Shenmue Is The Waterworld Of Videogames (The Jimquisition)

[@apassionatenerd.3564]

"I'm looking for someone named yuan." "No, I haven't." I dont see anything wrong with that perfectly regular human interaction.

[@TheJamieellis]

The original sentence was probably intended to be "have you seen anyone called Yuan?"

[@D0NU75]

@@TheJamieellis then, in the most Oblivionesque spirit he replies "No doubt"

[@tomgreen691]

Ahh yes I too see perfectly normal HU-MAN interactions

[@0Fyrebrand0]

@@D0NU75 With a different voice actor, too.

[@agihammerthief8953]

I met a Yuan the other day. Horrible creature.

[@Jaxymann]

Bruh, “looking for someone named Yuan” in China is like trying to find someone in the Midwest named Brad. You’re gonna be at it for a *while.*

[@vDullahan]

Guess you could say he's looking for... (puts on sunglasses) *THE YUAN* YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[@Mr.Beauregarde]

I think you mean the west coast my guy. Ain't no Brads round here.

[@nitro8611]

Or looking for someone in New England named Ruthingford. Yeah, we have issues here.

[@JaelinBezel]

Me: (arrives in Shanghai) Hello good sir, I am looking for a man named Lee Good Sir: Oh that won't take long at all, as long as you ain't picky about any particular Lee.

[@ACBlackJ0ck]

Remember this is the same series that has you asking for sailors in a town next to a shipping port so... nothing new in that regard

[@Anubis1101]

"sega was a stupidly short-sighted company at the time" that... that hasnt stopped being a thing. they still make horrific short-sighted decisions on an almost regular basis.

[@TakeItEasy2019]

I hate that they're sitting on property like Skies of Arcadia and Jet Set Radio just focusing on a sonic. I know it's their bread and butter but come on, those titles alone have a cult following.

[@Anubis1101]

@@TakeItEasy2019 they probably have the largest single collection of wasted potential in the game industry.

[@garywintle8023]

@@TakeItEasy2019 Skies of Arcadia and Jet Set Radio both flopped, and the dev teams who made them are dead. Its better they stay dead as any new games would likely be outsourced crap.

[@garywintle8023]

@@Anubis1101 Not really. No one cares about any of Sega's IPs, as evidenced by their poor sales.

[@TakeItEasy2019]

@@garywintle8023 I wouldn't say they flopped in sales. They did decent and hell JSR got a sequal(?) In Future for the Xbox. But yeah the original dev's missing is a problem but at least DO SOMETHING. Sitting on IP only to let it ferment while pumping out the blue furry over and over again is not that good. That case cow is gonna dry up. Nintendo doesn't only have Mario but other IPs to keep the cash flow going. If Shenmue can get 2 sequels why not Sega's other titles.

[@jacksparrowjives3138]

Jim Sterling: "Shenmue is the Waterworld of videogames." Me: "I see."

[@PhaethonCrafts]

Even Pokemon Sword and Shield looks better than this game, and that's really pathetic.

[@admiraltonydawning3847]

@@PhaethonCrafts I see.

[@stingerjohnny9951]

Tony Dawning no I haven’t

[@HyperSonicXtreme]

Aeladya Nah Ookemon Sword & Shield is worse. Game Freak was lazy. Terrible graphics (tree trunks) lazy animations like reused Hau animation for Hop, Lazy Pokémon move animations, no National Dex. Sega AM2 would’ve done the game better.

[@firecrackerjack68]

@@stingerjohnny9951 joke went over your head?

[@JudgmenTaichi]

I'm thankful for Shenmue for inadvertently creating the Yakuza franchise

[@Greedman]

Never played Shenmue, but fall in love with Yakuza not long ago, so yeah, this might be the only good thing that came out of Shenmue XD

[@MyEvilTaco]

Greedmaster I would recommend the Fist of the North Star spin off, it’s just as ridiculous as it is fun.

[@Greedman]

@@MyEvilTaco I already have it, great game XD

[@sandakureva]

Seriously. I got Yakuza 0 a bit ago and it's absolutely fantastic.

[@Questchaun]

@@Greedman how you gonna make that statement having not played it? 🤣

[@d9fred95]

"I'm looking for someone named Yuan." "No, i haven't" That's some Oblivion dialogue right there.

[@KeyBladeMaster-Dan]

What's the news from the other parts of Tamriel?

[@Rifky809]

@@KeyBladeMaster-Dan RRRUN AWAY

[@Battledongus]

Have you seen amand christolf?

[@dhwwiiexpert]

"36? That's pretty impressive actually!"

[@ryubelmont2259]

Actually “No I haven’t” can be a valid answer... supposing we’re talking about the chinese currency: the yuan lmao

[@MyDadIsBillGates]

"I am trying to locate some sailors" "Yes"

[@SidheKnight]

Have you tried the local gay bar?

[@bernardoheusi6146]

I see

[@billvolk4236]

His name is Ryo and he wants a sailor man, Just like that one guy in the Village People band. And when he fights, he really does the best he can, But getting pounded is still part of Ryo's plan.

[@Red_Lanterns_Rage]

@UCEnky_nXfLmnIhGRVb8A-1w the power of Red lantern has defeated your attack and we counter you with WE'LL BURN YOU ALL!!!

[@UlshaRS]

Does the forklift know he's cheating?

[@PlayStation360Gamer]

At this point, I just wish Yu Suzuki would've settled for a manga or cheap animated series. This man finally got Shenmue 3 and he put more effort into sub-par mini-games, mandatory stat grinding and directing robotic voice acting than he did for the story and characters at the heart of the series. What the hell was the point of crowdfunding a third game in that case? The originals did all these things better! Now we're here with another cliffhanger, an unsatisfying story and even less hope for a 4th game... But hey, at least we can have 100 conversations with Shenhua right guys!?

[@Zack29810]

Vexx Lavon except the originals didn’t do those things better?

[@PlayStation360Gamer]

@@Zack29810 Darts isn't better than Pail Toss? Real arcade games like Space Harrier and Outrun aren't killing ChobuChan Fighter? Bruh even Lucky Hit was better in 2 simply because the ball didn't defy the laws of gravity everytime it hit a pin. Also, you could play any street fight in Shenmue 2 from the main menu all day long without worrying about low health and buying food.

[@garywintle8023]

@@PlayStation360Gamer ChobuChan Fighter is the only new Virtua Fighter game to have come out since 2010.

[@Jose-se9pu]

Not to mention, is not s matter of opinion anymore, Shenmue officially became a JOKE, III was plain horrible.

[@joedoe1096]

He couldn't do a manga or film, because the writing and plot was always garbage. Get a big budget, use well known characters, and audiences won't care how little sense the plot makes or how awkward the writing is, or how self-contradictory and paper thin the characters are. Look at any given major franchise and tell me that's not true. The fans will defend all the obvious flaws to their death, and those making these things know it.

[@RyonDK]

"What do you want?" "I'm looking for someone named Yuan." "No, i haven't" 10/10 dialog.

[@jacksparrowjives3138]

Engrish.

[@johncarver357]

@@jacksparrowjives3138 aint even engrish anymore when this goes deeper than that

[@noahgray543]

Reminds me of how I talk. Cant be bothered to wait for people to ask their questions. I got shit to do; all this porn won't watch itself!

[@mopeybloke]

Kiss off twit.

[@Ian-oe9wp]

@LuxuryLyfe EA bad now upvote gamers !!!

[@QwertyCaesar]

"69,320 backers" We were on the verge of greatness. We were this close.

[@quarreneverett4767]

They got their copies right :)

[@em0t3p]

whoa.

[@N1ceDreamsz]

You all got scammed.

[@firecrackerjack68]

Only bothered noticing 69k backers, nice.

[@BioBuster4492]

"I'm looking for a place where sailors hang out" "What's a paladin?"

[@Zolaerla]

Hey, we have 'Shroud of the Avatar'... which... is almost exactly the same story....

[@Chernobylkinsman]

Disgusting creatures

[@stallionmouse]

Do you know anything about the Mad Angels?

[@somedudewatchintv5297]

What's that a reference to?

[@Jellycakelap]

"Who wants to play LUCKY HIT?" "I'll play."

[@NovastarDoughnut]

I like how shenmue 3 still feels like a dreamcast game with nicer graphics.

[@NovastarDoughnut]

Following on from the other 2 in the remaster the transition was smooth as butter.

[@Known_as_The_Ghost]

I thought Shenmue 3 was an old game when I looked at it. Didn't think it'd be a new game.

[@KennyFrierson]

The real Shenmune is the friends we made along the way

[@admiraltonydawning3847]

...we waited for*

[@reffa2858]

What a twist!

[@stingerjohnny9951]

Kenneth Frierson that’s like saying Laura was Beyond Good and Evil 2 all along XD

[@stingerjohnny9951]

Kenneth Frierson that’s like saying Laura was Beyond Good and Evil 2 all along XD

[@dellasc2980]

Reffa / i

[@Enzo012]

It looks like they dusted off the exact same game engine from 20 years ago and put a new coat of polygon paint over it.

[@D0NU75]

It's ironic how people wanted this so much, only to realize they didn't want it that much

[@thomastroster60]

I know! And I love it!

