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There are currently ‘no concrete plans’ for Shenmue 4, says Yu Suzuki

Bullet Club

Member

There are currently ‘no concrete plans’ for Shenmue 4, says Yu Suzuki​


But the designer wants it to be more accessible to newcomers if it happens

Shenmue creator Yu Suzuki has indicated that he doesn’t have any concrete plans for Shenmue 4, but reiterated that he wants to make it more accessible to new players if it happens.

Suzuki was speaking this weekend at a special event to celebrate Shenmue in Yokosuka, the city where the series is based.

As reported by Famitsu, Suzuki discussed several topics, including the recently released Shenmue anime, and spoke about Shenmue 3 and his potential plans for a sequel.

According to Famitsu, Suzuki said that Shenmue 3 was a work made for the fans, with the fans in mind, and was a crowdfunded Kickstarter title for this reason.

Suzuki said that because it was created to please the fans, he was happy that it was well-received by players who had enjoyed the previous games.

However, he also feels that the focus on fan service meant that newcomers “felt like they had been left behind”, making the third game a difficult entry point for those who’d never played the first two titles.

As such, although Suzuki said he doesn’t yet have any concrete plans for Shenmue 4, he stated that he’s eager to “make it possible for new players to play the next one”.

Suzuki’s latest comments echo an interview he gave to IGN Japan two years ago, in which he also said he believes Shenmue 4 will happen and that he wants it to appeal to a broader audience than the last game.

“With Shenmue 3, I really responded to the fans’ voices, so I wasn’t necessarily thinking about making any money,” he said at the time. “But since I’m running a company, I have to think about what can sell if I continue. I’ve been seriously talking about it over and over again.”

Suzuki had previously pledged to continue making Shenmue games “as long as there are those who wish to see Shenmue live on.” The commitment was made via an in-game letter to fans shown during Shenmue 3’s staff credits.

The long-awaited RPG sequel was released for PS4 and PC via the Epic Games Store in November 2019. It appeared to get off to a difficult start, debuting at No. 17 on the UK chart and selling just 18,000 copies during its launch week in Japan.

In the UK, Shenmue 3 sold a little more than half of the previous year’s Shenmue 1 and 2 remaster at launch.

However, sales will have been skewed by Shenmue 3’s huge Kickstarter success. In 2016 the project raised over $6.3 million from 69,320 backers, making it the highest-funded video game Kickstarter in history.

Shenmue 3 was published by Deep Silver, whose parent company is Embracer Group. Speaking during an earnings presentation in 2020, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors claimed that Shenmue 3 performed “fine” financially but proved to be “a core niche product”.

“Shenmue 3 is an IP and a product I love and, you know, I think financially it’s fine and I’m glad that the core fans are pleased,” he said. “However, I think it’s a challenge to see this as a mass market product. This is a core niche product and I think that’s the comment I’d like to do on that game.”

Source: VGC
 
Shenmue 3, I got on release date even making it my first Shenmue game that I bought to get into the series proper. I liked what I played of it, had an old school feeling and the music was great too. I was surprised to see the mixed reaction to it. It's on my to beat list
 

STARSBarry

Gold Member
So what, am I going to have to wait for the announcement of a kickstarter at the PlayStation 7 reveal at E3 2032 now?

I waited so long got closure, and they released 3 and I never even got it...
 
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BbMajor7th

Member
When a creator funds a Kickstarter on the promise of concluding an unfinished trilogy and then comes absolutely nowhere near a conclusion (and rather nakedly contrives to make it the first game in an ongoing series), I don't think you can argue it was to 'please the fans'.
 
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Kssio_Aug

Member
It's kinda ridiculous that they got the opportunity to make Shenmue 3, when no one expected that to happen, and wasted it with another inconclusive ending when they had no idea if they would be able to make a sequel of that. Not even saying that Shemmue 3 is extremely niche.
 

lh032

I cry about Xbox and hate PlayStation.
Wake Up Sleeping GIF by Working Title
 

Azelover

Titanic was called the Ship of Dreams, and it was. It really was.
Shocker..

I really enjoyed Shenmue 3, but it needed to sell a little more than it did. I don't care, I just want the story. So release the book. That won't stop a fourth game from being made if it's meant to be. Just give me the rest of the story please.
 

A.Romero

Member
I used to be a huge Shenmue fan but it's one of those games that belongs to the time period it was released. I tried playing 3 but design was too outdated so I didn't continue.

At this point I rather see the end of the story through the anime which I found pretty decent and reminded me how uncharismatic Ryo really is.

While I'd love a remake using the Dragon Engine at the same time I don't think the game would have that kind of appeal anymore. We have Yakuza series and Judgement to scratch that itch in a much better way, I think with a much better and flexible plot.
 

MachRc

Member
Big fan here also, the first game was one of the great originals. Always treasure it and how it made me connect to Asia via the gaming medium. Powerful story ,visuals, mechanics...

To me.. for such a grounded game..like in reality..
Once Ryo does all that skipping and hopping on that one island, to finally get to that floating sword in part 2......................



