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Each year, the Epic Games Store Holiday Sale involves free games being given away during the event. The 2021 Holiday Sale is no different. Epic Games confirmed it is doing it again. Things are starting on December 16, 2021 with free digital copies of Shenmue 3 for everyone.

This free Shenmue 3 offer only applies to the base game. That’s the one that normally costs $29.99. The Digital Deluxe Edition with DLC is $39.99 as usual. However, as part of the 2021 Holiday Sale, the game’s add-ons are 50% off. This means the DLC season is $5.99 instead of $11.99. You can also get the Battle Rally, Big Merry Cruise, and Story Quest Pack piecemeal for $2.99, $1.49, and $1.99, respectively.

As people may recall, there was quite a bit of controversy surrounding the Shenmue 3 Epic Games Store exclusivity at launch. It was a timed exclusive. This eventually led to Epic Games paying for the refunds for Kickstarter backers unsatisfied with the decision. In November 2020, the game launched on Steam.

Shenmue 3 is free via the Epic Games Store until 8am PT/11am ET on December 17, 2021. After that, a new 15 days of free games title will be available via Epic Games Store instead. The retailer’s 2021 Holiday Sale will run until January 6, 2021.

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LemonHaze, Patrick J. Fuller, former Lan Di voice actor Paul Lucas, and former Ren voice actor Eric Kelso came together to create a Shenmue 3 mod that brings both performers back to the two roles. With help from Peter Campbell, James “SkillJim” Brown, and Jibby, the group created two versions of the mod that restores the characters’ original voices. [Thanks, Shenmue Dojo!]

Installing it is fairly easy. First, you decide if you’d want the version that only adds the original Ren and Lan Di voice actors to Shenmue 3 or the one with the international phone calls too. Then, you get the Forklift mod loader. Once installed, you essentially drag and drop some files and you’re set.

Both Lucas and Kelso agreed to help the community for this patch. As Brown noted in the forum announcing the patch, “Both completely did this for free!”

Here’s a video for the Shenmue 3 mod, showing exactly how Kelso and Lan Di sound reprising their characters. As a reminder, Ren and Lan Di are voiced by Greg Chun and Kyle McCarley normally in the game.

Shenmue 3 is available on the PlayStation 4 and PC, and people can get the mod and mod loader on Shenmue Dojo. A fourth Shenmue game has yet to be announced.

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You won’t have to hunt too hard for Bailu Chan or Chobu Chan if you get the Shenmue 3 Complete Edition from Limited Run Games. In this case of this collector’s edition, they’ll show up right at your door. The company announced a 3,000 copy run of a $149.99 set that gives you the complete edition of the PlayStation 4 game and a number of extras. It is currently up for sale on the official site.

The Limited Run Games Shenmue 3 Complete Edition gives you the full version of the game, its add-ons, and its most recent patch on a disc. That means no extra s. You also get your own Bailu Chan and Chobu Chan mascots. There’s a Sword of the Seven Stars 5” long replica. You also have your own Hotel Niaowu Welcome Card and Golden Goose VIP Card. There’s even an honorary, decorative Shenmue 3 Dreamcast game case. Finally, you have a Bailu Herb Map which might help you when finding items in-game.

Shenmue 3 is available for the PlayStation 4 and PC. It just recently appeared on Steam, following a period of Epic Games Store exclusivity. Also, a number of add-ons, like the Big Merry Cruise, have appeared for the game in 2019 and 2020. Copies of the Shenmue 3 Complete Edition were still available on Limited Run Games as of 10:20am ET on November 20, 2020.

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A saga is coming to a close. The Kickstarter backer Shenmue 3 Steam keys are about to be doled out. A Kickstarter update noted that surveys will soon offer them up to people who preferred to play the third entry in the saga on PCs via Steam. It also confirmed s will begin on November 19, 2020. An exact date for the key distribution wasn't announced, but the announcement said, "Steam codes are almost ready and will be available soon through your survey."

The Ys Net update also confirmed details about the DLC and Backer Codes. Once people get a key, they can redeem it as usual. Then, in-game, there will be a Backer Code option on the second Settings page in Options. You’ll then be able to redeem additional rewards.

This ends a saga that started when an Epic Games Store timed exclusivity arrangement was announced  in June 2019. People learned there would be no Shenmue 3 Steam keys available for backers at launch and Epic Games said it would pay for any requested refunds. There was even a period of time where it seemed like Steam key availability would depend on negotiations with Valve.

