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Shenmue I & II Remaster (8/21/2018; PC/PS4/XB1 - $29.99)
- Thread starter Y2Kev
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Does Shenmue II emulate well? As in, can you play it start to finish without distracting visual glitches, crashes, and decent performance?
I can't stand the botched alpha textures you get with a lot of DC emulation, and controller support is a must.
Isn't Shen Mue like 15 mins long and like 5 blocks in size? I remember being super disappointed in that damn game when it came out. I was basically expecting an open world game before open world games even really existed.
The greatest trick Sega ever pulled was convincing the world this was real.
The greatest trick Sega ever pulled was convincing the world this was real.
DEMUL is a very accurate emulator but performance can be spotty regardless of hardware because of how finicky it can be (I seriously have a "ritual" of running certain programs before I boot it up because it appears to run better when I do).
I'm getting a bit more slowdown in Shenmue II than the original because of the increase in environment size and characters rendered on-screen, but it's not awful. Overall I would say wait for I & II to be released if you're planning a playthrough, unless you totally lack the willpower like me.
That video is from before Shenmue was split into two titles, and the majority of the "open world" stuff you're looking for was from what eventually became Shenmue II, which is bigger than the original by a lot.
SEGA began to panic when the Dreamcast started floundering and ordered Yu Suzuki to get Shenmue out earlier so the console had its killer app. Faced with basically no other choice, Shenmue was split from the point Ryo gets on the boat. In the original plan, Yokosuka was effectively the prologue and the game would "open up" once Ryo made landfall in Hong Kong.
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Woah, GameFan Online... that takes me back.
There was a lot of hype for Shenmue back in 1999. Sizzle reals like that made the game look unbelievable, like a real next generation leap from everything else on the market. Though, that trailer is a bit misleading as it shows many clips that ended up in Shenmue II. The Hong Kong scenes in this trailer made this game look like a totally different experience, like it was going to me more like an open-world Hong Kong action movie.
The trailer is still real though. The original game was planned to be Shenmue I and II together, but due to development time, they had to split the game up into smaller parts.
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I was just curious, really. I replayed Shenmue a couple of years ago so I could do a podcast with my brother, who was playing it for the very first time. I think his take is interesting as someone who only really plays modern games (only 29 mins long):
https://soundcloud.com/parsnipforest/shenmue-podcast-1
...and then I started a Shenmue II playthrough straight afterwards on Dreamcast, but I didn't get past the first disc. I will most definitely wait for this re-release now.
Exactly! Hence why I said it was the greatest lie ever told lol!
Not to mention that music...
This footage can be found in a VHS tape that has a bunch of Dreamcast game previews. Has some kind of asian indian music playing in the video.
I'd say the average playthrough of Shenmue I is between 20 and 30 hours. It definitely isn't a short game by any metric. The whole point of Shenmue I is to create that small, hometown feel. The size of the world is intentional and thematically appropriate. Then Shenmue II flips that on its head and delivers a "stranger in a foreign land" vibe, with its huge world -- it's a classic coming of age story.
As far as I can remember, there's nothing in that video that isn't in Shenmue and Shenmue II.
New update video posted by Adam Koralik regarding the false rumours floating around about the time skip option in Shenmue 1 and fake release dates posted from online retailers that are supposedly shipping out legitimate copies of Shenmue 1&2 Remasters.
I wonder whether the releases of these Remasters will get Shenmue 2 to its next push goal of $7M (which is Battle System Expanded AI).
Currently at $6,868,709, but that was updated March 30th so maybe it's gone over.
Currently at $6,868,709, but that was updated March 30th so maybe it's gone over.
Honestly don't need a timeskip in Shenmue I, as part of the point of the game is living the daily cycle and adhering to the clock, while exploring and doing all sorts of little things. Time management is more important.
In Shenmue II they have a different focus so this isn't as important as it is in the first game. Adding time skip would just make people skip the immersion and feel of the game. Anyway, I'm sure people will disagree, but I'm glad they are keeping it original.
I played II before I. It's restrictive but yeah, the guy is a teenager and lives at home, so the curfew is at least fine to me. If people can cope with Persona's crappy down-times then Shenmue is nothing, frankly speaking.
Shenmue I & II £22.85 at Base in the UK.
PS4: https://www.base.com/Games/Shenmue-...4_1523966480_045a9e46e40bb23c4b9c345527996906
XBOX ONE: https://www.base.com/Games/Shenmue-...4_1523966892_f67e2f194906275ceac619d1af6b6fc1
Updated post. Was £22.99 and is now £22.85.
PS4: https://www.base.com/Games/Shenmue-...4_1523966480_045a9e46e40bb23c4b9c345527996906
XBOX ONE: https://www.base.com/Games/Shenmue-...4_1523966892_f67e2f194906275ceac619d1af6b6fc1
Updated post. Was £22.99 and is now £22.85.
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I can attest to this, I am one of those people. 2 is the objectively better game, but 1 will always be my favorite...
I'm very, VERY excited about this. These games were ahead of their time, and because the first one came out at the end of the DC life cycle, didn't get a foothold in the industry.
I'm one of those people. Shenmue II has a lot of improvements and is generally bigger and more action-packed, probably more accessible too for that reason, but the first one is what I fell in love with. I'd choose Sakuragaoka, Yamanose and Dobuita over Wan Chai and Kowloon any day.
I wouldn't criticise Shenmue II for it because the overwhelmed alienation fits the story, but it still means Shenmue is the one I go back to most often.
So yeah, I'd say Shenmue II is the better game, but the first one is still my favourite.