It broke the story and game for me..

Three was excruciating difficult to play. I could not get pass the village because in my mind the game was over once the magical fairy sword flew into the air and in my imagination years ago, Ryo woke up and it was all a dream....

part 3 is like 15 years too late...and nobody wants parts 4
 

Tiamat2san

Member
Shenmue is a part of me.
I love this franchise.
3 was a bad game.
I don’t want a fourth game if it’s the same scope and gameplay.

Even if it’s not the same type of games, I am behind the idea that the ryuga gotoku studio should develop it with Suzuki as mentor.
 

Alexios

Cores, shaders and BIOS oh my!
Good, rather forget 3 ever happened rather than see that direction/quality level continue on. Finish the story in the anime or something, or just let it be. A Sifu-like small scale action game with some story cut scenes portraying the tiny progression made would have been better than what we got in 3. Not to mention how they started it with that cave from the ending of II but made it into basically a big fat nothing and just a way to the village when Shenmue II was clearly prepping it as a huge deal, what with the supernatural shit happening at the climax of the game and its cliffhanger ending. But no, let's forget the floating swords and shit and just get to the village from this apparent passage to it as if there was no other way to get there because it's some forgotten community yet folks who didn't go through the cave (and it's one-time magical and fiery reveal set up, lol) still got there.
When a creator funds a Kickstarter on the promise of concluding an unfinished trilogy and then comes absolutely nowhere near a conclusion (and rather nakedly contrives to make it the first game in an ongoing series), I don't think you can argue it was to 'please the fans'.
So what, am I going to have to wait for the announcement of a kickstarter at the PlayStation 7 reveal at E3 2032 now?

I waited so long got closure, and they released 3 and I never even got it...
It's kinda ridiculous that they got the opportunity to make Shenmue 3, when no one expected that to happen, and wasted it with another inconclusive ending when they had no idea if they would be able to make a sequel of that. Not even saying that Shemmue 3 is extremely niche.
I mean if you knew anything about Shenmue you'd know a single crowd funded indie game would never cover the whole story left (unless it was some visual novel I guess). Nor did they ever claim it would do that. If only that was all that was wrong with the game it'd have done better & continue.
 
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Havoc2049

Member
I still need to finish Shenmue III. Made it to the second village and just stopped playing. Backed the game on Kickstarter and got the backer physical edition.
 

CamHostage

Member
When a creator funds a Kickstarter on the promise of concluding an unfinished trilogy and then comes absolutely nowhere near a conclusion (and rather nakedly contrives to make it the first game in an ongoing series), I don't think you can argue it was to 'please the fans'.

Hrmmm... It was?

You might be right, I'm not much of a Shenmue fan, but I've never heard people call it the "Shenmue Trilogy"? (If anything, fans always were told there's a dozen or more chapters of Shenmue story in Yu Suzuki's head, and with Shenmue 1 "covering" one chapter and Shenmue being about 3 chapters of the saga, there was an assumption that Shenmue had a long, long way to go...) Certainly Shenmue 3 was billed as the continuation and long-sought progress towards that ideal conclusion fans thought was never coming, that if the Kickstarter and release of Shenmue 3 was a success then that was how we'd actually get the whole series eventually somehow, but was there ever a promise that Shenmue 3 would deliver the ultimate ending?

 
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Elios83

Member
I liked Shenmue 3 for what it was, a game made for the fans of the originals with pretty much the same outdated gameplay under the coat of average modern UE4 graphics. I played it like I'd play a really old game with an emulator giving new life to the graphics and it was fine.
But Yu Suzuki made the mistake of not advancing the story considerably, something that doesn't make sense given the low chances the series has to continue.
Realistically it's a really niche product, it would need at least the budget of a mainline Yakuza game to be what fans want from it and it's just not happening.
 
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UnNamed

Banned
Shenmue(s) on Dreamcast were the peak of interactivity and life simulation. Shenmue 3 should have been another peak, not just another open world game. Suzuki should have produced the game with a big studio behind him, maybe Guerrilla for the technical part and him the core of the game. Produce the game by himself has greatly affected the product.

In any case, people who loved Shenmue 1&2 loved Shenmue 3. It wasn't a game meant for everybody.
 

lachesis

Member
Well, at this point - if it happens happens. I did my due by backing the project ($300 tier), and with no regret.
There are a lot of things in life that never gets closure, and such is life. It is what it is.
 

Brigandier

Member
Shenmue(s) on Dreamcast were the peak of interactivity and life simulation. Shenmue 3 should have been another peak, not just another open world game. Suzuki should have produced the game with a big studio behind him, maybe Guerrilla for the technical part and him the core of the game. Produce the game by himself has greatly affected the product.

In any case, people who loved Shenmue 1&2 loved Shenmue 3. It wasn't a game meant for everybody.
Shenmue 1 and 2 were my favorite games of all time especially 2.

I fucking hate Shenmue 3 it's an insult to fans, KS backers and doesn't appeal to new players in the slightest.

Crap non progressive story, shit characters, awful combat system.... Joke game that tarnished the series.
 
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