[@haha-on5fd]

sounds like bethesda

[@Questchaun]

I'm okay with that.

[@MxPokirby]

It looks like an HD remake of what Shenmue 3 would've been if it had originally released shortly after Shenmue 2.

[@jasmine-ruff-puff9951]

I can't believe they didn't conclude the story with 3, there's no way a Shenmue 4 is happening.

[@tomhill3248]

They said the same thing with 3.

[@meyes5671]

Maybe they should've wrapped that shit up in the first game, like writers with realistic standards do.

[@umbaupause]

Scary thing is - it might. People already used a 'Lets get Shenmue 4' hashtag, and the steam reviews for 3 are... mostly positive. Of course that's cause no sane person would buy it there after seeing what a shitshow it was, but it also means there are STILL deluded 'fans' who cling to that sweet, sweet nostalgia teat, trying to literally suck a fourth game out of that sacred cow. But hey, if Shenmue 4 really happens, what should normal people who like good video games care anyway? I'm having a blast peeking at this weird fanbase throwing money and praise on that garbage fire, and that won't stop if they get another game started.

[@Tewratomeh]

"Maybe I should get another" *puts another 100 yen in the Kickstarter gacha* "No good."

[@Alucard-A-La-Carte]

THIS AGAIN??

[@baconlabs]

I was genuinely afraid for a moment that Jim, in his misery, would forget to ask us to thank God for him.

[@Retrofire-47]

@AntarcticOasis What shift?

[@Retrofire-47]

@AntarcticOasis Good observation. I noticed the anti-capitalist rhetoric increasing certainly. But never took into consideration the shift in character.

[@kenshiroamerica6598]

@@Retrofire-47 And yet for being anti-capitalist he sure as shi does get a lot of money from patreon that without the capitalist system in place he wouldnt be able to critize but sure for being anti capitalist he sure benefit greatly from ti fromg etting money from patreon. kinda hypocritical of him to be oding that if he really espouses anti capitalist pov

[@Luminethereploid]

You wear a Jagi mask, yet at no point do you say "SAY MY NAME!"? Smh, Jim, smh.

[@Drakulas77]

Francis

[@murrfeeling]

Destiny's Child?

[@MagnusMage]

@@murrfeeling No, Jagi

[@sdgdhpmbp]

His name? Uhh... Jadi?

[@ceasarsalad119]

I think there was two approaches they could have gone with this. 1) End the series and make people happy. 2) Leave it open for a fourth game that most likely will never arrive. Therefore pleasing nobody and leaving it in the same situation it has been for the last 20 years. Which one did they chose? Hmmm... I wonder.

[@Real1Gaming]

Shenmue IV is hinted at and namedropped several times in Shenmue III. I think it's happening.

[@reisjames1]

Richard France tbf ending the story with 3 wouldn’t necessarily just “make people happy.” I’m sure many shenmue fans would be upset that the potential 4-5 game story had to be cut down to 3 and would rather they attempt to tell the full story as it was meant to be told. That being said, it is very very possible it never gets told at all, and that would definitely leave a sour taste if the final game ended with a cliffhanger lol.

[@justin188541]

XenoSaga and Twin Peaks come to mind, even the third Star Wars trilogy and how we'll never get it post Disney.

[@thevideo-beast122]

Richard France I’m with you. I commented in one of the trailers that should try to wrap things up in 3 as best they can, and like here, I had fans whine about getting “a whole story” and thinking they can get a 4th game. I like Shenmue. I’ve played Shenmue 1&2. I consider myself a fan. But I can tell, with the kind of gameplay that Shenmue has, would take nearly a miracle to get Shenmue 4, let alone 5.

[@SneakTT]

@Snaggle Toothed Injun White Pride No Guilt No Shame tbh dude if you wanted them to hastily shove an ending on this thing and shit it out asap so people could say they've "finally played the end of shenmue" then you could play any of the other million bland aaa games out there that compromise on story for mass appeal. and if suzuki was the kind of guy to do that he wouldn't have still been trying to make shenmue 3 18 years later. you gotta just accept it for what it is. tbh if you care more about the destination than the journey i have to question how you made it through 2 games of shenmue already.

[@netswine]

Being old enough to be already old when Shenmue 1 came out, I have zero nostalgia for that game, and could never understand the hype behind it. "But Vic," you may say, "The game was a pioneer in open world, the night and day system, weather effects and even social simulation!" and I reply "Well, I was too busy playing Everquest before Shenmue came out, and enjoying its open-world, weather effects, night and day system and a social simulation so intricate that several people have made their doctoral thesis on based on data collected from the game."

[@netswine]

@@J05TI Yep hehe :) For example, from Sal Humphreys bio: "She completed her doctoral thesis on the role of productive players in MMOGs, using Everquest as a case study." There are also many scholarly articles based on EQ.

[@Kreiser_VII]

Did Bartel made his taxonomy based on EverQuest or is just a similar case?

[@Alice89chan]

It came out in 2000. Ocarina of Time (1998) also had day and night cycles :) I bring up consoles because they call what is in that game unique. I checked dates to see Majora and Shenmue 1's releases. Majora came out in April 2000, Shenmue in November 2000. Things Majora's Mask did infinitely better with less time than Shenmue (it was greenlit since the Saturn as Virtua Fighter): Day and night cycles, NPC interactions, open world (ok not that much but whatever, you can do everything whenever you want as long as you have the tools to do so) and NPCs had their own schedules and quests to obtain rewards. It was also a lot of fun to play, I spent until we got a GCN (2002-03) trying to 100% it. Did I mention each character also has their own story that you need to discover and help them with, a tragic love you have to reunite (which intertwines with a lot of characters as well); combat is smooth, mask gameplay is incredible... Did I say that the moment I heard of what Shenmue can do I just turned my N64 on with Majora and stopped caring?

[@thisismyname5657]

@@Alice89chan I forget just how good Majora's Mask was. I really need to do a full playthrough of it sometime.

[@Alice89chan]

@@thisismyname5657 I absolutely love it so much I revisit it every year for October (I think it fits the month). And it's very easy to obtain for 20 bucks on the eShop for 3DS if it's still on or Walmart. I think the N64 one also doesn't sell for a lot, surprisingly. We got ours for about 25 US dollars before the remake came out.

[@sagejosh]

shenmue was supposed to be a 12 game series when it first came out, so it ending on a cliff hanger is basically just the developers saying "we are going to make 12 fucking games even if it takes 50 years"

[@thematt523]

Sage Josh TWELVE?! Even Hideo Kojima isn’t that ambitious! And it’s not like this is some complex, multi-layered epic! It’s about a teenager who just asses about during a revenge quest. Song of Ice and Fire this ain’t. I know the point of these games is to balance the exciting quest with the mundane...but by definition, unless you’re creating the most epic, creative adventure ever written (and even then), a 12-game story is going to be insanely slow-paced and boring, with the mundanity vastly outweighing the interesting.

[@Zack29810]

Matthew Dawidowicz this guy’s information is wrong. its supposed to be 11 or 12 *chapters*. not games. shenmue II covers multiple chapters.

[@ChristophBrinkmann]

​@@Zack29810And 23 years later, the story is still unfinished

[@nitro8611]

I actually discovered Shenmue *after* playing (and falling in love with) Yakuza 3. So my immediate reaction to Shenmue was that it looked like a half-finished early access version of Yakuza.

[@JimSterling]

In a funny coincidence, I was playing Yakuza 3 this week, stopped to record Shenmue III footage, then immediately went back to Yakuza 3 to make everything okay again.

[@tdotsmooth]

That's the thing Yakuza has made Shenmue pointless.

[@bunnybreaker]

I got one of the Yakuza games from Humble monthly. Is it worth playing for someone who doesn't like Shenmue, but does like silly action games?

[@yeahwellthatsjustlikeyouro7466]

@@bunnybreaker Oh definitely. Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios embrace their own insanity. That's rad!

[@Thandos]

Pat Boivin was talking about this awhile back. During the time between Shenmue 2 and 3 about 13 Yakuza games came out, and they seem to have filled the same niche as Shenmue, but much better than Shenmue ever did. Edit: helps if I finish watching the video.

[@adamkallin5160]

"Should we try to wrap up the story here in case we can't afford to make another sequel?" "Nah, just slap on 10 more minigames instead"

[@intrepidmatter8165]

Nah just make another Kickstarter and spend that money not on the next game

[@MagiofAsura]

With youtube being a thing, a significant number of fans probably just watched the story. Why waste 20 hours when 3 will do it?

[@Mordecai0799]

I see.

[@hoppa_2184]

The story is long. In all honesty, I rather have an open-ended unfinished story, than a rushed finished one. And having more content like minigames actually sounds fun. ^^ And just to clarify it. I have never played Shenmue before, though I certainly have interest in doing so in the future. But with everything that happened and especially how the Backers were treated I probably would only buy it in a sale for dirt cheap, if at all.

[@FerrickAnima]

@@hoppa_2184 the story is not long, at this point it just feels like it is padding, because the 3rd game brought absolutely nothing to the table in both gameplay and story, hell it actually felt like a filler episode

[@shinysylveon6984]

Yu Suzuki is like the "utility monster" thought experiment but with money. No matter how much you give him, he is never satisfied. I hate stories like this because so many artists struggle to get the funding they need for their projects and these stories only feed into the idea that artist have no clue about costs, always want more, so you can just ignore them. Because "artist got funds and made good art" isn't a news story, so there's little awareness of counter examples.

