousin had a SEGA Dreamcast and me and my younger brother would always look for any reason to sleepover at my aunts just so we could play Shenmue. It tooks months of nagging before my parents caved in and brought me and my brother our own SEGA Dreamcast. When they did, many a Saturdays and Sundays were spent doing nothing but playing Shenmue. Back then, I always wondered as to why Shenmue 2 took so long. Now I know as to why (we got a first PS2 around the same time, I can't believe it). I never actually played Shenmue 2 until it was realised on -- get this -- the XBOX ONE. It's a real shame. If there was a remasted version of the Original Shemue, I really do think it would revitalise the game,
I never owned a Dreamcast but I was 9 when Xbox came out and I picked up Shenmue 2 in a Circuit City, totally not knowing anything about the series. I was so blown away I actually cant put into words, and that feeling of adventure would last with me the rest of my life.
Nicely done. I'll check out the anime. Not everything worthwhile is finished.
My father told me about Shenmue, he told me it was the first ever open world game and that it was amazing. He played them on Sega dreamcast and always told me that Shenmue paved the way for games like GTA. Years later on the PS4 Shenmue 1 and 2 were remastered and I decided to play them.
I absolutely loved them! I became a massive Shenmue fan and have now watched the series and played the 3rd game (don't recommend) I really hope I find out what and where Yu Suzuki had in mind for Ryo, I just need to see the final boss fight against Lan Di!
Yeah I wonder myself and really hope one day we will know. I almost feel like he will never beat Lan Di and the game will be about the journey of discovering there is no point in revenge.
Never played it & I’ll never will at the moment & current stage of my life but I loved every bit of this story & its effort & expression
Thank you for all your comments and support. Extremely grateful!
As someone who just learned about this series six months ago, I’m planning on buying a PS4 just so I can play the Shenmue Trilogy (and yes other games too). I hope he can complete his vision with Shenmue. The man is a true artist and deserves to share his story the way he wants to and yes I’d put my money where my mouth is on that.
OMG you look like a saxophone player for an 80's yacht rock band! Also great video. Very well researched and edited.
Lmao thanks. Yeah that haircut was very 80s. Thanks for watching glad you enjoyed it!
There's something truly artistic about Yu Suzuki's work with Shenmue. Especially in how the game approach story telling and time. It has a much slower pace than typical games and asks the player to be more patient. Yu Suzuki wanted to create a "world simulator" within Shenmue. I don't ever think the idea was to rush through the game just for the sake of the story. Suzuki wanted you to walk in Ryo's shoes and learn the same lessons but through gaming.... Playing one hour a day would allow you to experience a whole day together with Ryo in Shenmue. To this day I still appreciate this slower pace, and the virtuous nature of the gameplay. It teaches you patience, to work hard and to be consistent. I understand why it doesn't have mass appeal in an age where gamers primarily seek out quick dopamine rushes. But ultimately Shenmue is a nice change of pace!
'He shall appear from a far eastern land across the sea" ( shenmue, released in 1999)
"A young man who has yet to know his potential" (dreamcast players discovering the potential of shenmue in 1999)
"This potential is a power that could either destroy him or realise his will" ( shenmue was a hope when it came out that would work or not )
"His courage shall determine his fate" (shenmue 2 has finally been released in 2001 with a risk in mind)
"The path he must traverse, fraught with adversity" (unfortunately, sales were not enough and complications arose )
"I wait whilst praying "(Shenmue fans have been waiting almost 20 years for shenmue 3)
"for this destiny predetermined since ancient times "(Shenmue fans are the most loyal after waiting and holding out hope, as if they knew deep down that one day the sequel would arrive as it was destiny )
"A pitch-black night unfolds with the morning star as its only light "(this light represents the hope of shenmue fans who have waited and finally got shenmue 3 and the shenmue anime as a glimmer of hope reborn )
"And thus, the saga…begins." (the shenmue adventure has only just begun and the fans have proved that 20 years of waiting can't diminish their love for shenmue )
Shenmue : The Story Goes on
Just watched your Matrix video, and I'm going through your catalogue, I really like how "deep into the weeds" you go in your videos, exploring the whole culture around the times of these games/movies. It's a very very cool and unique style that I'm really enjoying!
Awesome, thank you!
It's nice seeing you upload again as i've binged all your videos already! Lol.
