From what I've heard, shorter kickstarters create a sense of pressure on the buyers because it gives them a sense of urgency, making them feel like they have to donate asap.
That said, they certainly should have made an announcement that the kickstarter was coming, before they actually started it. Something like "we're gonna have a kickstarter for Shenmue 3 next month" would have given people more time to prepare, maybe put some money aside to make bigger donations... I still haven't donated yet, but I doubt I'll be able to afford more than the 175$ reward. But if I had known in advance, I would certainly have saved up 500$ or more for it.
I suspect people here set aside money for shenmue like most parents set aside money for their childrens college

Feminism is the desire to have equal rights in women. Feminists got laws passed that allowed women to vote, join the military, and not get discriminated in the work place. Feminism was needed to change stuff like this:

http://www.fanboy.com/archive-images/sexist-disney-rejection02.jpg

Today, women legally have the same rights as men. I do not think feminism is needed at all anymore. Almost all feminists today are not feminists at all, they just want a matriarchal society that ignores the rights of men. They complain about women not being in prestigious male dominated professions, such as engineering, but say women shouldn't work in the "degrading" male dominated professions such as garbage collectors and janitors. Leave those shitty jobs to the men. They want to be able to sleep with whoever they want, but want to be able to go to court and punish a man if she rejects having sex with him at any point (seriously how is this an actual thing?). They want to be able to get a man to impregnate them and keep him as an ATM, while leeching more money off the government. These modern feminists are women who refuse to grow up and accept the fact that bad things happen to them.

I do agree that there are shitty people who treat women differently because they are women. However, legally there is no need for feminists. There are also shitty people who treat black people different just because of their skin color, but legally racism is not a problem. I know this first hand because I am black and been to some extremely racist parts of the US. Did I go online and complain that some idiots wanted to hurt my feelings and tried to get laws passed to prevent people from trying to hurt my feelings? No, I just dismissed them as idiots and went along with my day. If I felt physically threatened, I would just maybe, you know, avoid racist fucks? I have been catcalled by women in the past as well and I do agree that it is extremely awkward, perhaps a bit degrading but jesus christ, just deal with it. At the end of the day, these things do not affect you (well, unless it is persistent, but at that point it falls into harassment which again, you can fix with the help of the cops, be sure to collect evidence) Grow a thicker skin, women. You have equal rights now, and are able to experience the world in its full, shitty glory. Stop acting like children and put on your big girl pants. If someone physically harms you, or rejects you for a job because of your sex, then take that to court.

Lan Di: Do you remember this carrot?

Iwao: Carrot?

Lan Di: This is the carrot you used to kill Sun Ming Zhao!

Iwao: It can't be... that carrot!!

Lan Di: Get up, I'm going to stick this carrot where the sun don't shine!

Iwao: Forgive me.. for making you.. eat..

Ryo: Wha.. what are you saying?! Father!

Iwao: Your carrots... keep carrots... those you eat.... away from your bum.

Anyone who likes Skyward Sword has a serious case of shit taste.

^ Agreed (and love the Sonata Arctica avatar, BTW!).

JSRF was no JSR, but it was solid. VF5, VT3 were also both super solid.

JSRF was in every way better than JSR.. more precise and much more fluid controls and gameplay, an equally as good, if not better soundtrack, better optics, better stages, better bossfights, better everything. All in all simply a better game than its predecessor. Did you play the hd version of JSR? it's still good, but the controls haven't aged all too well. I would imagine a remastered JSRF to fare much better there.

VF5 also was more than super solid I think, but I'm not really an expert there.


Other than that, yeah, Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed were awesome for their fan service, and super solid gameplaywise :)

Concerning the thumbs up to sega, the 2015 sega, - just no. It's great they gave yu the license and all, but no. Fuck them.
Future is literally just a dumbed down version of the original with an inferior soundtrack, inferior art style and levels far too big so you just end up wandering around for 90% of the game.

JSRF was no JSR, but it was solid. VF5, VT3 were also both super solid.

JSRF was in every way better than JSR.. more precise and much more fluid controls and gameplay, an equally as good, if not better soundtrack, better optics, better stages, better bossfights, better everything. All in all simply a better game than its predecessor. Did you play the hd version of JSR? it's still good, but the controls haven't aged all too well. I would imagine a remastered JSRF to fare much better there.

JSR is the same game it ever was. How many times have you played JSRF? Once? Twice? I've beaten it once, loved it, never went back. How many times have I beaten JSR? One time I beat it three times in one day. I've lost count at this point. JSR is a much better designed, much better sounding, much better playing game than Future. I love Future, but it requires the game skill of a child. JSR is a much more refined game that requires much more from the player in the way of thinking, adjusting to mechanics, planning, trial and error. It has tension, requires skill, and is just generally more fun than Future. I love Future, but it took everything good about JSR and made it more boring.