[@garywintle8023]

You seem unaware that Sega were a nothing company before Suzuki came along. Hang On, Space Harrier, OutRun, Power Drift, Virtua Fighter, Virtua Cop, were all created by Yu Suzuki, who worked his ass off, living at Sega's offices, he crunched long before "crunch". Certainly in the UK and Europe, Sega's arcades were the reason they became a titan, fueling the success of the Master System and Megadrive. Sonic was only a big deal in the USA.

[@Alice89chan]

@@garywintle8023 I mean Yoshio Sakamoto made one of if not the greatest game ever made (Super Metroid)... he still made Other M. Keiji Inafune created Zero... he still got to MN9. Shigeru Miyamoto birthed gaming after the crash... he still made Skyward Sword and mandated motion control on Star Fox Zero. Point being, no matter how important someone is, you don't give them the key to the vault.

[@LaerHeiSeiRyuu]

@@Alice89chan Skyward Sword is a great game and motion controls are fun in SF zero tho?

[@Kwatcher100]

@@LaerHeiSeiRyuu I agree with the first part, but not the second.

[@Ginrikuzuma]

"Because, despite how brilliant I am, despite how ground-breaking I am, despite how successfully crowd-funded this show is, no one really gives a shit." Me: "I see."

[@stevenross6164]

This comment is very underappreciated.

[@Nodiee1]

No I don't Edit: that we supposed to reference the bad line. Not take a shot at Jim. Just caught that after submitting.

[@Jack_Garland78]

The moment Jim Sterling realized he was the Shenmue of youtube. Suzuki: Now, *I'm* Jim Fucking Sterling, son!!

[@lampelampe7234]

Love you Jim

[@L1nkn1vy]

So is that a shenmue line

[@doctorhandsome]

This needs the RLM guys saying, "IT BROKE NEW GROUND!!" and "IT TOOK 12 YEARS TO MAKE!!"

[@TheEmbessyNetwork]

I heard that in RLM voice and it's very on point with this video!!

[@jackflash8567]

WHEN I SAW A COMMENT REFERENCING RLM I CLAPPED!!!

[@TheSchmuck2]

@@jackflash8567 I KNOW WHAT THAT IS!!

[@Fallen420chan]

@@dgas5904 *VERY* COOL!!!!!!!!

[@Gormathius]

"Let's see if I can wear my hat with it." *slap* ... "No." I don't know why that was funny, but it was.

[@TheEmbessyNetwork]

I see...

[@RothSchatten]

"Ys Net, however, did not stop there…" "Ys Net, however, did not stop there either…" Really had me giggling

[@a_nervous_wreck]

YEE

[@MelkorPT]

So this is like a much cheaper Star Citizen, only backers eventually got a game.

[@cn.st.182]

Miguel Angelo so... how the fk is it like Star Citizen then..?

[@Alice89chan]

@@cn.st.182 I guess because it threw money in things that weren't the game? But then again that comparison would be more fitting with Cloggy Number 2.

[@ingamingpc1634]

@@cn.st.182 because it started out as a Kickstarter people backer the product up but unlike Star citizen which is still just a concert not even a fully realized game this actually came out

[@Ineedgames]

Jim Sterling makes a video. Me: "I see"

[@partialbullet2215]

I see

[@kumakaia6941]

See?

[@MrKiddyIcarus]

Interesting maneuver.

[@joshuawalker5332]

I see

[@hlonghi]

Ayaya

[@crabcakes448]

"Is this a joke only Shenmue fans get?" Shenmue fans: *"I see"* Casual Shenmue fans: *"No, I haven't"* Abe Store Granny: *"What is it, Baby Boy Ryo?"*

[@garywintle8023]

Isn't Sega the joke? Sega are despised by the Japanese.

[@otakamerd1220]

Are you sure you don't want to buy one of my hotdogs?

[@reloadpsi]

@@garywintle8023 Wow, are they? How do we know that? :O

[@DrJellyFanguzzz]

"my pickles are guaranteed to make you smile"

[@Jellycakelap]

I tweeted this to you, but I think if I say it here, you might see it. I love the show. In this case, I think you're not missing anything at all. I'm on the autism spectrum - somewhere between 'not making eye contact' and 'remembers shit to a degree that's off putting/doesn't use contractions' -- in terms of 'that dude's weird'. I wasn't diagnosed until adulthood. I mention this because Shenmue, for me - specifically - was a life simulator where there wasn't the consequences of being weird, because everyone was weird in the game. The stilted dialogue, the weird animation - it was a level of unreality that was comforting to someone with autism, but let you have a 'life' to live that let you collect things, walk around and interact with people -- just live. I know - that's fucking weird. Coping mechanisms, and just plain living with Autism have taught me how to interact with people in the real world, of course, -- but there's something appealing to me specifically about Shenmue, something that is fulfilling just being a person who is accepted in their universe - even if that universe itself is weird and a little stilted. So, no you're not missing anything at all - in fact, Shenmue probably feels like the game equivalent of wearing ankle weights, or attaching training wheels to your ten speed. Shenmue seems to be for folks who ARE missing something, I guess. And that's why I like it. And that's why when someone criticizes it, some folks get REALLY offended -- because it's like you're mocking the thing they're lacking and can't articulate because they don't know that's what's going on. But that's just my POV - I could be wrong -- I'm not diagnosing the fans of Shenmue as on the spectrum; I'm just speaking up as a person who IS that -- getting something from a 'game' that's not really a game. :D

[@TheEmbessyNetwork]

I appreciate you sharing your story.

[@JohnDoe-uf3lj]

I'd say give Death Stranding a shot(at a reduced price) it might have a similar effect on you. Also the synth music for the game is hella good.

[@thrace_bot1012]

So Shenmue is for autistic people. Got it. I don't believe anyone was arguing against that anyway.

[@skysnow2495]

Interesting take, its nice how games can effect people in such good ways.

[@the88mph]

On the specrum too, i have never read anyone articulate it in quite this way, but yeah. this is extremely accurate, thanks! lol it always confused me that when i was younger i just couldn't detect the bad voice acting, i somehow didn't notice that voice acting was bad! that makes so much sense now! (also diagnosed in adulthood)

[@GmodPlusWoW]

Personally, I feel like a fully 3D open world is too expensive to justify most of the time, and doesn't add as much as you'd think. Sure, I enjoyed Final Fantasy 15 (finally finished the main story), but while the road trip thematics kinda helped justify the open world, I can imagine that it was kind of a casualty of being an open world game. If they'd limited the world to smaller, more densely and intimately developed areas, and connected them with an overworld map, they could have made the world feel not only more developed, but also somewhat larger in a way. What's more, the team probably would have been able to finish all of the DLC they'd had planned, rather than having to stop around Episode Ardyn. You can cast aside the notion of a fully 3D open world and still have some non-linear freedoms. Hell, if anything it trims the fat and reduces the sauce. And I don't mean having less sauce: in cooking, reduction is where you simmer or boil a liquid to thicken it and boost its flavour potency, mainly by reducing the amount of water in it (though with simmering you're able to skim the impurities off the top, while boiling causes the impurities to disperse into the liquid). That way, you end up with a much thicker, richer sauce, and it doesn't take up as much space. And yes, I imagine this is something that Ignis is intimately familiar with. Another example I've used in the past is the comparison between a bowl of porridge ("oatmeal") and a flapjack ("granola bar"). A flapjack has much less water content than a bowl of porridge, and has less space between the juicy raisins/chocolate chips/whatever you put in your flapjacks. Consequently, it's usually a lot easier to consume a flapjack than a bowl of porridge, since there's less time spent walking between more developed areas. So in conclusion, certain open world games would benefit greatly from dropping the full open world and instead having a more abstracted overworld. That way, they'd save a lot of money in the budget, enabling them to funnel those resources into other areas of development, like deeper mechanics, more intimately designed areas, more story content, more art assets, more music tracks, more overall polish, etc.

[@mrmagoo-i2l]

Ooh, a bowl of porridge with water is rough. My grandad is Scottish, he has it with water and salt. Fookin horrid.

[@blackjacktrial]

Or just use the same overworld design from the ps2 and realise that a small overworld can be packed. *Coughs in kamurocho and sotenbori*

[@GmodPlusWoW]

@@mrmagoo-i2l To be fair, I wasn't referring to porridge with water. I was referring to the inherent water content in a bowl of porridge, since milk is about 87% water. Subtract most of the water from the equation, and it'd take up less space but still have the same nutritional value.

[@Ch35h1r3C47]

What excellent analogies. I understand exactly what you mean. 10/10 communication skills.

[@mjc0961]

I mean, you could have just dropped this link instead of going with all the bizarre cooking analogies: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eqSodZuredimkNk Then again, I guess since you started with Final Fantasy 15, talking about cooking makes sense. I've found a new recipe etc etc.