I always love the personal touches you add to your videos, be it your personal ties with them, experiences, to fond memories alike!
Keep up the amazing work Optic!
Thanks so much for watching!! I'm going to try and be more regular going forward. I may need to start making shorter vids lol
Shenmue is amazing and the fact that fork lift simulator dude referred to in this video cant see art in the making that can hold up a good story in 2024 and not think it was ground breaking at the time it came out goes to show just how many people shouldn't have a mic to talk into when they don't know the difference between their ass and a hole in the ground
Jeff Gerstmann, he was big time at gamespot for many years. I actually like him but hes just so wrong on Shenmue and with his influence being so strong on so many people i find it infuriating.
I love Shenmue because the experience is so special. The vibe of the games is so unique and quickly after playing the first two I was so motivated to learn some Kung Fu. So I asked a friend who was in China and learned some fighting. Now I can Box and do some Kicks. I never used this Skills not even in a practice fight but thanks to this game I had two unique experiences: The gameseries Shenmue and my own apth of learning some fightingskills. I thought Shenmue 3 was okay, but still I would love to see part 4. Despite being 26 and the games came out when I was 2 years old. I don't care. It's an oldtime classic with unique moments.
Hell yeah Shenmue got me into fighting as well. I dont really train but im a big fan
@@OpticLureProductions ah that's pretty cool! Yeah I don't really train I just do some Shadowboxing
good to see you upload again. it was worth the wait optic lure
Thanks glad you like it. I need to be more consistent.
Nintendo can save Shenmue. They need sagas for a new console. Maybe we should make noise with this idea on social media.
Great video. I bought Shenmue on the Dreamcast on release, at the time it was unlike anything I’d played before. It was far from perfect but it had a unique charm about it that kept you playing.
Yeah and all these years later the charm remains. I really hope they can get shenmue 4 off the ground...really want to see this series get an ending
Dude! Happy to see your channel growing and even better to see a video about a series I’m curious about. I’m excited to watch this later 😎
Thanks yeah check it out!
@@OpticLureProductions I definitely will! Just at a wedding right now. But it’s saved to my watch later list 😎
@@wizcatcheslightning Thanks man! Enjoy the wedding
Great video! I love all of the history trivia here including where some of those neat arcade games you can find in the Yakuza series came from 😎
Thanks glad you liked it!
Shenmue is the greatest game ever made. And looking back at the S3 announcement...boy, that wad a triumph.
In my opinion, Tekken absolutely blew Virtua fighter out the water when it came out, especially by the time they made it to the third game in the series where true 3-D fighting with moving into the background and foreground as well as side to side was possible!!
It was finally the day when fighting games that were 3-D became legendary!
Tekken3
same for me I only ever played tekken
Yeah, I personally thought Tekken 1 was worse than VF1. But, since the 2nd game, Namco seriously stepped their game up, and Tekken surpassed VF in success. Soul Calibur's another 3D fighting game that overtook VF in popularity, now that I think about it.
I started with VF, but Tekken and Soul Calibur pretty much replaced that series for me. It wasn't due to a lack of interest in VF, but rather a lack of interest from the folks at Sega. There's no way to continue playing VF titles, when Sega hasn't touched the series for almost 16 years.
@@TheDr502 Tekken always felt more original to me? I agree that the first Tekken was really bare bones in the beginning but from Tekken2 onwards, it kept getting better!
Plus I always loved the way it played, the Combat system, the Air Combo and the ability to come up with what feel like “your own combo’s!?”
But that’s just cause of how good the system is designed! I also, always really liked how if you were good with a certain character, you could beat any other character with that character, no characters were overpowered, or over strong by default or because of their “character” all of them were tools to be used by the player I was always good with Kazuya, Mashima, and Jen, Kazama, and Paul, Phoenix, and law and even Hwoarang, and it wasn’t until my buddy Chad, who was third place in the Tekken Tag tournament2 taught me how to really play during the first tag tournament on PS2 that I really started to get good at the game!
But hell, I’ve not played none of them in years …
@@TheDr502 to be 100% honest man, I was 11 years old when I got to play Tekken and ridge racer for the first time in the arcade and then that Christmas the Sony PlayStation came out and my dad got me one with both tan and Ridge racer and jumping flash and twisted metal and destruction, derby and street fighter the movie the game!!!! (it was the best Christmas I’ve ever had had to say the least, but I almost got killed earlier that year and so my parents really blew it out on me that year)
But I might have a completely different opinion if we had went with the Sega Saturn ?
