• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Yu Suzuki talks about changes he would like to make in Shenmue 4

Kazza

Member
There was a very interesting interview published earlier this week by IGN Japan.

Some interesting points:
- he estimated the end budget of Shenmue 3 at around $20m (not clear if this is just for development, or marketing etc too)
- says he made Shenmue 3 strictly for the fans, but would like to make changes to make 4 more attractive to a wider audience
- is confident about being able to make 4
- thinks that a smaller and more detailed open world design is more interesting (he's especially interesting in designing "confined areas" from a technical point of view)
- wants more in depth side stories and back stories in 4
- says that Shenmue 3 represented a new beginning, and that 4 could build on that, as Virtua Fighter 2 did with Virtua Fighter 1
- would like to add throws to 4

dsc-9538_u1q3.jpg


Here are some choice quotes I picked out, but the full translated interview is well worth reading for Shenmue fans:


YS: With Shenmue III, I really created it for the fans, but if there’s an opportunity to make a Shenmue IV – which I think there will be – I know what needs to be done in order to satisfy casual gamers, so I’d like to create a game that will also make them happy.

EK: Specifically, what kind of things do you plan to improve?

YS: All sorts of things, such as adding quest markers, enriching the fast travel and time skip functions, and streamlining the user interface. I’d like to deliver a smoother experience for those people who wish to advance rapidly through the story. If it has the same amount of content as Shenmue III, then you’ll be able to move through it about 1.5 times as quickly.

YS: With Shenmue III, I really responded from my heart to the voice of the fans. So I wasn’t especially aiming to make great profits. However, to stay in business, next time we have to think about making a product that will sell. But the best way to go about it… well, that’s something we’ve been having numerous deep discussions about.

YS: I’m a technologist, so I want to try my hand at doing new things, even if they aren’t flashy. For example, making movement within a narrow space smoother than games to date. Narrow places actually feel more immersive, but narrow paths can cause various problems such as getting stuck, so the paths in games are always wide, right? I don’t think any developer has yet achieved smooth movement or exploration within narrow areas.

YS: Being a technologist, I want to be able to move through narrow places more smoothly than other games, or display lots of characters at the same time and have people say “This is technology!” [laughs] My constant goal is to create something where technology and sense coexist.

YS: When it comes to the story, rather than creating a great expectation for the main story, I would say it’s more something that grows more interesting with each chapter, in a similar way as with Tora-san [referring to the famous long-running Japanese movie series “It’s Tough Being a Man”]. In Shenmue IV, I want to make the side quests more in-depth. Through side quests, the relationships of the townsfolk will be portrayed more deeply… that’s something that’s quite Shenmue-like, wouldn’t you say?

YS: Having said that, it will definitely grow better. As a creator, naturally there’s no way I could make my ideal game right at the very start. With Virtua Fighter, I created 1 which led to 2, and then on to 3. I couldn’t have suddenly produced Virtua Fighter 5 right off the bat. Shenmue III was also a new start, so of course if Shenmue IV comes to be, I think it will improve upon Shenmue III in lots of ways.
 

Geki-D

Banned
He's really going to have to work hard to turn around what Shenmue 3 did. The game was just terrible in every way possible, from gameplay to writing, to mechanics. I really don't know what they were thinking with that hunger system, or establishing the trope of everyone who is super good at martial arts can block everything, then using that trope a million times.
 
Last edited:
Unless Yu gets a budget of $40 million and a team of over 200 people, don't bother. Despite what people said of how they don't care if it used old gfx, was done on the cheap 'They just wanted Shenmue III'.
Shenmue was always about world-leading graphics and insane levels of detail.
 

Geki-D

Banned
Is the new game going to be financed by Epic? Because otherwise good luck getting the same amount of cash from the fans again.
Yeah. I won't be backing this time and I imagine there would be a lot of other people who would be more hesitant, too.

Shenmue was always about world-leading graphics and insane levels of detail.
I don't really agree. For all the beef I have with S3, visuals aren't one of them. Sure, I could nitpick, but the game looks perfectly fine. My issue is with mechanics and writing and honestly, I think that if the game did use the same engine as the older ones just with high rez textures, people would have loved the nostalgic look. Kind of like of like how so many people like newly released 32 bit games.
 
Last edited:

phil_t98

#SonyToo
The third was always gonna be a let down. People waited to long for it and the hype was in overdrive after all those years of waiting. Gaming had moved on to more complex story telling and how to tell it. I loved the first two but the third was not good enough by today’s standards
 
As someone who wants to see the end I don’t mind if it is low budget. I really doubt anyone will take a big risk on an already established failure. This should just be for the fans because I highly doubt they could make it into something for a larger audience with it being half way through the story.