[@Acier25997]

Me: Mom, Can we get Yakuza 0? Mom: No, we have Yakuza 0 at home Yakuza 0 at home

[@jgirdley93]

is your mother jimmy two times from goodfellas?

[@bloodjinn420]

@@jgirdley93 Jacob Two Two

[@mc_zittrer8793]

Wow, that ending took a turn for the nihilistic, there. Quick everyone, we need to thank God even HARDER for Jim!

[@Morrowclaw]

I see.

[@seanblah12]

HARD

[@TheEmbessyNetwork]

I'm looking for some sailors...

[@ajz2k]

Hmm...

[@krammy9goggler]

No, I haven’t.

[@Consoletronix]

The only people who were ever going to buy this game were people who enjoyed the first two hence the low sales

[@e1iteyoshi998]

That's kinda the point.

[@stingerjohnny9951]

Consoletronix and they got their copy from backing it, so I have to wonder who the hell actually bought it?!

[@Alice89chan]

@@stingerjohnny9951 According to sales charts, about 87k people. From 1.4 million, to 130k, to... 87k. Basically, of 1.4 million people that played this in 2000, 1.3 moved on to actually good games.

[@stingerjohnny9951]

Alicia Hernández de R. Reminds me of how the the vast majority of the Church of Gabe has FINALLY moved on from Half life...it wasn’t easy as an acolyte myself, but it was better in the end to accept it.

[@Alice89chan]

@@e1iteyoshi998 I mean other indies have sold insanely high aside of the backers, so... Shovel Knight alone keeps selling today beyond its crowdfunding and backers.

[@TheAmishStig]

re: 9:10, there's a pretty solid track record of celebrity producers getting out from under the thumb of project management, only for us gamers to find out the hard way that said celebrity producer flourished _because_ of the restrictions placed on them by project management, not _in spite_ of them.

[@umphreak9999]

Ahem, excuse me, must've had a tickle in my throat

[@hyperx72]

Lets all laugh at an industry that never learns anything tee hee hee~

[@Paragon231]

Yahtzee approves.

[@andrewludi2934]

hahahahahhaa

[@nyranstanton203]

they dotn need to learn anything , look ho wmuch money these people make....if anything WE as consumers need to learn something...

[@Kriseiri]

here's a shenmue that looks like an apple

[@KhayJayArt]

Wow TAKE MY MONEY

[@guguy00]

Life's good, when you make the bad guys cry like a Shenmue fan on release night.

[@paulbarlow9981]

I loved Shenmue on my Dreamcast, it was like nothing I'd ever played before. I even got the PC ports on Steam for nostalgia. But that was then, and I agree with Jim here that this is obsolete. Yakuza took over where Shenmue left off and is far better value, by taking the core of Shenmue and building upon it, improving it. I admit I haven't got Shenmue 3, and have no intention to buy it. And that, as a Shenmue fan from the beginning, is the problem.

[@symmetrie_bruch]

same here. loved it when it came out and was pretty excited to play the remaster. well that excitement lasted about 5 minutes. it certainly didn´t age well at all.

[@MABfan11]

you should watch Super Eyepatch Wolf's review of it

[@propheinx2250]

That's because you were but a child when you first encountered shenmue. Being a child comes with a couple things. 1, unlimited time and no responsibilities, and 2, terrible tastes. Now you're an adult and don't have much gaming time due to having a job and no one to do the cooking and cleaning for you. You probably also have some romance going on in your life now too which eats up even more time. Stack those onto evolved an evolved gaming taste and shenmue 3 didn't stand a chance.

[@paulbarlow9981]

@@propheinx2250 Sorry, who is your reply directed at?

[@RyBPierce]

"Ended with another cliffhanger..." Man, Syberia 3 pulled that shit, too. Now, for the most part I liked Syberia 3, despite it being nearly so broken as to be unplayable, and I would play the hell out of a Syberia 4, but if it takes you more than a decade to make a crowdfunded sequel to your extremely niche series, then please, for the love of god, FUCKING END IT, because you're not likely going to get another chance. At least Dreamfall Chapters somewhat got it right.

[@Ch35h1r3C47]

Hang on a second... Syberia had a sequel? Syberia as in the game where you played as a weird bronze-suited techno-goon doing... something? I vaguely remember a water base? Some snowy area... a cool ship... what the heck was the game even about?

[@RyBPierce]

@@Ch35h1r3C47 Nah, you're thinking of Cyberia. Syberia is the one where you play a lawyer from New York trying to find the owner of a toy company and end up getting roped into a quest to find the last wooly mammoths. It sounds really stupid, but it's full of whimsy and just a really pleasant story. Although, there was a Cyberia 2, as well.

[@Ch35h1r3C47]

@@RyBPierce cool. Weird.

[@stevenross6164]

@@RyBPierce I very Vaugly remember playing these games as a kid. I never knew there was a squeal. Dont think I completed Syberia 1 as i was a dumb 8 year old, but I distinctly remember getting to a bit in Syberia 2 where the droid guy is carried off by woolly mammoths while your left on an island and I think the game ended. Also there was this weird thing with some private eye trying to find you for....some reason. Never knew there was a 3rd. Does it carry on the story? Was always confused about that syberia 2 ending.

[@retrogamelord3763]

Yu Suzuki said himself compressing the story all into 3 would ruin the story. Too much cut.

[@PsychNurseHaldol]

Star Citizen has made $250 million in “crowd funding/donations” recently.

[@meleemastermaa1449]

Aren't they selling "spaceships" packs that are as expensive as real cars?

[@Ehh.....]

its really aiming to be the biggest scam in media history.

[@PsychNurseHaldol]

@@meleemastermaa1449 Most expensive ships go around $1K-2K per ship. And many of them are still in concept phase. I recommend never spending more than you would on a new game ($45-65) or collectors edition. Everything can be earned in game and those thousand dollar ships are meant for organizations. Still doesn't justify the cost of these ships, but people are happy to spend that much so RSI isn't going to stop doing it. I'm still waiting for medical and salvaging mechanics that were promised year(s) ago....

[@chaosdestructionlove]

Good god, if that goes terribly enough they're going to have one hell of a lawsuit to deal with. I'm glad I've only ever backed things for £20-30 tops a couple times.

[@thewielder3445]

Never Crowdfunded a game before. And the only game I wish I had supported was Hollow Knight. That game was incredible and anyone who donated $10AUD or more will be getting Silksong for free

[@BlueChameleon01]

"Wearing a wacky costume is a substitute to having an appealing personality." Ah, so you've finally joined us in the furry fandom, Jim. Welcome.

[@ICountFrom0]

if you have to ask, don't google.

[@legion999]

Got 'em.

[@blodiaaa6990]

Ew

[@LaerHeiSeiRyuu]

@@legion999 jims like 5 steps from fucking pogs so hes basically 4/5ths a furry anyway

[@Flounderboy15]

We live in a world where there's a 2019 Shenmue game but still no PowerStone 3.

[@copsuicide]

its called smash brothers ultimate

[@alexlinna4434]

This made me very sad.

[@tomhill3248]

@@alexlinna4434 Hey at least we still have Shovel knight.

[@casono]

We got something close. Its on steam and came out a few years ago. Cant remember the name though.

[@DarkManOfNJ88]

I'm in a weird place where I feel both depressed and physically attacked by you.

[@chrlorez]

Jim: "I understand. Like this show, no one really gives a shit." PhilosophyTube, two days ago: Am I a joke to you?!

[@miseryremix]

that ending was so sad jim :c

[@PlayCator]

Saddest ending to anything ever. T_T *hugs Jim*

[@whatdamath]

I thought I was the "zealous Shenmue fan base", then I realized I was still a teen when I played the first game and was too young to know better. Tried the remake at Tokyo Game Show last year and first thought was "wow I used to like this?"

[@iambiggus]

Hello, wonderful Anton!!!

[@InDeepPudding]

Surprised to see you watching Jim Sterling's content

[@adriangoodman8901]

Oh damn I thought I recognized the name... Whatre you doing here?

[@DrJellyFanguzzz]

YOU ARE EVERYWHERE I AM HOW

[@GregHuffman1987]

Dont feel bad. I loved shenmue 1 and 2. But then played 3 and... ughhh. Its just that games have evolved from what they were. Goldeneye/perfect dark were also amazing but i bet id struggle to like them now

[@RicochetForce]

Damn, this was a passion project because goddamn they made a modern engine look and feel like hyper dated 20 year old gameplay. And Yu Suzuki saying the story is only 40% told? After this bombing I doubt we'll ever see the rest of it.

[@PorridgePalexAlex]

"Having a costume is a substitute for an appealing personality" You've got more than I have Merry Jimbo, everyone

[@Roadent1241]

Merry Chrimb-OH I GET IT. Good one!

[@KlintKaras]

"Because if you got no personality ,replace it with a Rolex!" -Boyinaband

[@Fimbleshanks]

I'm too ill and tired to figure out how serious that ending was, so I'm just gonna say that Jim's videos genuinely help me get out of bed on the mornings that they appear in my sub box. My days are always better when I get to start off with a new video from him. Been watching for years now, and I have turned to new and old videos many times to help me get out of my head as I've dealt with depression and anxiety in their various stages. Not sure why exactly these topics so strongly appeal to me, since I'm not even remotely an avid gamer, but I really admire Jim. So yeah. Thank God for Jim Sterling. His insanity helps keep me sane.