I never got to play the virtual fighter, but I did the game that I had on my PS2, virtual fighter, four or five? I can’t really remember, but I always really liked how it played.
The Tekken and Soul Blade/Calibur games are super dumbed down, almost skill-less fighting game series that are made to be accessable to everyone and appeal to the lowest common denominator.
The Virtua Fighter games required skill and precise timings to beat wheras the Tekken and Soul games are just mindless button mashers that any skill-less player can beat.
This is a really good video. Shenmue was amazing back in the day. I was 14 when this game came out, got it for Christmas and I had played nothing like it before. This game definitely goes on my list of games that has influenced me over the years. I will always love it. I definitely prefer shenmues type of open world rather than grand theft autos. In Shenmue it literally felt like each person had a name. You could pick up all these objects in the world and just exist in it. In grand theft auto it was more about just killing people and driving cars.
Awesome presentation Optic!
Thank you!
It wasn’t until playing the Witcher three wild hunt, that I truly had another gaming experience that was similar to in comparison to the feeling and experience I got from Shenmue the first time playing it??
But I don’t think any game whatever have the same impact and the same level of an effective amazement that came with uncovering all the detail and layers and layers of heart and love within the world of Shenmue
I live in the uk, so I brought 1 and 2 the day they came out, loved every second, even the 3rd!! yes I knew it wasn't goin to be as good but thats not goin to make me spit my dummy out and say I'm done with the series, I'm committed to this journey and eagerly await the next chapter
*bought
Amazing video, I throughly enjoyed it
Thanks so much man Im glad you liked it!
Excellent video to th greatest game ever
Which one is your favorite?
@@OpticLureProductions number 1 mate , you can't beat it ..
@@kid--presentable Mine is no.2 but thats also the first one I played as a kid
@@OpticLureProductions 2was and is amazing.. love it...every winter I start the series from start to finish then I start metal gear series from start to finish
@@kid--presentable Damn that sounds amazing. I want to play the whole series again but ive been holding out for hopes a Shenmue 4 announcement
Shenmue 3 is amazing too
I agree
Great retrospection man! 😊I think(hope) we'll see Shenmue IV reveal this year and the game somewhere in 2024. There are still many fans that want it and some new fans too. 😎 The hd remaster and the anime helped a bit for some new interest in the games.
As far off as it seems something tells me we will get Shenmue IV. I will absolutely freak out at that announcement. Which Shenmue game is your current Fav?
I think my favorite right now is the third game. I finished it 4 times from 2019 until now and I'm starting to get sick of it. (but it's soo beautiful...) I need a new Shenmue game ASAP.😆 Maybe I need to play Shenmue 2 again. I've played the second part a long time ago and there are some moments that I don't remember very well.
@@PetarVazharski Oh you definitely do! It holds up incredibly well and the story is to die for. I agree thought that 3 was the most beautiful game. I played through it twice. I think im ready for another go soon although ive been holding out for 4's announcement to replay all the games back to back
I really hope that Suzuki learns from his mistakes in 3 if we get 4. I really like Shenmue. In a sea of ironically action packed bore fests its success would be a good sign to companies that we are kind of done with that kind of gameplay. We can only hope but I want Shenmue to have one last dance.
We can only hope at this point. Its been a long time already after 3. However part of me does believe we will see shenmue 4, however I dont think the story would conclude until 5
I really hope we see a Shenmue4 with the original creators and designers back at the helm?!
It’s hard to imagine how they could create a game this day and time that had the same impact that the original Shenmue had at the time a bit released, but I have every bit of faith that they could do it!!
the best thing Yu could do at this point is do Shenmue 4 to conclude the story but put in a time skip 1 hour FMV to explain how the hell Ryo becomes strong enough to compete with Lan Di
@@sirskippalot i think they could do it on a budget, they can reuse assets from shenmue 3 now. it's possible, i have faith, even if it's in another 7 years it'll happen someday
Master piece❤❤
I’ve now heard multiple different TH-camrs claim that “Shenmue two is their favorite game of all time“ and as such I guess I’m going to go ahead and finish the game I started in it back in 2019 when the remasters came out??