The advantage ff7 has over this is that they will get the sales and numbers to justify further instalments.
 
When you got games like Yakuza next to you, unless you have 100 mil budget, your game will look and feel like shit. Its not the graphics as much as the guy is obviously stuck in some past glory days of his where he was making all the decisions and he was the big boss. But now, he is an old fart modern culture couldnt care less about and he should listen to the rising talent he has working for him for ideas rather than him thinking something that worked in 1999 i gonna be cool in 2020.
 

Geki-D

Banned
But now, he is an old fart modern culture couldnt care less about and he should listen to the rising talent he has working for him for ideas rather than him thinking something that worked in 1999 i gonna be cool in 2020.
I dunno, man. That dumb hunger system feels like an attempt to implement a modern day mechanic gone horribly wrong. The whole gotta eat or you die (or nearly) is something that's arose in games very recently with the sandbox survival genre. The new Yakuza games also play with hunger though it's actually well implemented in those games because not eating doesn't turn you into a one hit wonder for the next fight. I don't know the background, honestly; maybe it's something Yu always wanted to do, but I get the feeling if he was just going off old school game design he would have left that out.

Ultimately I think the fans just wanted more classic Shenmue so updating his knowledge on mechanics isn't really the issue. Hell, I think people would have prefered if he lifted everything from the old games, it would have meant a combat system that wasn't an utter mess. The game can be as slow paced as it was back in the day, but man, the writing needs to be up scratch to keep people interested, but it wasn't. The plot was terrible, boring and all round felt pointless. Add to the an utter mess of bad mechanics and the game just falls apart.
 
Last edited:

Naibel

Member
Shenmue 3 ended up being OK, which is actually more than I expected. It got that very special Shenmue charm that nobody but the hardcore fans can enjoy.

The early hours of it were magical though, it's like meeting an old friend you haven't seen in years, and the setting was gorgeous. The second part was not as good though.

I like his ideas about an eventual next entry. He seems to have acknowledged the shortcomings of SH 3. But with all the budget constraints he's going to have, and with next-gen going to ramp up the dev costs once more, he shouldn't try to get too ambitious. I mean, holy shit Shenmue 3 cost $20 million to make and it was far from AAA.

If he wants SH4 to happen, he needs to rely less on fans (who will back him less this time around) and more on deals with distributors. I want Sega to step in, but if only Epic is willing to take the risk then welp, time to install the Epic launcher on my PC.

EDIT : Also, trying to attract a broad new audience with what could be the final entry of a long-lasting series is a weird goal. Those people will have a lot a catching up to do plot-wise.
 
Last edited:
As someone who wants to see the end I don’t mind if it is low budget. I really doubt anyone will take a big risk on an already established failure. This should just be for the fans because I highly doubt they could make it into something for a larger audience with it being half way through the story.

The advantage ff7 has over this is that they will get the sales and numbers to justify further instalments.
Write your own ending. It can't be any worse than what Yu would vomit out.
 

Miles708

Member
It will interesting to see how and who will fund this, kickstarter won't work without the surprise-effect, and the budget would be too small anyway.

Shenmue 3 was cool and, actually, great at times. The slow pace, the dialogues with Shenhua, the details of the village, the dialogue system (can we talk about how every guy dynamically talk and point you in the right direction, without any quest marks?) are all in the right places.

The damn combat, though, and most of the story in the 2nd city, were a letdown (I actually liked the ending). In particular, it's clear that they added the second area without having enough story events to fill it (some events took place in the village in the pre-release footage), that's what happens when your budget changes during development.

So yes, I want Shenmue 4. And yes, I want a real publisher to take care of it, with an actual budget.
The best thing would be Sega carring on the project, but that would actually be a good thing, so of course they won't do it.
 
Last edited:

Kazza

Member
With the way he is speaking here, I don't think he is considering Kickstarter for number 4, I think he is looking for (and maybe already has) funding from an actual publisher (maybe Deep Silver and Epic again). You can tell that he is looking forward to having a little more freedom, after feeling duty-bound to stick closely to the old formula to please the old fans. I don't think it is in his nature to be so conservative.