Also, the people who say "JSR's controls haven't aged well" are usually people who suck at JSR, no offense. It has always had a learning curve. Which is much more than I can say for JSRF, which has no learning curve at all.

They've made about $35k today with no new tiers and America has barely woken up. Is that bad?

http://i.imgur.com/PZDaNhg.jpg

Hey everyone, my brother and I decided to contribute $20,000 for the making of Shenmue III. We spent many hours thinking about whether this is a good or bad decision. We spent $10,000 in 2012 to get our school off the ground and that went a long way. Because of our initial $10,000 pledge, the school received an amazing amount of attention in China, social media and gaming websites. I'll reiterate, We are not wealthy! This was a hard decision. We could have given $20,000 directly to building the school and it's programs but we feel that this pledge will lead to more exposure and support than what we could do through other mediums.

For those who don't know our school yet. We are called The "V.E.T. Program" (Volunteer English Teacher). You can find us on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/VolunteerEnglishTeacher?fref=ts&ref=br_tf We teach children and young adults English to help in their educational and career pursuits. Many of these kids come from small villages in the Guilin area and may not have an opportunity to learn elsewhere. You can go to the "about" section on the Facebook page to learn more.

We really need help in reaching our goals. We would love for you to like us on Facebook. We will eventually look outside ourselves and setup a way for donations to be made but we didn't want to distract from the Kick Starter or be overbearing donation hunters.

We decided to make the second $10,000 pledge a character in the game. We don't want to be a character attacking Ryo though. We are going to try and ask Yu Suzuki to let us have one of our Volunteer Chinese teaching assistants be a character in one of the villages. They deserve to be recognized for their hard work. They are volunteers and many of them come from poor rice farms.

We are also hoping that since we will be listed in the credits as a special sponsor that it can have our school with a logo and a website rather than our names.

I don't think any of this would be asking too much. I think it would help get attention to the school. We would love any assistance in helping us achieve this. We also would love to have Yu Suzuki come to the school some day but we won't don't want to be greedy.

Please, help our little school!
http://i.imgur.com/GS7Iwrq.jpg

I made what some might call a radical (or radically ridiculous) proposition to the GameFAQs Shenmue III board, before some flighty young thing apparently deemed my idea to be too much for their little sensitive heart to handle. As such, it was wiped off the board before anyone really replied. So here I am, hoping the heart of the community is not so strict as to demand this proposal's immediate removal. If there's any chance of someone seeing this and being inspired to do something in the same vein, that could change the course of Shenmue's fate, I must exhaust that possibility.

Let me stress that while I am being tongue-in-cheek, it's only in part. You can't tell me this is COMPLETELY inconceivable; I'm not suggesting mass suicide or some stunt of superhuman ability. At the end of the day, what I propose is among the most simple and harmless of human acts -- it's part of life. If I need to superficially censor this with the spoilers tag, then I'll certainly comply. Although I hardly think it's necessary, and I imagine we're all adults here.

Now, without further ado...

What about flash mob public masturbation?
With 50k backers, I'd imagine we could round up at least a hundred Shenmue fans worldwide who'd be willing to spend the night in jail or take the record so as to make Shenmue III the best game it can be. I'm sure there's plenty of weirdo Europeans who'd be willing to join that aren't even Shenmue fans. "Public masturbation? Bellissimo!" We may even be able to go higher than a hundred.

Think about it: 100+ people in jeans, brown leather jackets, and wearing short, spiky Ryo-esque wigs/do's, carrying placards reading "SHENMUE YSNET" (ensuring even the most lazy Google search gets them you know where), periodically stopping to ask pedestrians, "Have you seen any sailors?" Then when the collective reaches a designated wide-open area, they make themselves wide-open — men and women alike ditching their jeans and setting themselves to furious self-pleasure, perhaps punctuated by cries of ecstasy exclaiming, "SHEEENNMUUUUEEE!!!" No one actually gets hurt, right? And yet it's over-the-top, completely ridiculous and sensational. The method of "demonstration" is so universal, I bet it'd even be reported internationally.

But I think it would have to take place in America at least, for it to get national coverage here (typical). So I was thinking, say, the Capitol Lawn? Times Square? Ellis Island occurred to me, but then you'd probably get PC ****-slingers talking about disrespect in a way you might not elsewhere. So I don't know, but I'd imagine TImes Square is very doable, and visible indeed.

In any event, I can see this working. Imagine even garnering support from open-minded arresting officers; as they drive the Ryo-Strokers/finger-blasters downtown or write up their paperwork, they have the situation explained to them and they throw in some pledges. I've heard $6 million mentioned as an ideal/reasonable minimum, and even that looks sketchy. Personally, I'm going to have regrets no matter what if it doesn't hit $9 million. Which is almost definitely not going to happen at this point.

I mean, desperate times call for desperate measures, right?

So goes the original text. The idea is undeniably silly and lewd, but again, harmless to the public, and -- most importantly -- has potential to achieve the desired impact. You gotta admit it. We don't all have "Chinese English-teaching school's coffers" angles that we can use to grab headlines, and I can't help but worry.