When the remasters came out I went ahead and platinum Shenmue on the PS4 pro and then I turned around and got all the achievements for it on the Xbox one because I love the game easily as much as to play it numerous times over and over!!
But I did not like number two as much due to the fact that the first job you get is pale in comparison to the forklift driving job with it every day race that starts out before you do your shift?!!?
Either way, I love the first one enough of that tonight I am going to continue my game which is already at about maybe halfway through anyways..
I feel like Shenmue left a bigger impact than people realize. The first game had the absolute best graphics for its time, but the gameplay left a lot of people disinterested.
Now we live in a time where video game graphics look absolutely incredible, but the gameplay is boring at worst and serviceable at best.
Shenmue 3 had the potential to be better than what came before it, but it was created by a man who really doesn’t understand video games. He tried to make a series that tries to emulate reality to a fault when that isn’t why we play video games. We play them to experience a world different from our own. To do things that wouldn’t be possible in our world. To meet characters that don’t exist in our world.
If he had just cut back on the slower monotonous aspects, the game would’ve been a lot better.
Like the opening section in the village: you can still have all those mini games to try and earn money and everything, right? But you could’ve also added one where you charge people to fight you and test your combat skills. Suzuki should’ve asked “what can Ryo do that I can’t?” and build the gameplay around that so it not only engages the player, but builds up Ryo’s character.
Good point but also some of those slower aspects are on purpose. Shenmue was built to replicate life....but someone elses life. Like the ultimate escapism. At the end of the day not everybody cared for that idea and I totally understand it. Id say Shenmue 2 balanced it the best of all
What is the song at 5:59? It’s incredible
The collection of 1 and 2 is on sale for 4.49 rn on Xbox imma play it
Never really got into this series as I never had any Sega consoles growing up but the history of this game always intrigued me! Great video!
Thanks a lot man I appreciate it. I recommend trying out Shenmue 2. Imo it holds up strong
I've watched this video so many times; it's that good! I love the " historical documentary" vibe to it. You take a very professional approach to this video.
As for the possibility of Shenmue IV, what I'll say is that I think it's more likely than a Half-Life 3, a new Earthbound title, or a new F-Zero game. If nothing else, Shenmue's creator is still determined to finish the series' story line, unlike those other 3 examples, where the creators who worked on those have zero interest in going back to them.
When there's a will, there's a way. It's a cliched statement, but everyone can see the strong will that Yu Suzuki has to complete this story line, hopefully within his lifetime. Although I might find Yakuza a funnier and shinier game, I find Suzuki's passion for Shenmue to be quite infectious.
Thanks so much for the comment! Glad you enjoy the video! And yes I think somehow someway he will get it done. Im hoping at least. It just seems so wrong that we wouldnt get to see the story end. But I'm scared how much time has already passed without a word.
@@OpticLureProductions To be honest, I think he should pick a different format other than video games to complete the story. Video games are too expensive, and I don't think the money is there to release a new Shenmue title, much less ~13 games, as he originally planned.
He convinced 2 companies to grant him budgets to make 3 titles for a passion project, the first 2 of which had pretty impressive budgets for their time. He sold ~69,000 Kickstarter backers on sending him $6+ million of their disposable income to fund a 3rd game. I don't think he'll convince another company or another group of Kickstarter backers to fund another Shenmue. It's safe to say that the bank is closed.
Seriously, I'd be satisfied with an anime (okay, didn't work out, but not like they can't try again), a manga, a visual/text novel, a podcast drama, etc. Hell, even CliffNotes or Windows Notepad would work. I'd just like to see how this story ends. That's all. I don't think that's too much for us Shenmue types to ask for.
I really want more games but I will literally take a hand written note if I have too lol@@TheDr502
It really deserved to be as big as the Metal Gear Solid series. But this game just kept getting delayed. Hideo Kojima at least got his games delivered on time and in budget. To me Shenmue feels like a Saturn game. Something about the polygon count on scenery and the overall scale of the environment. So none of these games ever really got finished. Shenmue 2, when it came out, had dated graphics. The interactive elements needed more work. If the first game hold sold properly, then the second game would have been a more polished product and had the attention this game really deserves.
its was originally in development for Saturn however Shenmue was well known for its graphics engine and Shenmue 2 definitely looked great at release
@@OpticLureProductions I think for what it is, it's not doing enough, for 2001.
This is a game about looking. That's the primary gameplay mechanic.