Both the user and reviewer metacritic score are in the 70s, so those saying that Shenmue 3 was this awful game are re-writing the history for their own agenda (anti-Epic, in most cases). I hope that 4 does get greenlit, it will be interesting to see what else he adds to the 3 engine (although I hope he doesn't go crazy with side-quest markers - I prefer the Shenmue approach, leave that shit to Assassins Creed ect)
 
Last edited:

Great Hair

Banned
NO FOKIN OPEN WORLD SHITE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2º Shenmue 4 has to be like Shenmue 1, "open world maps with corridors" u know a la Dark Souls "interconnected world" like Shenmue 1 was
3º COPY Shenmue 1, make it look better, change the people, add more districts, add Tokyo, add yakuzas ... add a taxi game, food delivery on a moped game etc.

Shenmue 3 should have been a coming back home story, back to Japan, back to meeting hotdog man WITH pristine gfx. Instead we got a shitty ripoff made in China, with fugly characters, a never ending grind, shitty visuals, open world to drag it even longer, a shitty ending even worse than Zelda BOTW ... like a master chef leaving the food in the oven for 20 years, it was crap from start to finish.

WHAT an ending ... #lol. This guy must be pissed AF!
6wkYejs.gif
 

rubhen925

Member
Here's something that might help. An actual plot that has progression longer than 15 mins. Instead of 20 hours of filler with 15 mins of spaced in plot.

Shenmue 3 was pretty much blue balls when it comes to the story. If they want my money for the future game they need make some effort with the story.
 

Tiamat2san

Member
Huge fan of the series but the third instalment disappointed me so much.
I’ ll make a second play through some day.
I haven’t even try the dlc.

And I still haven’t received my T-shirt...
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
When you got games like Yakuza next to you, unless you have 100 mil budget, your game will look and feel like shit. Its not the graphics as much as the guy is obviously stuck in some past glory days of his where he was making all the decisions and he was the big boss. But now, he is an old fart modern culture couldnt care less about and he should listen to the rising talent he has working for him for ideas rather than him thinking something that worked in 1999 i gonna be cool in 2020.

Shenmue didn't totally work in 1999 though. It had a small group of people who really loved it because it was so idiosyncratic and unique. If it doesn't stay that way, what's the point? Shenmue doesn't need to play like other games, nor should it.

As for him being an old fart, maybe, but his old shit plays better than virtually everything that comes out these days.
 
Last edited:

Pejo

Member
Ah, now I see. So those chicken catching segments you have to repeat...that was all for us, the fans. The simplified dumbed down combat....he did it for us guys....the non-advancement of the plot and tedious time advancement....

Suzuki absolutely scorched any goodwill I had for him with the development and release of Shenmue 3, I will never support another product by him.
 

kunonabi

Member
Adding throws and fixing the combat is definitely something that needs to happen. I had no issues with the writing aside from fighting Lan di again so soon and how rushed the city section felt. The character stuff otherwise was great.
 
He's really going to have to work hard to turn around what Shenmue 3 did. The game was just terrible in every way possible, from gameplay to writing, to mechanics. I really don't know what they were thinking with that hunger system, or establishing the trope of everyone who is super good at martial arts can block everything, then using that trope a million times.

That trope can be very good if used sparingly and effectively. The sad thing is, Shenmue 2 showed us the way on this all the way back in 2001. This scene is one of the most powerful in the series.





Everything about it just comes together perfectly: the cinematography, the music, the pacing, the dialogue, the reveal that the quiet unassuming young woman you saw at the temple is actually the master you've been looking for, the way she then effortlessly evades all your attacks. It establishes Xiuying as a badass martial arts master: calm, wise, composed, disciplined and powerful. Everything Ryo is not at this stage of his journey.

Context is important here too because at this point of the story Ryo has breezed passed pretty much every enemy he's encountered with relative ease. We're probably feeling pretty confident about tackling Lan Di at this stage. Xiuying shows us just how far we still have to go. This is in complete contrast to Shenmue 3: by this point we've already taken on the entire Yellow Head building and Dou Niu and so coming across yet another generic dull old martial arts master with a generic dull name like "Master Sun" who the game makes no effort whatsoever to make you give a shit about just feels passe. When he blocks your every attack with ease and gives it the whole "your kung fu isn't strong enough yet" it's hard not to find yourself thinking "yeah this shit's getting really fucking old now".

Watching the above scene fresh off the heels of Shenmue 3 where this trope is beaten to death, the scene loses a lot of its potency. That's probably the most egregious sin Shenmue 3 committed for me. It's lack of imagination and reuse of tropes has cheapened some of the moments that made Shenmue 2 so great.
 
