Training is all about timing, reaction,
and dexterity. One challenging minigame
called Horse Stance involves Ryo holding
himself in an uncomfortable-looking
position, which you have to keep him in by
rhythmically tapping a button. Fail to hold
the pose and you’ll have to try again, but
maintaining it will increase your
Endurance stat. Alternatively, if you want
to increase your Attack Power, there’s the
one-inch punch minigame, based on the
move popularised by Bruce Lee. This
involves hitting a dummy in time with an
on-screen prompt, and the window to
strike gets narrower with each hit.
But if you want something a little more
dangerous than wooden training
dummies, you can practice your martial
arts against real people. A local dojo will
offer up students to spar with, or you can
visit the Rose Garden. Located on the
grounds of a beautiful, ornate temple, this
is a fighting club where you can pay to
battle increasingly skilled opponents. If
you can defeat them, not only will you get
a much bigger boost to your stats, but
you’ll earn some decent cash too. This is
an optional activity, but one that’ll be
worth dedicating time to.
There are some light RPG elements in
Shenmue III too. Ryo’s Endurance stat
extends to running in the world, and his
stamina will drain as you sprint around. To
restore it you can buy food from
convenience stores, and munching some
chow before an important battle will
become a part of your routine. While you
could train and develop moves in the
original games, there was no clear
feedback that you were improving. But
here Ryo’s growth is clearly conveyed
through progression meters, making it
much more satisfying.
Ryo himself is the same as ever –
sullen, oblivious, and prone to asking
bizarre questions. For Suzuki it was
important to retain this aspect of his
personality, because fans love it. But he
also promises that Ryo will grow as a
character in III. The futility of his quest for
revenge is a big part of the first two
games. People are forever telling him what
a stupid idea following Lan Di is, which he
brushes off. But hopefully, in this game,
some of that will finally get through to him.Oh, and fans will be glad to know that
Corey Marshall, the voice of Ryo in the
English dub, is returning – not to mention
composer Ryuji Iuchi, scriptwriter
Masahiro Yoshimoto, and character
designer Kenji Miyawaki. Suzuki has also
hired architect Manabu Takimoto to
ensure the various buildings in the game
are authentic, something he did in the first
two games, which resulted in a grounded
and convincing setting. It’s clear a lot of
love is being poured into Shenmue III, and
it’s great to see so many key members of
the original development team coming
back to finish the job.
I’m also encouraged by the fact that
Suzuki says Shenmue III will feel like a
Shenmue game, and that he’s resisting
the influence of modern open world
games. The camera controls have been
tweaked, but otherwise this will control
the same as the first two games. You can
still switch to a first-person camera and
look around, and you can still interact with
drawers and cupboards to find hidden
items. Fan favourite features including
QTEs, arcades with playable games, and
the all-important capsule toy machines
arealsomakingacomeback.NewgrouNd
This stuff will conjure up warm, fuzzy
memories for fans, but I’m convinced
Shenmue III doesn’t just exist to milk
nostalgia. The deeper combat, RPG
elements and Affinity system are
examples of Suzuki pushing things
forward, and I’m sure there are more new
systems waiting to be revealed. It’s been
confirmed that Ryo will be able to, as
before, get a job and earn money, but
developer Ys Net is keeping the details of
that aspect of the game close to its chest.
I have my fingers crossed for the forklift
trucks to return, but I can take or leave
that crate-shifting minigame from II.
At this point it’s too early to say
whether Shenmue III will live up to the
previous two games. But if it’s half as
weird, heartfelt and stupidly detailed, I’ll
be happy. I never thought I’d see the day
Ryo Hazuki’s story would be continued,
let alone 20 years later, so that alone is
worth celebrating. Suzuki clearly has a
fondness for Shenmue, and it’s evident in
the way he talks about this new game that
he really cares about making a worthy
sequel. It isn’t out till August, which is the
perfect excuse to play (or replay)
Shenmue I and II. The superb remaster
collection released for PC last year.
Andy Kellycoreymarshall,The
voiceofryoinTheenGlish
dub, is reTurninGShenmueIII
pREviEW
Ryo meets with the
mysterious Shenhua.