[@TheEmbessyNetwork]

I like his voice...and snarkiness! I hope you feel better and find enlightenment and happiness!

[@MrPhange]

When Jim Sterling complains that you're not focused enough on your bottom line, you know you've screwed up.

[@dowman5]

It's not out of character for Jim to say that. He praised Dark Souls 1, because FromSoft budgeted properly to reasonable sales expectations. If the game undersold, it wouldn't destroy the company, but since the game sold pretty well, they profited handsomely. Jim usually attacks AAA companies for spending ludicrously on different games to ape the success of mega blockbusters with established audiences, rather than make smaller scale titles that serve potential unknown audiences, like Dark Souls and its Demon's Souls predecessor accomplished. Shenmue has a different overspending problem. Even though Shemnue 1 and 2's underwhelming sales should encourage a different approach to its budget, Yu Suzuki is still spending money with reckless abandon.

[@mrmagoo-i2l]

dowman5 Everyone is waiting for the sale. It’s not exactly Mario cart. That it’s not the ending is a bit of a let down. I’m not paying £50 for it. The last full price game I got was Mass effect Andromeda. I think the next one will be cyber punk, otherwise I won’t be able to watch KZbin in case of spoilers. Should of been £30, like the remakes. Geek alert and sorry for being a pedantic ass wipe. It’s reckless Abaddon, not abandon. It’s from the Old Testament. It was a quiz show answer and it stuck in my head. Completely useless information that seems to stick in my head.

[@TOSkwar22]

@Lesser Spotted MugwumpI'd very much like some kind of evidence on the reckless Abaddon thing. While it does seem to make a simple form of sense- Abaddon is frequently related to destruction, though the exact meaning of the name can vary... but is almost always large, dangerous, intimidating, and semi-biblical- I did a quick search for "reckless Abaddon" and saw... not much. However, I always hate it when one of those word transformations happens. Particularly into words that make no sense, like "intensive purposes" instead of "intents and purposes", so if you have any sources I genuinely would like to know. I'm not saying I'd remember to say it differently in the future, but at least I could give it a shot.

[@SkrapMetal84]

oh look a long awaited game that took years to make i wonder where we have seen that before? (stares at Duke Nukem Forever)

[@atomic747]

well as someone who didn't grew up on duke nukem. though i did beat duke nukem 3d on the xbox 360 and had fun. i did thought duke nukem forever was pretty harmless.

[@lilith-punkpollock609]

I bought Forever and never played a Duke game, and i thought it was just boring and not funny. I still dont get why people were so mad about it.

[@kyleserfass4455]

Wow, PhilosophyTube really let himself go...and yet somehow is twice as handsome.

[@dihyaneverforget5163]

what's up with the PhilosophyTube jokes?... I don't get it

[@TheNugettinage]

@@dihyaneverforget5163 PhilosophyTube did a video where he talked about Jim, the Jimquisition, and Jim's dialectic a couple of days ago

[@stephangg000]

@@dihyaneverforget5163 he released a video praising Jim and critiquing free market capitalism. It's really good. You should watch it!

[@tremisanthrope]

cartman he also dressed as Jim Fucking Sterling, son!

[@livinginpatheticera3867]

_Well drinking champagne will do that to you._

[@DBurner9]

"I see."

[@wz9573]

Back in the the Dreamcast days I was a massive, massive fan of Shenmue 1 & 2. I basically lived in those games, for months. It was an incredible experience, and I was extremely sadface that I would never get to the see the end of the journey. Fast forward to 2015 & the Shenmue 3 announcement. I missed the live reveal & by the time I learned, it had been funded 10 times over. It was an old, dead dream come back to life & made true, legit sparkles in my eyes. I don't trust KS in general, but I would 100% have made an exception for this game - if they had not made more than enough cash already. Nagging doubts began a short while later, with "how are they going to make this work?". Fast forward to today & I just couldn't give a toss about this game ^^ It literally looks like they just picked it up from the old "dreamcast unreleased crap" storage unit. I discovered the Yakuza series since, and it is indeed the kind of proper modern Shenmue I have always wanted. Dafuq do I care about the "real" Shenmue series now, if it does not even begin to measure up to its own spiritual successors? Also, real question, you say it ends on a cliffhanger. Are you serious? You're not trolling, you're not exaggerating, it ends on another cliffhanger? They STILL didn't conclude the story after being given (and spoiling) a miracle last chance 20 years later? No way... Tell me he's trolling. Surely!

[@asioca1992]

Nope, it's true. 18 years later and yu suzuki still decided to end another game on another cliffhanger.

[@GarudaPSN]

the story fucks around for about a week in the mountains after some stonemasons (yes, it's the sailors again) and thugs. Nothing much happens, you sorta beat one of Lan Di's generals (the girl), you encounter him and then everyone fucks off to their next great adventure atop the Great Wall of China, coming to the PS6 when Yu Suzuki tires of scratching his nuts and needs more money.

[@KitsyX]

Well, he did say during the campaign that the series was planned for something like 18 to 21 parts... It's clearly based more on his vision than the need for fans to have closure... I dunno... I'd like it if it weren't for the fact that we can't guarantee we'll get all the parts. That's my only personal gripe with it, otherwise I like the idea myself.

[@WraithMagus]

Oh God, the Star Citizen vibes coming off of the "Auteur's Folly, what happens when a self-indulgent director is allowed to stuff their whims into a project, with nobody to tell them no"... (Christ Roberts laughs at your "most expensive game" at a mere $70 million as he just burnt that much money on salaries for his untalented family members.)

[@Briggie]

I still think Star Citizen is a laundering front.

[@grumblekin]

20 years ago it was enough to just be unique. That won’t work anymore.

[@anessenator]

"Because, despite how brilliant I am, despite how ground-breaking I am, despite how successfully crowd-funded this show is, no one really gives a shit." >Olly Thorn has joined the chat

[@clapointe151]

Who is Olly thorn?

[@danielheflick1529]

@@clapointe151 here you go: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4rOfYmLarp6g5o

[@janesmith1840]

I KNOW WHAT THAT IS

[@clapointe151]

@@danielheflick1529 thank

[@clapointe151]

@@danielheflick1529 ... he interesting. Interesting.

[@rachelmuessig4165]

The ending of this one has me kinda asking if he's ok. You ok?

[@maxcady360]

True, Shenmue had the misfortune of releasing on the Dreamcast, a console that didn't sell well to begin with. But then again, the Saturn had franchises that still live on to this day. VF, House of the Dead and the likes. And I understand that Shenmue was not well liked in Sega internally because of how much money and resources it took.

[@garywintle8023]

Virtua Fighter is a dead franchise. There has not been a new VF game since 2010 (vanilla Virtua Fighter 5 came out in 2007), the inclusion of VF5 in Yakuza as a mini-game proves it is dead. Sega has no plans to make a new VF and AM2, the dev studio that made it, is no more.

[@UNIT5FAN]

@@garywintle8023 I come from the future. It lives

[@umphreak9999]

@@UNIT5FAN maybe, all they've announced is an esports deal, they haven't confirmed any new or remade VF games yet

[@akirajotaro]

Shenmue 3 is a Dreamcast era game released in 2019. It came out a couple generations too late.

[@Aereto]

And the developers decided that through crowdfunding, the neglected game will be finalized and released instead of staying in Dev hell. Just like that one Duke Nukem except the crowdfunding.

[@diegodankquixote-wry3242]

@@Aereto don't cha mean Duck nukem five-ever, YA GIT?

[@BrandonHeat243]

It's pretty amazing to think Shenmue 3 came out during the same generation as Yakuza 0. While the same type of game, Yakuza 0 is basically objectively superior in like every conceivable way and Yakuza 0 itself is pretty jank in some ways.

[@Aereto]

@@diegodankquixote-wry3242 Nah, that's Duck Nuckem KFC Edition.

[@Ctuchik]

A couple generations?

[@viscountrainbows6452]

"I see." "I did it!" "Huh..." Pretty much the whole Shenmue series

[@Akabane011]

This cmt needs more upvotes lmao.

[@Mephzice]

meanwhile in Yakuza kzbin.info/www/bejne/fnrJmKmCfpWXoqs

[@ICantSplel]

"How about a game of Lucky Hit?"

[@mjc0961]

Do you know where sailors hang out?

[@noelmajor7505]

"Excuse me"

[@NoelNolNull]

"It feels like they had the code for 20+ years & just gave it a new coat of paint" Was a quote I heard someone say

[@TheJadedJames]

Noel Nol Null That is EXACTLY how this game feels

[@paleposter]

"Suzuki smuggled out a copy of Shenmue 3 in his asshole and waited for Kickstarter to be invented so he could get 17 million for remastering it"

[@tomsmiley126]

@pale well done.

[@AnimatedStoriesWorldwide]

a quote of paint?

[@NathanCassidy721]

Based on the B-roll that Jim used, I'd say that is not an unfair statement.