Last edited:

Roronoa Zoro

Gold Member
I'm nearing the end (I think) and it's felt like the old games to me. Though I grind as early as possible so I had high endurance and now have max kung Fu level and grinded the fishing which got enough money for any food I'd need. I would like them to eliminate some of that grinding but the world's still have more personality than just about any game out there. Every corner and every person seems unique and I've loved that about every one of these games
 

Geki-D

Banned
That trope can be very good if used sparingly and effectively. The sad thing is, Shenmue 2 showed us the way on this all the way back in 2001. This scene is one of the most powerful in the series.





Everything about it just comes together perfectly: the cinematography, the music, the pacing, the dialogue, the reveal that the quiet unassuming young woman you saw at the temple is actually the master you've been looking for, the way she then effortlessly evades all your attacks. It establishes Xiuying as a badass martial arts master: calm, wise, composed, disciplined and powerful. Everything Ryo is not at this stage of his journey.

Context is important here too because at this point of the story Ryo has breezed passed pretty much every enemy he's encountered with relative ease. We're probably feeling pretty confident about tackling Lan Di at this stage. Xiuying shows us just how far we still have to go. This is in complete contrast to Shenmue 3: by this point we've already taken on the entire Yellow Head building and Dou Niu and so coming across yet another generic dull old martial arts master with a generic dull name like "Master Sun" who the game makes no effort whatsoever to make you give a shit about just feels passe. When he blocks your every attack with ease and gives it the whole "your kung fu isn't strong enough yet" it's hard not to find yourself thinking "yeah this shit's getting really fucking old now".

Watching the above scene fresh off the heels of Shenmue 3 where this trope is beaten to death, the scene loses a lot of its potency. That's probably the most egregious sin Shenmue 3 committed for me. It's lack of imagination and reuse of tropes has cheapened some of the moments that made Shenmue 2 so great.

Yeah, in a post on the OT I pointed out exactly the same thing. Shenmue 1 & 2 used it sparingly and it made sense with Shozo & Xiuying but S3 just uses it as the go to "oh look at how badass this guy is!" thing. And you're right about S3 changing the context of S2. Remember how dangerous a foe Dou Niu was? The guy was an unbeatable tank who used his strength to rule over his gang and was being considered for the Chi You Men, and Ryo had learn a whole set of new moves and abilities throughout the whole game to to beat him. ...Well in S3 Ryo randomly comes across some punkass bandit leader who is even stronger right off the bat. Nothing Ryo learned in S1 or 2 can beat this punk, but then he learns one new move in S3 and he wins. This happens again for the other random punk bandit leader in Niaowu . It's like a parody of Dragon Ball where a new more powerful villain always shows up and Goku has to get to the next transformation to beat him.

This was the post I did in the OT where I aired my grievances. There's just so much wrong with S3 that I really don't have any faither for a forth anymore.
So I finally got round to beating this. Man, that was disappointing. I can get over the dodgy gameplay, broken QTEs, no more grab in fights, the bizarre move queue in combat, the awful voice acting, the stiff animations, ridiculously slow draw in, the lack of Sega arcade games... But what I can't abide, what is totally unacceptable is how shitty the plot and writing is. Okay, bad voice work/lines I can pass on, the other games weren't masterpieces of writing but they were consistent and well put together. The story was actually good and you wanted to know what happens next. But after nearly 20 years, this lazy-ass story is what we get? Utter nonsensical, jumping around, DBZ "gotta raise my powerful" schlock.

Some of the great highlights of this 20 year in the making masterpiece:
-That magic stuff at the end of S2 (the sword)? Nah, no mention of that. It's either no longer canon or the characters just don't care.

-Ryo, after learning so much, overcoming such powerful foes in S2, comes across some random-ass thug leader who is more powerful (and by proxy is therefore stronger than everyone Ryo has beaten till that point). But don't worry guys, learning one new move get's him by it.

-Oh shit, in Niaowu there's another random-ass thug leader who is even strongerer guiz. But don't worry, learning one new move get's him by it. Again. Power level raised! I can't wait to see how Ryo will beat every other guy in the next game, maybe: Meet foe -get beat - find master - learn move- beat foe -repeat.

-Want to show how good a master martial artist is?; Just have them dodge every one of Ryo's attacks. They're so powerful Ryo can't even touch them! This happened in past games but it was once or twice per game. Now it's just the go-to "OMG they're so good!" trope and it was already old coming into S3 because of the characters who did it in S2. Master can't even be touched. How original.