Shenmue 3 is available for the PlayStation 4 and PC via Epic Games Store immediately. The Shenmue 3 Steam version will appear on November 19, 2020, and its product page is now online.

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Shenmue III was made for fans of Shenmue and it does everything to remain faithful to the series, for better or for worse. At times it can feel stubborn as it sticks to the Shenmue way of doing things, but that’s also what gives it a charm of its own.

One of the first things that really stood out to me was the UI and menu that look straight out of a mid-2000s game. It basically keeps a similar look to its predecessors. Also, you can literally change Ryo’s outfit in the settings menu. It has a toggle for music, effects, voice, then the “change clothes” option that simply changes his appearance. Now that’s something we don’t see much these days. Also, if you're not using the leather jacket, you're Ryo Hazuking wrong.

See, he looks cold and naked without the jacket.

The game starts out in Bailu Village, home of the Shenmue Tree which the series is named after. It is one of the two main places you explore in Shenmue III and still remains my favorite part. I felt that the scenery was much more pleasant in Bailu than the rest of the areas. It is only matched with the kind of music that gives it an old mythical Chinese vibe, too.

Ryo journeyed from Yokosuka, Japan, to Bailu Village in search of his father’s killer, Lan Di. From here the game quickly teaches you that you’ll need to talk to NPCs to advance. It mostly consists of Ryo going around asking villagers about his current objective and they point him towards a general direction with a key NPC. That’s all pretty normal but the lack of a dialogue skip option can make it brutal at times. I mean you're there interrogating everyone from senile old ladies to children running around in the playground.

Other than a few thugs the place is pretty quiet so there’s a sense of comfort to the village.

I tried out a bit of the English dub for Shenmue III and it’s overall pretty bad, but I could see some people appreciate it on a cheesy level. What's really impressive is the amount of dialogue in the entire game. However, that only means that on top of not being able to skip the dialogue, the game makes you talk to a lot of NPCs. And I mean a lot of them.

Most conversations apart from key NPCs aren’t that interesting, but you do get the occasional gems. However, a simple skip would've been nice considering you'll often find yourself talking to the same NPC with multiple choices on countless occasions.

There are all kinds of mini-games you'd expect from Shenmue but they're often hit-or-miss. I liked the sillier ones such as this one that had Ryo catch chicken. However, most of the training or work-related mini-games are a bit of a drag and don't feel as rewarding.

Ryo Hazuki is stoic to the core. It's fine that they keep him true to his character, but I wish they added a little more to his dialogue just to expand on his character, even for a little bit. The Yakuza games are on a different playing field these days but the series does a great job of showing how the protagonist interacts with different kinds of people. As for Ryo Hazuki, the guy is straight to business. He doesn't care whether it's a farmer or a toddler, he only wants answers.

The next open-world area is Niaowu. It's a bigger city located by a river. While it doesn't have the same nature appeal as Bailu it has all kinds of shops to check out. They say there are over 140 stores, including 70 you can shop at. The stores range from sweets shops to antique shops. If you enjoy looking at the finer details in games, Shenmue III actually does a good job of showing it for the stores.

While the game doesn't really add too much to the story until later on, it makes it really easy to get distracted with the myriad of activities offered in both Bailu and Niaowu. It's certainly a slower-paced style compared to other recent open-world titles, but when it comes to QTE action Ryo Hazuki is still your man.

Food for Thought 2f6e6z

• Shenmue III is kind of like a time machine that doesn't only show a setting in 1987 but also gives you an idea of how games were developed almost 20 years ago. It's interesting to think that at one point the original game was labeled the most expensive video game ever developed.

Shenmue III is available for PlayStation 4 and PC. Check out some footage for the game here, here, and here.

The post Shenmue III Can Be Stubborn in its Ways But Remains Faithful to the Series appeared first on Siliconera.

In a recently published interview, Shenmue series director and producer Yu Suzuki discusses the pressure of making the highly anticipated and successfully crowdfunded Shenmue III.

Suzuki also talks about the possibility of a video that may summarize the events of Shenmue I and II. A refresher may be helpful, as he plans to include references to the previous games in Shenmue III that are more than just flashback scenes.

As far as character interactions are concerned, Suzuki continues by stating the game will easily include more than 100 NPCs. However, that number could grow to over 200 depending on the development team’s efficiency.