I assume you mean Shenmue 3? No, sales of this game published by SEGA will not contribute to the funding of a game published by Deep Silver...
The first game came out about a year after the console's launch in every region respectively. It had plenty of time for exposure, and it sold fairly well on the console. It's just the fact that it was limited to such a low selling console compared to PS2 that it didn't get the exposure it deserved...
Now the 2nd game came out at the end of DC's life cycle, and that was a real shame, especially for us Americans. Luckily I was able to import mine and play right away, most people had to wait for the awful xbox version...
Catching those three leaves in a row in the dojo was frustrating but fun. Looking forward to doing it all again
There was a part at 1:25 when Ren backhands ryo and then gets put up against the wall. I don't remember that scene from S2.
I agree with you in terms of the timing from the console launch, but since the PS2 launched 7 months after Dreamcast in the U.S. and sales declined almost immediately after that, then being discontinued a year later (which you already stated, for a moment I thought I was just plagiarizing you lol), that's where I get the end of lifecycle from.
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I think they mean people putting money into Shenmue III via the Slacker Backer site.
Although to be honest the amount raised there became irrelevant once Deep Silver put money into development to expand the game content, but it'd be symbolically nice to see it reach $7 million.
Never thought I'd live to see the day. Bring it on vgp.ca!
Ugh they charge straight away, it's crazy sites still do this. Cancelled...It's cheaper over at 365games.
...and gone for this one. Cheers!
Whoah. Crazy low prices. A little jealous I can't get a physical version that low (with the poster) because I'm getting this on PC.
Maybe a deal will crop up on GMG, but if not I don't have a problem paying asking price for this. I'm hardly going to penny pinch over Shenmue considering the money I put into the Kickstarter for III.
Maybe a deal will crop up on GMG, but if not I don't have a problem paying asking price for this. I'm hardly going to penny pinch over Shenmue considering the money I put into the Kickstarter for III.
One question I have. I don't actually remember how disc swapping worked with the original games, but I'm guessing it's not something we need to deal with in the game, like swap a virtual disc? That would be annoying.
Also isn't the Passport thing just essentially a part of Shenmue 1? I'd figure since we're getting Shnemue 1 were getting the Passport content.. What was in that anyways, all I remember is being able to look at high quality character models but I've seen others mentioning online leaderboards, don't remember that at all lol.
Also isn't the Passport thing just essentially a part of Shenmue 1? I'd figure since we're getting Shnemue 1 were getting the Passport content.. What was in that anyways, all I remember is being able to look at high quality character models but I've seen others mentioning online leaderboards, don't remember that at all lol.
I could never get the Shenmue games to emulate perfectly. There were a few minor technical issues that irritated me to the point of giving up.
DEMUL. Can't remember if I tried NullDC.
I haven't tried it in a few months but audio glitches were my biggest problem.
Ah. Glitches like slowdown distortion on the audio? That can happen if performance isn't solid. DEMUL is quite demanding, and ultimately really fussy over your hardware, but that's emulators for you.
NullDC's performance is better at the expense of a shitload of glitched visuals. The "latest" (i.e few years old build) version doesn't even work with Shenmue II, though there's a Shenmue specific build that makes it work - but the glitched visuals and occasional crashing persist.
Honestly if I hadn't figured a totally unscientific way of getting DEMUL to run okay, I would just be waiting for these remasters instead of jumping in on a Shenmue II replay from the force of sheer hype.
A retail release at all seems lucky TBH, all things considered. A free poster should suffice at least.
*raises hand*
I also thought the first game looked superior, graphics-wise.
Contentious, but a respectable opinion.
The DF Retro video mentions the textures are lower quality on the Dreamcast (because of the much higher volume required for the game world), but beyond that II saw significant improvements to the engine. It definitely pushed the Dreamcast to its absolute limits visually, which is nuts considering Shenmue II expanded outwards from the original by a factor of like ten times or more. I was just playing it a moment ago on emulator and was kind of amazed how many more NPCs were displayed.
NPCs looked a bit more bland and blocky in 2 though. I think that's why it both looked worse and better at the same time... also the engine didn't have to keep track of them as they didn't move in set patterns like the NPCs in 1 did...
Don't get me wrong, 2 is the better game in terms of scope and the like. I won't deny that at all. I get all the praises for it.
I guess I'm just a big fan of detective type games. There's not that many games that scratch that itch for me like Shenmue did. Heavy Rain kinda did, as did Mass Effect.
Oh, and of course, Grim Fandango. :P
Considering there's like as many NPCs in Wan Chai alone as there was in the whole of the original Shenmue, it's a fair trade off. A lot of them don't look noticeably worse at least.
Pretty cool accomplishment for 2001, really.
OH I beg to differ on that. The models look noticeably blocky and wooden by comparison, and the faces are much less detailed and unique. Keep in mind I'm talking about randoms, not real characters. They look like they don't even belong in the same game they're so out of place...
Still impressive tech for sure, but just explaining why 1 looks so much better by comparison. Those NPCs looked like ass at time as well, but they all were unique and just better looking in general...
The pedestrians going through Dobuita/the Harbour don't really look appreciably better to me, although it really depends which NPC you pick. In both games there's a bit of variance in quality from NPC to NPC. The fixed shopkeepers in the original have the edge over the roaming NPCs in both games, though. I guess that's offset by II's supporting cast retaining a higher quality so - swings n' roundabouts.
As for unique, I'm pretty sure the NPCs in II are all unique too. The vast majority at least. I don't think I've ever seen two of the same NPC in one quarter, some slightly similar ones maybe but always unique under closer inspection.
You... you mean you aren't buying a copy of every version available!?
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