-Oh no! Shenhua has been kidnapped! Gotta save her... But damn, it's late and Ryo is tired. 9PM?! That's too late to go and save someone. Okay next day, time for a calm chinwag with Ren, better go and wonder round the port looking for a boat. It'll be ready the next morning, so Shenhua has been a prisoner for 2 days now. Ah, I'm sure she's fine. In the meantime Ryo has a day to kill (despite being told that after that point you're in the end game so it could just jump to right to the castle). Time to go play some "arcade" games whilst Shenhua is locked in a cell, hope she's having as much fun as Ryo. ...Remember when Nozomi was kidnapped and Ryo went out into the dead of the night to find a way to get to the port as quickly as possible to save her? He didn't wait till morning because he needed his beauty sleep or because there were no buses, he didn't have a day to kill playing Space Harrier. Yeah, better times...

-Speaking of Nozomi, I'm glad Ryo now calls her Harasaki (in the first game he always called her Nozomi) because that way I can pretend she's a different character. Seriously, that person I got on the phone wasn't Nozomi. The voice actress in no way resembles that one from the first game but that isn't too bad, it's the way she acts that's wrong. In the first game Nozomi is meek, shy and calm, on the phone in S3 she's an excited brat. Same for Guizhang, he doesn't act like he did in the first game. These characters just got outright rewritten. I guess after nearly 20 years the devs forgot how to write these characters.

-The ending was nonsensical:
  • Niao Sun just decides to betray Lan Di? I guess? Why? Because she has the Phoenix Mirror? Ok, but Lan Di still has the Dragon, so...?
  • Who were all these monk guys we had to fight?
  • I guess all those other guys with Lan Di were the other leaders of the Chi You Men, too bad they're all bitches. That bandit guy in Bailu could beat them, apparently.
  • Lan Di just blocks everything, OMG guys, he's so powerful! Ryo can't even touch him! Where have we seen this before? You know, when so many other characters are shown to be untouchable badasses, when you have the main bad guy do the same it just isn't impressive anymore.
  • Why were the other characters there? What was the point of the shrine maiden & the fat kung fu guy being at the castle? What were they doing when Niao Sun was setting fire to the place? They're so dumb and the cutaways to them were pointless filler.
  • Lan Di standing there like a dumbass after Ren threw the fake mirror out the window was hilarious. I guess he was thinking "Oh shit, that guy just ruined all my plans in a split second". It's actually funny to think that Ryo could have at any point dropped the mirror in the ocean and Lan Di would be fucked. Seeing as Niao Sun has it now, I guess it's too late for that.
  • So we save Shenhua's father but what did we actually learn? the answer is absolutely nothing, the whole game is just a stop gap and it was so bad we can be sure we'll never see a sequel.


I was hyped for a new Shenmue but after that, I don't care for a 4th one. I don't trust the devs to make a decent game or a satisfying end to the story and I'm pretty sure the "next Shenmue coming" meme dies here. They killed it with a terrible game.

One last thing, I got the plats for both the other Shenmue games. I'm not really into trophy hunting but I thought seeing as I got them in the remasters, it would be cool to get it in S3. Then I saw the trophies.

Get all move scrolls:
giphy.gif


Split 1000 logs:
Ok-then-look-away.gif


Catch 1000 fish:
giphy.gif


Collect all herbs:
8882e3673023667f3a19eb39fa414748_w200.gif


Deal with the bullshit RNG and get all capsule toys:
giphy.gif


What a load of crap.
 

Miles708

Member
Theres no throws in Shen Mue 3?
No, the entire battle system is different from the prequels, and throws have been cut for budget/time/equipment reasons.
It's not clear if there were also some licensing issues with Sega, since the original fighting system was based on Virtua Fighter 2 (a Sega-owned IP).
 

aerts1js

Member
Yeah, sure, there’s gonna be a group that’s all “this looks like it came out in 2002 and that’s exactly what I wanted!!”... problem is, while it may be okay to you a long time fan, it’s *not* going to attract some sort of new audience to really justify another installment.

Shenmue 3 looked terrible pre and post release.
 

Kokoloko85

Member
No, the entire battle system is different from the prequels, and throws have been cut for budget/time/equipment reasons.
It's not clear if there were also some licensing issues with Sega, since the original fighting system was based on Virtua Fighter 2 (a Sega-owned IP).

Shame. I love the original fighting system for what it was
 

Hostile_18

Banned
I'd still buy it but I must admit 3 wasnt that great a game. Certainly not bad though.