[@Benjamin0119]

I had been looking for reviews of Shenmue III and couldn't find much. Was surprised neither Jim nor Yong talked about it, but looks like Jim was saving it for a Jimquisition. I saw a google review from someone that said the game was made antiquated just like the old games on purpose for the fans. Any other way and it wouldn't be Shenmue, they said. Here, it looks like with no experience since then and apparently ignoring or discounting game advancements since then, the game just came out antiquated. I'm not sure it was done on purpose as a joke/parody or for fan service. And you could still evolve the game and still have Shenmue quirks/jokes/references/fan service like the terrible voice acting and Ryo saying "I see" all the time. Keep the mini-games and whatnot. But to just make more of the same... I dunno. Also making an antiquated game on purpose for a joke or fan service is not a good way to make money. If anything, Suzuki should have maybe collaborated with the Yakuza devs on this. Then comes the real kicker. AFTER ALL THIS TIME, after the miracle of this game getting made at all, against all odds... it... won't. finish. the. story. Then the Epic exclusive thing is just the cherry on top.

[@kenshiroamerica6598]

I doubt shenmue 3 was made to make money it was amde for the fans who backed ti up first and foremost than anything else and fans of the original 2 games jsut got that shenmue 3 with improved graphics and just aobut th e same voice cast in it for the english dub that's what ppl waned and yu deliver on that.

[@garywintle8023]

Yong can't even pronounce the name and doesn't know what Sega is.

[@cbgametv]

The feels at the end... ... ..

[@spiritupgrades]

GrabberBythePuss actually you should sub that is actually some meta-real stuff That’s the first time a KZbinr actually knowledge that bit of realism

[@MrKiddyIcarus]

FeelsBadMan

[@sapphirexclaws]

I'm watching a stream of Shenmue 3 and there is, honest to god, this conversation: Ryo: "I'm flattered, but no thanks." Older woman on the bridge: "Oh, it's you! So you'll come to work for us?" Ryo: "I have other things to do..." ?!?! That's not how conversations work??? Tell me that's not how conversations work......

[@Roadent1241]

That has to be a bad translation. That's basically how the badly-translated English script of an audioplay by someone else I worked on went and I just had to ask for every single sentence what the hell was going on. With the setting and SFXs and all because she basically just wrote 12 scenes of dialogue with 4 SFX indicators and no description of the scenes.

[@erisi236]

Waterworld has a popular waterpark attraction at Universal Studios, Shenmue can't say that

[@domeplsffs]

^Shenmu-mu has sequels though. Waterworld can't say that.

[@daynechastant]

And Waterworld made actually made back its budget and then some with International sales added in. (cost: $235 million; total box office $261 million).

[@skinflutey]

Dayne Chastant no it did not make its money back. You forgot theater take, taxes, and advertising costs.

[@zimriel]

@@skinflutey And you're forgetting VCR and DVD rentals, which were a thing up to the mid 2000s.

[@skinflutey]

zimriel I don’t think many people rented it. You have to remember for a movie to be considered a financial success it needs to make 3x the production cost. Many movies have to make 2x just to break even.

[@edwardnowakowski5990]

I’m finding out from you that this is out so..... Point proven

[@Oriaks]

I found out about it because of deal with epic thing, and then immediately forgot it existed.

[@billul1]

It feels like 90% of Shenmue's hype came from people who reads about it in some Cracked-esque list of "top 10 underrated game" and just accepted it as fact even though they never even see any actual gameplay footage.

[@eliasnicolasmiranda4940]

i was good for it's time but now its outdated as fuck underrated can be Megaman Legends, Timesplitters, the first Prototype, Omega Boost and Virtua Fighter

[@Carsonj13]

That's simply not true. If it were, it would have not gotten most of its sales a decade before top 10 underrated game lists were even around.

[@Zontar82]

weird, looks like the same people who praised death stranding as the next coming of God when all they had was just a trippy trailer years ago

[@internetphilosopher9519]

I played 1 due to one of the lists, it has good aesthetics and was enjoyable in certain parts but over all it is very tedious and at times frustrating

[@LuffyBlack]

Oh man! I felt like I am the only person who reads that site or was a hardcore reader. I never thought I'd see a Cracked reference here lol

[@tychoazrephet3794]

New meme to replace "Sonic was never good": "What the hell is Shenmue?"

[@SirDeathDark]

"I'm looking for a place where Shenmue hangs out."

[@Why_stop_at_41]

Shen-who?

[@garywintle8023]

Sega have convinced themselves that Sonic is their most important IP, when there most important IPs are actually Space Harrier, OutRun, Streets of Rage, Phantasy Star, and Virtua Fighter.

[@TheTrailburner]

9:18 Actually Death Stranding's sales have not been very good so far. While the game had decent launches in the UK and Japan. Its sales dropped dramatically in the following weeks. In Japan it saw a whopping 80% drop from the 2nd week, and a 71% drop in the UK. By the third week the game was no longer on the top 10 best selling of the week in either region, and that remains to be so this week. Considering how much money was spend on Celebrity performances, motion capture and attention to detail to the game's world. It's likely the game will not make it's budget back if the game keeps selling the way it is. Sony has pretty much stopped revealing sales figures for this game now, probably because they're embarrassed to do so.

[@revadarius2594]

I was curious, because it seemed to have divided opinions - similar to Rian Johnson's Star Wars movie - people either loved it because "Praise Kojima" or saw that it was an over ambundant technical mess. Coverage and hype for that game died hard and disappeared. So I was wondering if it had actually had a strong launch, people finally saw the product.... then backed away, allowing it to tank. Not a Kojima fan myself, MGS is just... too many mechanics that get in the way of the gameplay, and that's exactly what Jim said about Death Stranding.

[@dracomundo1498]

Yo that game is sold out in all 5 walmarts near me

[@TheDuckClock]

@@dracomundo1498 That could boil down to the retails not ordering enough copies. Its pretty common for new IP's Plus at my Gamestop yesterday, I saw a handful of copies still on the shelf.

[@manticorephoenix]

"Sony has stopped revealing sales figures probably because they're too embarrassed to do so" When has Sony "if you can not innovate, emulate" ever been too embarrassed to do anything? They released the Emoji Movie, they've blatantly copied other companies so many times they may as well move their headquarters to China

[@Grandmaster-Kush]

The game's 80% off secondhand in my country from gameresellers....

[@Mogura87]

Shenmue 3 does play and feel like a Dreamcast Shenmue game with a modern graphical paint job, and honestly a lot of fans are happy about that. It's very anachronistic, but all the stiffness, awkward dialogue and overall cheesiness is part of the charm. I was expecting more of a "lowest common denominator" reboot, but got good old Shenmue instead, and was positively surprised of how uncompromising the dev team was in delivering such an unlikely game to the Shenmue fans. I remember very vividly when I got Shenmue for Christmas in 1999, or rather around New Years because it didn't come out quite in time for Christmas Eve. 12 year old me called the customs office (it was an import) and told them to put my customs clearance form on the top because I wanted to play it before school started again. When I finally got it it was absolutely revolutionary, nobody had seen a game of such scope, realistic graphics and minute details at that point, and it was a mind blowing experience. The gameplay was different and somewhat weird, with all the life sim-elements, day/night-cycles, NPCs with their own schedules, arcade mini games and QTEs, all on top of a rather cheesy revenge story. At the time it was all fresh and fascinating though, even QTEs, which became a meme even by the end of the 6th gen. It made all Dreamcast owners happy that we'd got yet another awesome game for our awesome system (seriously, Dreamcast in 99-2000 was the shit and anyone that didn't experience it at the time missed out big time, no hyperbole). Shenmue 3 obviously was made for people like me, and not all the sorry sods that missed out on this watershed in gaming.That's not to say Shenmue 3 is perfect even by Shenmue standards, for one thing it's kind of a downgrade in terms of combat. But overall it does really deliver the unique Shenmue experience.

[@courtneyvaldez7903]

Agreed. Shenmue 3 is exactly the game I was hoping for. Now, we have to fight for part 4.

[@blodiaaa6990]

So you're happy with a bad game

[@Mogura87]

@@blodiaaa6990 I don't think it's bad. It's not exactly a masterpiece but I appreciate how much it feels like an authentic Shenmue game so many years later, though it falls a bit short in a few areas like combat and cutscene direction.

[@garywintle8023]

@@blodiaaa6990 The music is great (Shenmue 2's soundtrack is one of the greatest video-game scores of all time), and the visuals, while nothing outstanding, shit on Outer Worlds (which Jim bafflingly praises, even though it looks hideous). What lets it down Suzuki told Sega that the industry would go towards 3D, and Sega ignored him and made the piece of shit that is the Saturn.

[@Jose-se9pu]

Shenmue III is garbage, inferior in every single way to games released 2 freaking decades ago.

[@Elsantopo]

I said it once and gonna say it again Yakuza made me learn a great lesson "Never trust a guy last named Suzuki"

[@blackjacktrial]

You are banned from Munan Chohept Onast. No kulipaas for you. Everyone should bring more rinchos though.

[@mjc0961]

@@blackjacktrial I'm not sharing my moon nachos with you.

[@DMAN99]

blackjacktrial Munancho!