Watch the full interview (with Japanese and French audio and English subtitles) in the video below:

In case you missed it, Keiji Okayasu, who worked as a sub-director on the first two Shenmue games, is also going to work with Suzuki on Shenmue III. In a separate video message, ers were updated on the progress made in Shenmue III’s first year of development.

Shenmue III is expected to come to PC and PlayStation 4 in December 2017.

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The Shenmue III Kickstarter recently shared an updated saying that Keiji Okayasu, sub-director for Shenmue and Shenmue II will return to work with Yu Suzuki on the series’ third installment.

In the above video, we get a little interview featuring Okayasu-san, who talks about his work with the original Shenmue on the Sega Saturn and a bit on his time with Shenmue II. He also had some words to share on working with Yu Suzuki, and how he ed the team for the Shenmue III.

Shenmue III is expected to release in December 2017 for PlayStation 4 and PC.

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New screenshots of the prototype version of Shenmue 3 were shown at the MAGIC expo in Monaco (via the expo’s Twitter ).

Two of the screenshots show Ryo and Shenhua in two different locations around rural China, one at night, one during the day. The third screenshot shows a foggy lake scene.

The last official update on Shenmue 3’s progress from developer YS Net was a video that showcased a Bailu Village hut interior.

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In the latest backer update on the Shenmue 3 Kickstarter, Ys Net revealed that it has revamped the game’s official website, and has also shared new video footage.

The site includes an introduction to the Shenmue series, alongside a history of its development and releases, and an overview of its characters.

In the site’s gallery, currently the only piece of media is the video you can watch above, which showcases a hut in Bailu Village. There is also a pre-order page – the “Slacker Backer” campaign, to be precise – for those who didn’t back Shenmue 3 already.

Finally, Ys Net had a New Year’s message to share: “Thanks to Shenmue fans everywhere, 2015 saw the start of Shenmue III. 2016 will be a year with noses to the grindstone to make the next installment of Shenmue worthy of the expectations you have entrusted with us. We would like to again ask you for your and cooperation for all that lay ahead this year.”

Shenmue 3 is in development for PlayStation 4 and PC and is expected to arrive in December 2017.

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The Shenmue 3 Kickstarter campaign got a new update page with their “Month 3 Progress Report,” with a look at some new screenshots and details on the game’s current development.

Here are details on the latest progress on the game from the Kickstart page:

Map Testing

In this phase of the development, the major work being done is the map testing. Map testing will define the different areas to make sure they are neither too big, nor too small to get to that Goldilocks zone. This consists of looking at the layout of a certain space, and experimenting to make necessary alterations. For example, an outside area may feel too open. That space may be reduced by 20%, and the number of people there increased from 10 to 16, to affect the proper consistency and density of the area.

All elements in the following screen shots are still in testing. Objects are being used as place holders, like the men in black suits, and Ryo is also an older model. Backgrounds and buildings are also still in the development stage and will see reworking. Shots for the two battle scenes were taken at angle to avoid spoilers as much as possible.

Battle test 1

Battle test 2

Conversation testing scene

Thatched roof house test mode

The development team is in high spirits now that we have reached this stage where we are finally able to start testing. The studio has become quite the lively place as of late, even on Saturdays for some of us! We look forward to your continued !

Shenmue 3 is in development for PlayStation 4 and PC, and has an estimated delivery of December 2017.

The post Shenmue 3 Gets An Update And New In-Development Screenshots appeared first on Siliconera.

An interview with Shenmue’s creative director Takeshi Hirai on the “Shenmue 3 Official” YouTube channel sees him talking about the challenges of creating the original game.

Hirai describes the original Shenmue as the team’s biggest achievement of their careers due to it helping to establish the open world genre.

He also discusses the difficulty of simulating weather patterns in the game as well as replicating the physics of two people handcuffed together as happens in Chapter 2 of Shenmue.

Finally, Hirai says that he feels it’s important that fans were able to express how much they wanted Shenmue 3 through crowdfunding. He also says he’d like to see Shenmue’s QTEs and battle system combined into something new.

You can see more interviews with the Shenmue team on the Shenmue 3 Official channel.

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Ys Net has opened up a “Slacker Backer” campaign for anyone who missed funding Shenmue 3 on Kickstarter. It will be available until December 31st 2015.

The money is accepted through PayPal and you’re able to get rewards for backing the game, as was the case with the Kickstarter. A digital copy of the game for PlayStation 4 will cost $29 while a physical copy will set you back $60.