It just needs quality of life improvements and story that moves at a pace. No more finding people 🙈
 
Gamefaqs at its best;

"He should not make S4"
"People still want S4"

Give US FANS a break and leave the thread, the game does not mean nothing to you, why post shit ?

C'mon guys, let's grow up a bit.
 
Last edited:

Komatsu

Member
Yu Suzuki just recently gave an interview to IGN Japan. I ran it through a machine translator as there are many interesting points, but got too lazy to fine tune the results. It still is a pretty interesting read, particularly when he expounds on his hopes for Shenmue IV.

IGN JAPAN said:
Source: IGN JAPAN

50SRBZL.jpg


Suzuki: In the first place, the reason why I decided to make "Shenmu III" was because it was a novel, a manga, and I wanted to tell the story of the story.

Krabbe (Journalist/Author/Interviewer) "I think was true. I was also one of them."

Suzuki : If there are people who think so strongly, I conclude that "Shenmu III" should be a little rather than nothing. "Shenmu Chapter 1 Yokosuka" and I thought that the volume would be much lower than that of "Shenmu II", but some people said that the story alone would be sufficient. "

Kurabe "So, I decided to do it with Kickstarter."

Suzuki: If you don't reach $ 2 million, the project won't start, but if you exceed it, you'll have to take responsibility and you'll have to make it. However, in the end, I found various partners, changed the plan many times, and thought that I could make it a little better, I continued to make it. Now, 0 has increased by 1 (laughs). "

Krabe: “One more zero means it's 10 times bigger than we originally expected.”

Suzuki: Yeah. As a result, considering that we were able to create a full-spec "Shenmu", I thought I did what I did. "

Krabe "No regrets"

Suzuki : I think there is a word that if you just do it, you will not regret it, but it's close to that. Although it may be losing in comparison with other AAA titles, I did my best to do it.

Kurabe "Surely, there were some unwavering evaluations compared to the open world these days, centered on overseas reviews."

Suzuki: "Shenmu III was completely different from the latest trends, and I thought that people who were used to playing recent games would be quite dissatisfied with it. It's inevitable because I made it for the fans who supported me, and I'm really happy with it because the fans' satisfaction is extremely high. So, next time, I will spend time and money on the demand of casual users, but I was doing my best to make "Shenmu III" for fans. "

Kurabe: "It's a title that really continued from that emotion 18 years ago, and inherited the characteristics of" Shenmu "regardless of recent trends. As a fan, it was exactly what she was looking for. Yo "

Suzuki: This time, I made it really for my fans, but if I had the opportunity to make "Shenmu IV" -I think there is-I know how to satisfy casual users, so that person We want to make it a work that makes us happy. ''

Kurabe “What exactly are you planning to improve?”

Suzuki : There are various things, such as adding quest markers, enhancing fast travel and skipping time functions, and making the user interface easier to understand. We would like to deliver a smoother experience to those who want to progress steadily around the story. If the volume is the same as that of "Shenmu III," we will be able to proceed at about 1.5 times the speed. "

Kurabe "At the same time, is it like maintaining the" Shen Mu "character?"

Suzuki: Yeah ... from those who have fought in racing cars with gears and clutches, it's true that all cars are automatic and have no gear change techniques, but if it's a semi-automatic one can use either one. ? "

Kurabe "Oh, right."

Suzuki: If I make it, I think that even if I make various changes, it will eventually become "Shenmu". I suppose ... I changed "3" variously, but it became "Shenmu" properly? "

Klavet "Yes, it was definitely Shenmue."

Suzuki: In "Shenmu III," I really responded to the fans' voices, so I'm not thinking about making any money. But since I'm running a company, I have to think about what can sell if I continue. I've been seriously talking over and over again. ”

Kurabe "That is the kind of improvement that I mentioned earlier."

Suzuki: From a business perspective, it's better to understand how people who don't know "Shenmu" looked at "Shenmu III." So, after analyzing the complaints of new users I guess it's something like "Is this kind of thing?" And take it sincerely, but it hurts (laughs) Since I'm also a profession in making games, how much "Shenmu" deviated from the current trends , What should I improve, what should I do next to play this type of game, what is old when it is said to be old, just feel old, or is it really old? I want to make it clear. ''

Kurabe “I don't think Yuu usually plays games. Do you research other companies' titles for comparison?”

Suzuki "I did a lot of research and research. There are many inconvenient systems in" Shenmu ", but there are some things to learn even if they do not become" Shenmu "as they are."

Kurabe "For example, what is the element you want to incorporate in the form of" Shenmu "?"