[@indraservo5764]

do the hustle

[@Cyboogie.the.Cyborg]

Obligatory: "I see"

[@JediMB]

そか

[@draphking]

“Where’s Shenmue 3? Give us Shenmue 3!” “Alright here you go” “Wtf this plays like a Shenmue game this sucks” Leads me to believe that most people who clamor for these nostalgia sequels haven’t actually played these games in 20 years

[@artbargra]

That's... actually how nostalgia works. It's not how things were back in the day, it's how people remember those things. Reminds me of all the "pixel" games out there, trying to look like old 8-bit games, but end up looking far worse. Compare how a modern old-school game looks (like Broforce, for example -great game, but hear me out), with, say, Castlevania or Ninja Gaiden. There is no comparison.

[@VIPMVPanyquestions]

Perhaps standards have risen a bit over the last 20 years and they didn't expect a literal 2003 game in 2019.

[@SarahWattCA]

I noticed this for Yooka-Laylee as well

[@hobbes296]

Yeah but I think people were hoping for an updated version. Shenmue that they knew with a modern coat of paint. Which didn't happen.

[@InsaneX5]

I don't think that's what happened, I think people were expecting the game to evolve with the times. Honestly this game feels like a funny as joke by the developer.

[@lm4585]

What did peple expect? Shenmue was just a tech demo for the Dreamcast anyway.

[@Boom_OH]

Peple is in the third arc im guessing?

[@J_Themborn]

Wow it seriously ends on a cliffhanger? I'm so glad I never cared I'll just wait for the Yakuza collection to be complete in a few months.

[@FerrickAnima]

not only that, the entire game felt like a filler episode simply because it had a lot of padding yet it did not add anything to the overall story

[@jiado6893]

Brutal Legend made a profit, it wasn't just money down the drain. I definitely got my money's worth out of it.

[@derekdrake8706]

Hmm.. I remember Shenmue 2 being interesting because the story unfolded in so many different ways. I remember losing one fight, having my butt saved by an old man doing Tai-Chi, being trained by his daughters, having to chop leaves in midair to train my button reflexes, then winning my rematch. In my second play through, I won that first fight and I never even saw the old man and his daughters. And I really liked those characters! But my second play through was totally different. It was fun. It was interesting. I'm happy I rented it. ..but.. did it need a third installment? Not really. I think what people are actually hungry for are interesting, intricate stories with a lot of depth, possibility and branching story lines.

[@MagiofAsura]

Enter, Yakuza franchise.

[@bassbole]

I was/am a huge fan of this series and, having just finished III, I can tell you it's even worse than you described. Often the voice acting doesn't match the captions. At least, often enough that you wonder how it could happen more than once in a game on a scale like this. The stat grinding is at an all-time high here, as are the repetitive tasks. Beat these Kung fu masters, now beat THESE Kung fu masters. Now fight the Red Snakes. Fight the Red Snakes again, this time with Ren. Fight the Red Snakes AGAIN this time after learning a move. Search a room for items... again and again... and again. I could go on but you get it. I honestly couldn't BELIEVVVVEEEE the game ended with no resolution to the Lan Di conflict. Not even a meaningful fight with him. What the hell does Suzuki think we were waiting all these years for? He may as well not be in the game. Also, just a weird little story note. All the women in Bailu village are super horny for Ryo. It gets explained that the men are away to work but it's still really cringy/silly. I know you said he isn't a grifter, and you're probably right but.... I feel a bit grifted. I don't know. When you document the insane amount of money that went into this, it just doesn't seem like a lot of care or attention to detail went to the actual product. There are parts of the game I liked, but between all this and having to eat every time I ran four feet, this quickly became something I felt obligated to play more than something I enjoyed. Anyway, thanks for calling this out. Subbed.

[@CaptainIcebeard]

A protagonist that responds to almost everything with "I see" sounds exceptionally Japanese, but that doesn't work great when translated. Sekiro is also such a protagonist, but in the English version he has a different personality. Make of that what you will, though. Personally I don't mind it.

[@mariekanker3022]

I see

[@lordbendtner3626]

I see

[@ryanc5572]

I see.

[@ieuanhunt552]

I see

[@genericusername5233]

I see

[@Jerbsinator]

When Star Citizen fails, Jim can paste Star Citizens name over this video and call it a day cause it's the same promises and same failures.

[@Jian13]

Except Shenmue 3 actually launched. Star Citizen will always be in alpha.

[@keegans5695]

With star citizen's case the problem is that they still haven't figured out that Chris Roberts has stalled out every project he's ever been in charge of.

[@TheUndeadslayer221]

Didn't Star Citizen try pushing a massive DLC and demanded a premium price higher than the average car?

[@MagiofAsura]

@@TheUndeadslayer221 the $27000 microtransactions for 127 ships if I am not mistaken

[@MagiofAsura]

@@keegans5695 star citizens biggest problem is that CIG has no idea how to monetize the game post launch. The company burns ~$50mil/year. Without a sub model, the current model they are peddling is similar to GTA Online where you pay for in-game currency with real world cash. Currently you can buy 5000 UEC for $5. Currently an aurora CL is almost 500,000 aUEC in game. It makes no sense. I doubt ship sales post launch would fly with the community. If it did, why not just have a sub model?

[@unforgivn81]

Ok, the goddamn "yee" dinosaur made me laugh way more than it should have.

[@RaymondStormbl3ssed]

Shenmue fans have really low standards if they think Shenmue 3 is even close to being acceptable quality

[@elin111]

They only care about the fact that the game exists, just like Kojima fans with Death Stranding.

[@RaymondStormbl3ssed]

Ekkk death stranding is a 1000 times better than all 3 Shenmue games at least

[@Flowtail]

Most shenmue fans that ive heard of hate the new game and think it's far worse than the originals

[@NormanReaddis]

Kojima's games are well polish than this many times over people just don't like those kind of out of the mill games anymore they just like what's trendy and easy to swallow

[@CervantesVI]

In retrospect, I'm not happy with the way this comment came off, and I'm just going to replace it with this, sorry about making careless accusations.

[@JimSterling]

I am absolutely certain. Yu Suzuki has done nothing but try to deliver on his heady goals, and he does seem to provide Shenmue fans what they want, even if it takes him almost twenty years and what those fans want is not very good. I think he is overly ambitious, and stuck in the past, and is very good at spending too much of other peoples' money, but I think he only behaves in service to his supposed masterpiece. Whatever I think of him as a storyteller or a businessperson, I do think he's 100% earnest.

[@ll-js7iq]

@@JimSterling At least he's an earnest failure and not a lying, cheating failure like my dad.

[@canadademon]

@@ll-js7iq Or, a more relevant example than your emotional family drama, Tiny Tim Sweeney.

[@ll-js7iq]

@@canadademon Don't forget our lovable Randy Pitchford.

[@GrOOvedelta93]

And what money would they be laundering? Backers'? 🧐🍸

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

"I see," is probably lost in translation. The phrase, "Aa, sou," or "sou ka na," roughly translates to "I see," but it's one of those phrases that can have a lot of different meanings based on the context and tone of its use. A lot like "Hai." It can mean "I see," but it can also mean "I've heard what you say," or "I'm doubtful of your statement," or "I'm not going to say what I really think, but I seriously question your sanity right now." And in Japanese, it's actually normal to say that a lot in conversation because of how the culture works (this is actually something I only recently learned, because they don't do this in anime or games all that much and my Japanese professor never explained this; I came across it in a video on a channel about how languages work). So, the fact that he talks this way probably sounds a lot more natural in Japanese and probably makes him come across as a quiet guy who doesn't talk much, but at least is polite enough to pay attention to the conversation. Maybe. Never played Shenmue, so I don't actually know how it's being used.

[@paranoidrodent]

I've noticed the difference when it's used in Japanese but it loses a lot in a literal translation, especially when delivered in a near monotone by a character with minimal facial animation. It's like having all the various nuanced affirmatives in English translated to a robotic monotone "Hai". Sounds like this game series needed better localization but the current incarnation's unimpressive sales in Japan suggest that we've got a lackluster original script as starting material too.

[@dennislepke2125]

naruhodo, naruhodo =D

[@greenhowie]

Yeah let's face it, even in our barbaric language saying "I see" with the right inflection can mean dozens of things.

[@cruherrx]

cheezemonkeyeater the same is true for the phrase “I see.” Depending on how it’s said, it has all of the meanings you ascribe to “Sou ka”. The direction here is bad. A voice actor given proper direction could easily capture all of that.

[@darwinray7394]

I see.

[@GenericSoda]

Shenmue is a mysterious game. I think it's incredible that Shenmue 3 managed to recapture the stilted voice acting despite having a stellar voice cast this time around, and I feel like if the series had concluded with Shenmue 3, I'd have been disappointed. That doesn't mean it's a good decision, but still.

[@elin111]

Shenmue 3 is a game that should've released in 2004.

[@kinggeo8545]

Do you know where sailors like to hang out?

[@billvolk4236]

I like how Shenmue runs on totally different logic than any other video game. You know what it resembles more than other open-world games? Soap operas and telenovelas. The narrative repeatedly having to drive home what a Good Kid (TM) Ryo is, the endless filler, the bad guys who are simultaneously crazily over-the-top evil and somehow boring, all that's missing is a Mexican guy in a red wig and fake freckles and it's ready for Telemundo.