So more needed to be done with lighting and particle effects to remove the very hard edges, visually.
Devil May Cry on PS2 (2001) really tears Shenmue 2's graphics a new one.
@@iwanttocomplainI would disagree with you because shenmue 2 looks really great for a game that was released in 2001.
@@ShenmueVillage987 well yes it does. Pigeon Square looks kind of nuts sometimes. There are alot of repeating textures and wide open spaces with simple geometry to play to the DC's strengths and I was meaning by DMC looking 'better' was that it is more in motion with a safe art style and theme.
Great editing and video. But do you know the four wude?
lmao
I love this game still have my xbox copy the good thing about it is that they included a dvd of the first gave as a movie.
You had to watch the movie which is the first game and when started the 2d game you picked off where the first ended.
I literally just saw shenmue 3 for ps4 and was able to download it on my pc ❤ just started the game but its also a shame that the game is left wirh a clif hanger 😢
Yeah same way i first experienced Shenmue was on xbox
@@OpticLureProductions too bad they didn't end it with the anime haven't seen it my self but surely I'm gonna now lol
Its good but not as good as a game would be. Check it out youll see what im saying@@Moezer
@@OpticLureProductions need to get my buddy's crunchy roll log in 😂
lol do it
@@Moezer
Great topic, fairly niche stuff in the grand scheme of things but you handled it so well. Excellent overview of the series & where it stands now. I'm still on board for Shenmue 4
Thanks for watching. I really hope we see that game someday.
At this point I think the anime would be the best way to finish the story.
I want a game personally but not sure it will ever happen. Any ending would be better than none
Shenmue is the very first game I bought with my own money. I was 13 and had a part time job after school. When the game was released I didn't know what it was but it looked interesting. Needless to say my mind was blown by the interactive experience, QTE system and expansive world. Not to go on a tangent but had dreamcast not been so glitchy, I think it could have blown Playstation out the water. Their games were just better. As I like to remind my friends who love basketball, the nba 2k series began on dreamcast
I know PlayStation wasn’t entirely to blame for segas downfall but Sony definitely played a large part in it. So I personally hate Sony the games industry has become stagnant because of Sony. Sega always tried new things a bit like Nintendo but sega was more wreck less
Huh? How was the Dreamcast "glitchy"?
My only ripe with Shenmue. Is that the second one should’ve been the conclusion of the story. You face LAN Di and complete the story.
Really good video sheesh. Check out friends of ringo ishikawa i swear by that as like a small scale variant of this almost
i like cars they're cute
me too
When I first walked into an arcade and saw Virtual Fighter for the first time... I thought it was the ugliest shit I've ever seen. 😂 I recognised the attempt and what they were doing with the technology, but holy shit it was ugly. I turned around and went back to play Samurai Shodown and MK2.
Yeah i feel that
@@OpticLureProductions Yeah for me it wasn't until texture was possible that 3D games got my attention. I had the same reaction on Star Fox on Snes. I was not impressed. During that time, 2D pixel animation was at it's peak and 2D fighting games were so gorgeous.
Yeah I hear you. Even after texture it took some time to get things right. The best ps1 era 3d game used prerendered backgrounds imo@@thiagovidal6137
You don't like the Yakuza games?
I love them
😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢
1:36 a young Elon Musk? 🤣
I remember the day 3 came out I was too broke to help out but if they need help with 4 I swear I will drop 1k to help
Do you defend Shenmue 3?
#ShenmueIsInTrouble
Shenmue III was a massive disappointment, and it is now clear beyond a shadow of a doubt, we will never see an end to the series.
The reason the first two games were so good was that, even though the games were a slow burn experience, we were consistently being fed great (and unique) gameplay, characters, fighting, intense QTE cutscenes and story. Shenmue III failed in almost all those areas-weaker characters and character development, a watered down fighting system based on tedious mini game stat increases rather than a robust fighting engine, poorly implemented QTE segments, and virtually no story progression.
Super Eyepatch Wolf's video on Shenmue 3 is probably the worst review of Shenmue 3 that I've ever seen. It's because of his video that people have such a misinformed idea of what Shenmue 3 and the entire Shenmue series is about. And people think that his video is actually good.
Who was that lardass trashing Shenmue on the microphone.
Jeff Gerstmann
Shenmue 3 was a huge disappointment i couldn't even finish it cause of how bad the game was and insulted i felt