Suzuki: The quest marker can be used to identify the main quest and subquests, where you can exchange money, or where you can battle. I want to make it a system. ''

Klabe "In fact, in recent games I often just pursue the quest marker without looking at the field."

Suzuki: After that, in order to be able to skip the time more freely, it is possible to sit on a bench in the city and wait until it sits so that the time can be advanced. ”

Klavet "Oh, that's good. I think it's just two birds with one stone, because many fans say," I want you to be able to sit down. "

Suzuki : I don't want to give up on which one, I want to cover both. I can see how I can improve it, so I can incorporate the taste of the "Shenmu" series without breaking it. "

Kurabe "I've talked about new user complaints so far, but what else did the fans want and what would you like to do next?"

Suzuki: Everyone says they don't have a throwing technique, so I'll put a throwing technique next (laughs).

Kurabe "Oh, is that true! I'm happy."

Suzuki "I take all user comments once. I want to completely update the facial animation."

Kurabe "Oh, it was said that the character's facial expression was stiff."

A different open world

Suzuki: Also, if there aren't many people, it doesn't look like China, so I'd like to increase the number of characters walking around the city at the same time. "

Kurabe: "Oh, 4x !? I think the bird dance had an unprecedented density. But, somehow, it's an idea like" Shenmu ". Instead of widening it, make it more dense." To go"

Suzuki : I think there is an image that the open world is a magic word and all the gorgeous games are heading towards that, due to the current fashion of games, but then it will be difficult to differentiate in the open world Isn't it interesting that the closed space is interesting instead of sticking to the open world? ”

Klavet "A closed space ... I remember the part of a phantom ship before going to Hong Kong."

Suzuki: I'm an engineer, so I'd like to try something new even if it's sober. For example, moving in a narrow space will be smoother than in previous games. There are always a lot of problems, and there are various problems, so I think that the width of the game is always wide. I think that no studio can move and explore smoothly in a narrow area. ”

Klabe “Sure, there may not be many games like exploring a narrow alley, even if it's used at an event.”

Suzuki "I made" Shenmu III "for my fans, but next time I want to do something new."

Kurabe : That's right. I also want to do new things. That's why I think I'm Yu-san, so I'm really looking forward to that part. ”

Suzuki: After all, I'm an engineer, so I'd like to be able to move in a narrow place without stress than any other game, and have many characters at the same time, so I'd like to say, "This is technology!" I want to make things that are compatible with each other. ''

Kurabe "But it's difficult to create such an innovative technology if you have a limited budget. I wonder if that will always be a problem in this industry."

Suzuki "I have the technology to buy with money, but I don't think I'm proud of that."

Kurabe: "If you have a good idea and skill, you can still make innovative things ... I'm really looking forward to seeing what new things Yu will show next. But as a fan of the series, I am also interested in the continuation of the story.''

Suzuki: Regarding the story, rather than expecting the main story so much, it's an image that makes you entertain one episode at a time, like Tora-san ("Man is hard"). I want to make it thicker. The sub-quest makes the relationship between people in the city thicker.

Kurabe "Surely, the presence of the people who live there is a very important factor in" Shenmu. "

Suzuki: Of course, as for the main story, I want to understand more and more about the back story, for example I want to understand what kind of person Len's upbringing and Len are like, and I will also solve the mysteries I have made so far.

Kurabe "I'm really looking forward to character depiction. There aren't many other games where you can spend a lot of time talking with Aihana, like Disc 4 of" Shenmu II "and Shirakamura of" Shenmu III. " , You can really see the inside of the character, but it's tough because you have to write the back story and move the story forward. ”

Suzuki: "What do you want? If I approach" Shenmu Ichisho Yokosuka "with the aim of achieving the same degree of perfection, I think that in" Shenmu III "all budgets are devoted exclusively to Shirakamura."

Kurabe "But at that pace, it doesn't quite complete."

Suzuki : Wouldn't it be nice if I could write a novel if it was a novel? If it was a movie, I would just add an image. "

Kurabe : That's right. Even if you get hints from conversation, one scene is good for novels and movies, but if you do poorly with "Shenmu", there are about 100 patterns. "

Suzuki : It's hard to make any hit, whether it's a novel, a movie, or a game. That's true, but if you just make it, the game will be overwhelmingly hard (laughs).

Krabe "I think it's not a couple of times."

Suzuki: Still, it will definitely improve. As a creator, of course, I couldn't make the ideal game from the beginning, and "Virtua Fighter" had "1" and "2". I made it with the flow of "3", and I can't do "Virtua Fighter 5" right from the beginning.Since "Shenmu III" was a new start, naturally "Shenmu IV" With that, I think it will be better in many ways than "Shenmu III".