“While the full game will be completed as promised with the use of the funding collected on Kickstarter, any additional funding collected here will go towards reaching the Stretch Goals to make the game even bigger and deeper,” explains Ys Net.

The post Missed The Shenmue 3 Kickstarter? Throw Your Money At The “Slacker Backer” Campaign appeared first on Siliconera.

The latest development update on Shenmue 3 isn’t quite as exciting as previous ones but it does see director Yu Suzuki sharing an unusual story about one of his most recent hires.

When asked if he had any stories he could give that occurred during the development of Shenmue 3 so far, Suzuki came out with this:

“One night, I went to a Thai restaurant with the development team after work. At that restaurant, a man approached me and asked to shake hands. He said he was a fan, and we had a brief talk. He also happened to be in the game industry and we began to hit it off. We talked some more to find out he really knew his job, and on top of that, he was an exceptionaly good person. I was so impressed, I asked him to help with the development. I couldn't help but feel Shenmue's unique gravity to bring interesting things together.”

That’s somewhat heart warming, isn’t it? It’s often said that we shouldn’t meet our heroes as we’d only be disappointed by them, but this may be the exception. It landed that guy a new job!

That aside, the other questions that Suzuki answered in the Kickstarter update had him reveal that the planning for the composition, story, planning, and game flow has been finished so far. The diagram below is an illustration of that.

Suzuki also explained that now that he knows what budget he’s working with he’s had to restructured the Shenmue 3 story to fit its scope. Previously, 17 years ago to be precise, Suzuki had planned for Shenmue 3 to have 11 chapters with each one taking place in a different region, but working in this way isn’t very efficient so he had to make changes.

Suzuki said that actual game development is starting now that the planning stage is complete. Plus, he says he’ll be looking to give more frequent updates, at least once a month, to show how the game is coming along.

The post Yu Suzuki Hired A Fan He Met In A Thai Restaurant To Work On Shenmue 3 appeared first on Siliconera.

Ys Net have ed a new video for Shenmue 3, with just three days remaining in their Kickstarter campaign, which is almost at the $5,000,000 mark with about three days remaining as of this article.

The teaser trailer shows Ryo and Shenhua arrive at the Lake of the Lantern Bugs after their long journey. Entranced, they watch the gentlre flight of the lantern bugs upon the mirage-like oasis.

Again, Ys Net also notes that this footage is still a work in progress, and they hope that it “will show those new to the game some of the wonder and magic they can expect from the continually unfolding world of Shenmue.”

Shenmue 3 is in development for PlayStation 4 and PC.

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Several brief interviews have been ed to the Shenmue 3 official YouTube , and among them are a few with Kenji Miyawaki, the lead character designer for the Shenmue series. In one video, Miyawaki talks about how he designed the series’ main character, Ryo Hazuki.

“It’s probably alright to talk about this now, but, this project began as a Virtua Fighter RPG centering around Akira,” Miyawaki says. “At the time the design came from one of many portraits of Akira, with him simply wearing Jeans and a T-Shirt. Looking over the design I’d made with him in the jeans and t-shirt and bag over his shoulder... we all thought it was a little too plain.”

Miyawaki goes onto note that one part of the worldview that drove the project was its historical background; when they thought what a character like Ryo would be like in the game’s historical context, they added a leather jacket to his design (in no small part inspired by the look and character of “Howling” Mad Murdock from the A-Team television series).

“Even though it didn’t look cool,” Miyawaki says, “it was a really cool look for people to have back then.”

Miyawaki then turns to the portrait of the female character in the background.

“This is Ming Ming, she appears after Shenmue 2. I have a lot of myself invested in her as well,” he says. “She’s free-spirited and very upfront, somewhat different from the female characters in Shenmue and Shenmue 2, who were mostly well-behaved. She’s expressive, and somewhat reckless, but she’s full of life. She’s a character that becomes involved with Ryo, and what’s more, she’s a master of martial arts.”

Miyawaki goes on to mention that he’d love to see the character on the game screen some day. Miyawaki landed his job leading the art design for Shenmue when a friend of his dropped by a bookstore he worked at, and asked him to draw up some characters for a video game. At the time, Miyawaki wanted to break into the manga scene. He landed the job with Sega after being asked to illustrate a scene where the main character was traveling in Tibet at a pre-production meeting for Shenmue. Yu Suzuki took a liking to his work and asked him to stay on as a designer for the project.

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