[@squidracerX]

I never played 1 and 2 - but this means made for those fans - and i dont think thats bad (?) I watched a QuickLook from Giantbomb, saw how crazy it was and bad it looked - it was on SALE for $35 on Black Friday 1 week after it came out - so i picked it up. i dont think it will be good - but i feel like its a Deadly Premonition type thing. I'm not sure if its just a bad game or some is intentional? But that dialogue made me laugh. Would I let the director use MY money to make a new game - HELL NO, dont hire that guy; but it exists, and I want to experience it.

[@mrmagoo-i2l]

squidracerX Yeah, I’m a massive fan of 1 and 2. I’ve got it on the Dreamcast. I bought it again on the PS4, 2 weeks later it was half price so I’ll wait this time for a sale. I just can’t swallow £50. It couldn’t change or it wouldn’t be Shenmue, just like FF7 remake without turn based battles won’t be FF7 to me. Even if a more action game makes it better. Jim is such a scumbag though, if it’s not his mates from the woke brigade of San Francisco making it he doesn’t like it. Anything from the woke cult he fawns all over. The Japanese don’t fall for his shit so he doesn’t get a review copy. BOTW a 7, Hyper light drifter a 7 because they called him an arsehole. Hollow knight a 6 because team cherry called him a shallow arsehole. ‘Not tonight’, who kissed his arse a 9. “Brilliant game”, he said. It’s shit, his mates made it. What a complete dick head.

[@icedragon769]

"wearing a wacky costume is a substitute for having an appealing personality" Starting off strong with the PhilosophyTube jabs I see :)

[@Cr3zant]

is that not a jab at himself?

[@futurestoryteller]

Uh... Philosophy Tube referenced Jim's costumes, to pay homage to him while talking about how great he is. So yeah, if anything Jim was being self deprecating.

[@quiettimegaming3642]

Damn, I had to give this vid a ‘like’ solely based off of the title. (I have put in 40+ hours on Shenmue 3 [as well as beaten the other 2], for context). I completely and 100% understand wanting the sequel/“end of the trilogy”, To continue the franchise in a way that feels familiar and connected to the games that came before it... But this game feels like an ‘adequate’ sequel to Shenmue 2. And had it released within a reasonable amount of time after Shenmue 2 (as in on the same hardware), I would probably be praising this game. Of course, that would have been nearly 18 years ago. But, unfortunately, this kind of game has been done exponentially better in countless games since Shenmue 2’s release (The most obvious being games like Yakuza and Sega’s Fist of The North Star). And this game just doesn’t feel “evolved”. Maybe if Sega had made this it would have been better. And that doesn’t mean it’s a TERRIBLE game. But it does show that the devs didn’t in any way seek to capitalize on nearly 2 decades of innovation within the sub-genre. I liked S:3, but it’s isn’t a good game in ANY WAY by modern conventions. And I think that whether S:3’s dated appearance and feel is by design or not, it should be measured by the same metrics any other game of this kind would. And by those metrics, this game is not a good one.

[@FlorenceFox]

I love the Yakuza games, but whenever someone says that they do everything Shenmue does better, I can't help but feel like they're wrong, and I can't say for sure why. I think maybe it's the tone? There was a certain sense of mystical wonder to Shenmue that doesn't really seem present in the Yakuza games, brilliant as they are. I get where the comparison is coming from, though. From a gameplay perspective, yeah, I absolutely see it.

[@MagiofAsura]

After playing judgement and yakuza, the writing in shenmue is downright awful. Yakuza knows how to ooze intrigue while shenmue has been riding those damn mirrors for over a decade.

[@johnconnorpliskin7184]

I often wonder if not following modern conventions is such a bad thing. I can totally understand where the love for Shenmue comes from, but couldn’t get into it myself. I may end up trying out 3 sometime when its on sale, but who knows. I think its nice that games like this and Death Stranding can come out. Games with big budgets that do things differently from the rest. And this is coming from someone who’s played every localized Yakuza game to date.

[@Jellycakelap]

@@MagiofAsura Yakuza is about criminals doing criminal shit - the entire genre of story is more intriguing.

[@trevordavis6830]

@@johnconnorpliskin7184 Except at least with Death Stranding the developers actually did something artistically new and different. Shenmue 3 is the exact opposite as it refuses to be even a fraction as innovative as the original games were. There's a difference trying to different from other games and being too lazy to evolve or even finish a decade old franchise.

[@gobomania]

Yu Suzuki: "Imma spend ALL of the money on my Magnum opus of a game!" Chris Roberts: *Laugh in Star Citizen*

[@bificommander7472]

18 years of waiting will be hard for Roberts to beat. But he's getting there.

[@GENKI_INU]

7 million dollars of funding over 18 years for Shenmue 3 is nothing compared to the 250 million dollars over just 7 years for Scam Shitizen...

[@Pgo9ro]

@@GENKI_INU "Scam Shitizen" hahahahaha now that is a perfect name.

[@gavinerickson9392]

Death Stranding is the game people deserve for never appreciating MGS2.

[@shmekelfreckles8157]

Gavin Erickson I mean, people appreciate Death Stranding now.

[@kruskalalgorithm]

I appreciate both (DS is pants, but I still love it)

[@XescoPicas]

I honestly liked Raiden as a protagonist. Turning him into a cyborg ninja made him cooler, but it definetly ruined his character.

[@kruskalalgorithm]

@broootal warp Calm down darling. To each their own x

[@jackawaka]

I really enjoy brutal legend for some reason, in all of its jankyness

[@Kropothead]

Yeah, it had a lot of flaws, but it was fun. It was a good rental.

[@TheJmack90]

Damn. That ending got TOO real

[@Spleemce]

This

[@bunnybreaker]

My younger brother, bless his heart, bought me Shenmue for the DC back in the day. After earning some in game money and then spending literally ALL my time playing Space Harrier, I returned it when I ran out of in game cash. My ex loved Shenmue 2,and I was happy enough watching her play it, but when she hit some dumb in game job that was too hard to grind out. We used the whole game as a Lucky Hit sim. I think I'll pass on the third one.

[@ghettofridge]

It kind of blows my mind to see footage of Shenmue III and it looks almost exactly as I remember Shenmue I on the Dreamcast. I enjoyed it at the time but it's hard to see what it offers when a series like Yakuza has done just about everything better. Edit: Go figure Jim said exactly the same thing lmao

[@rollerr]

Comparing it to Yakuza is comparing apples to oranges. They're similar in only the most surface level ways at their core. Yakuza is an action brawler with some tertiary similarities to Shenmue on the margins, Shenmue is a slow paced kung fu/detective movie/life simulation.

[@farhanabdurrahman2546]

@@rollerr soo... it's just Judgement but worse?

[@CheekyCheeky]

@@rollerr And thats just why Yakuza is better, it took the interesting parts of Shenmue(Living world which you can interact with, wacky antics, big fight set pieces) and then made it an actual game that is fun to play. They are only "similar" at the core because Yakuza actually evolved.

[@rollerr]

@@CheekyCheeky Completely subjective. I prefer shenmue and I always have.

[@rollerr]

@@CheekyCheeky Comparing yakuza to shenmue is like comparing fallout to the stalker series, it happens all the time but it reeks of never having seriously played either game. It's apples to oranges and people can prefer one or the other without this stupid grug-brained "objectively better" type rhetoric.

[@fryerfight5080]

Loved the first game, remember spending far too much time on it back in the Dreamcast days. I then played the remaster a while back when it became available on game pass and can confirm it’s a game that should firmly be left in the past. Nostalgia is a wonderful thing until it bites you in the arse.

[@dyl5775]

Star Citizen: Hold my diamond encrusted Buggy filled beer.

[@GENKI_INU]

Shenmue 3: 7 million dollars funding over 18 years. Star Citizen: 250 million dollars funding over 7 years.

[@Fortzon]

@@GENKI_INU 7 million after 4 years* Shenmue 3 didn't start magically existing right after Shenmue 2

[@MagiofAsura]

@@GENKI_INU the shenmue 3 kickstarter was in 2015 which it ran for a month for $6mil. It wasnt raising money for the last 18 years while making the game like Star citizens situation. People also misunderstand the figure of $250mil as if they still have it laying around. They burned through almost all of that. I would be surprised if they have $80mil still left (including the $46mil 10% share sale money).

[@mcj88]

I actually tried giving Shenmue a shot last year; at the time I'd had an -obsession- "special interest" in Kowloon Walled City, the old pseudo-anarchist settlement that used to be in Hong Kong, and I'd heard it was a setting in Shenmue II, so I went down to my local game store and picked it up. (For $50! Oof) I didn't even last 15 minutes. Ryo Hazuki moves like a damn tree he's so stiff, the control scheme made no sense to me (although I had the apparently-shittier Xbox port, so maybe that was why) and the voice acting was bad, and not even in the fun way. I got lost trying to chase some kid, lost a fight on the dock because I couldn't figure out what to do, and then I just gave up.

[@Merchantic]

WHAT IS WITH THAT ENDING? JIM, EXPLAIN D:

[@huhhhhhhhhhhhh09]

The ending of this episode is perfect. Recreates that feeling you get after a long day of busting your ass to help others only to realize nobody noticed in the slightest. Happy Holidays!