Krabe: "There may be some drawbacks, but I think" Shenmu III "was a fairly complete game as a start."

Suzuki "I think there are a lot of unfinished good points."

Kurabe "Oh, I really understand."

Suzuki: In an extreme case, for example, an Italian car is prone to breakdowns, but when you're in good shape, there's no car that feels so good. There are some drawbacks, but the appeal is better. I have to fix it. For example, in battle, I want to throw in, improve operability, make it smooth, and put out something that is definitely better. ”

Kurabe "Are there any new battle systems you would like to implement?"

Suzuki: "Shenmu III" made it possible to enjoy collecting a lot of technical books, but next time I would like to devise a way to enjoy one technique more deeply. "

Kurabe "I personally feel that when there is an event to teach a technique, the technique has a narrative effect, and it seems to be very" Shenmu "."

Technique transfer in "Shenmu II".
Suzuki : It's hard to make (laughs). I think I did more than planned in "Shenmu III". At first, my grandchildren's technical training was in a dead state, so I will do my best to add it. It's hard for me (laughs). There is an ideal idea of what the game should be, but it depends on the staff and budget at that time. "

Not only "Shen Mu" Hiroshi Suzuki

Kurabe "In that sense, I've been working on" Shenmu III "for a long time, so I think YSNET has grown significantly as a studio, and the things that can be done have increased significantly." Other than that, why don't you want to make various things? ”

Suzuki : If you say you don't want to make it, you'll be lying (laughs). There is a thing in your life that you should always do "Shenmu" as a single bullshit, and of course I want to continue towards the end of the series. As long as there is a word that I want you to make "Shenmu", I continue to make it, as I said before. "

Kurabe "Good"

Suzuki "But I've always made different things since the days of SEGA, drive and cancer."

Kurabe "Yes, I still want to make something new. I think it's difficult to speak at this stage. What is it like?"

Suzuki "There are various things. From race to fighting, from fantasy to science fiction."

Kurabe "Is it fantasy or science fiction? The impression that Yu-san has made many real games is a bit surprising."

Suzuki "I used to be called" Virtua Fighter "Yutaka Suzuki, and I think the image of" Shenmu "is strong now, but I have made various games."

Kurabe "As a fan of" Shenmu, "I feel like playing" IV "anyway, but I also want to see Yu's other FREE games. I've been making it for arcade all the time, so I'd like to see a game based on Yuu-san's various stories and worldviews. ''

Suzuki "I would like to make that kind of thing, and if I could make a title that could support esports or a title that could be distributed in an episode format."

Kurabe "I'm looking forward to the future of YSNET as a developer who is also at the cutting edge of the game industry, incorporating the latest trends."

Suzuki: Of course, I will continue to make "Shenmu" as long as there are fans' voices. But it may be a matter of ratio, but the fans who have been waiting for 20 years have released "Shenmu III" to some extent. I wish I could be satisfied and reduce the number of voices asking me to make "Shenmu IV" (laughs). "

Kurabe "Please don't worry about that. I'll keep making noise until the story is complete (laughs)."
 
Last edited:

Bakkus

Member
Judging by the response to 3 this guy seems to be little more than a manipulative scam artist akin to Inafune. Especially these days.

Bring on the rage, I guess
 

Dick Jones

Gold Member
IGN Japan is a thing?
Until IGN Japan come out with too much water reviews there is a need for it. I only copped there were a few IGN when Death Stranding came out. The US gave it a lower score than the other versions (Japan and Italy were the ones I remembered), I assumed until then that there were just websites of different languages translated not independent reviewers. Good thing too as not everything that works for US consumers will work for other nations or vice versa.
 

nush

Gold Member
Good thing too as not everything that works for US consumers will work for other nations or vice versa.

It's true and something that has really been lost as the internet has Americanized a lot of game reviews to just one opinion that's correct. Back in the day when I first found American import magazines in the UK (Gamepro and EGM) I was suprised at how some of the reviews widely differed from the opinions of the British magazines at the time. Cultural perspectives are very important to take into account.
 

Enjay

Banned
Judging by the response to 3 this guy seems to be little more than a manipulative scam artist akin to Inafune. Especially these days.

Bring on the rage, I guess
Bigger than Inafune. This guy asked for 4 million from fans, was given 6 million by them, went and got a few million more from both deep silver and epic and still delivered a shit low budget game.
 
Top Bottom