And there's so many ways to go about this sort of thing, barring these exact terms. If we Shenmue fans don't have the balls (literally), couldn't an outside group -- like a BDSM enthusiast circle or nudist colony -- be commissioned to execute for us? Or even if it's not full-fledged mass masturbation, a stunt of smaller scope could suffice. But I do think it has to involve nudity on some level; as I've alluded to, there are but two fundamental forms of visceral expression for humans: sex and violence. And violence is out of the question... Duh.

You can call nude/sexual stunts stupid, but it's not like we've hatched some ultra-clever viral marketing scheme up to this point. There's only so much time left, and if crazy/sensational enough, the method COULD work. Even if it's just one guy streaking through London or the Vatican (do they have sex offender registries in Europe?). But the more people, the better the chances of raising awareness. Otherwise the premise needs to be great, and the execution flawless.

P.S. I'm unable to log-in to the Dojo from Firefox on my desktop, and I couldn't register either. Believe it or not, I'm writing this on my Wii U. Never had this problem before with any other site or forum. Any ideas?

Thank you guys for the congratulations. I will also address some of the things being asked.

Joel Tess from Awesome reached out to me via Youtube Messages and told me that Yu Suzuki had seen my video and loved it and that he wanted to use it on the Kickstarter page. Once I emailed him about it and said I'd love to do that, my video was shown to SEGA who requested that the arcade footage was taken out and that copyright notices were put in. (I also received request to change the logo but I'm unsure if that's Sega's doing of if it's a personal choice of Yu Suzuki). Once the final version was made I emailed it to Joel Tess who put it up on the page.

I was in touch with Dreamcaster's Tube when I first put the original video up and he said that he's ok with people using his footage as long as they credit him in the description. I'm not taking credit for his work.

"These goals can only be achieved through Kickstarter" is to encourage people to pledge and clear up the fact that Sony and others contributions likely wont be enough to cover any stretch goals.

Anyway, thank you guys for the amazing words. I never thought it would get this far and I feel really honored to be acknowledged by Yu Suzuki and Awesome Japan :D

^A few months ago you said that people shouldn't step in if a mother refuses to take thier child to a doctor due to religious reasons. Now you think a soldier who risks their life for you and comes back with PTSD is the same as someone who is a bit upset someone called them a cunt on Twitter.

You're sick mue, seriously sick in the head.

I was just pondering this a bit, and I thought it might be fun to look at all the borderline-miraculous circumstances that coalesced to bring us the success we just had on Kickstarter and the resurrection of this franchise from seeming oblivion. In all seriousness, some pretty remarkable things had to happen to get us to this day. And some pretty amazing coincidences as well.

Firstly, and most importantly of all of course, the undying passion that the fans have kept alight for far longer than most would have for any other IP. I mean when you really look at it: 14 years. That's the difference between being 16 years old and 30 years old. That's the difference between high school and being a 30-something adult with children. How many people hold on to the love of something that long? Especially something that wasn't exactly a raving mainstream success?

It's not like it's a mainstream, popular thing to be a Shenmue fan in 2015 (well... it might become one now of course!) It's not like we're constantly reminded of it or get it reinforced by the media or our peers (except in communities like this one.) No, it has been entirely up to us to grit our teeth and slog through the years, carrying a seemingly futile torch for this video game. That we did that is remarkable!

Secondly, the length of time itself. How many other examples are there of ANYTHING this old in entertainment years (entertainment properties age fast) that get resurrected? I can think of only a rare handful, all of which were far more popular than Shenmue. Star Trek. Star Wars. X-Files. And those all had corporate backing. They weren't independent affairs, and they had massive media exposure and vast audiences. That people are even still TALKING about Shenmue, let alone planning to bring it back today is just astounding.

Thirdly, the many, many times Yu tried to get the game - or something Shenmue related (Shenmue Online, Shenmue City, etc.) - made, but couldn't get things off the ground. Normally when a creative force of his caliber and renown tries so many times to do something and they can't, they go on to something else. They don't doggedly hold onto a single-minded determination to get that one thing made for over a decade. Granted he did some mobile stuff, but by and large, his focus has been Shenmue. That he finally succeeded is miraculous in its own right.

Fourthly, fans petitioning Sony at just the right time. Sony's "building the list" initiative led to people speaking up and seizing the opportunity to try to get Shenmue noticed by a big company again, in some way, shape, or form. That in and of itself isn't that surprising. But what's amazing is that Yu had been considering Kickstarter for a few years, and seriously investigating the possibility of getting the game done that way. He said repeatedly that the game needed "the right opportunity" for it to work out. It was the timing of fans petitioning Sony, Sony reaching out to him, and E3 allowing him a soap box, that FINALLY provided that "right opportunity" and the rallying cry that could finally give the game a real chance of securing the funding it needed.

Fifthly, Sega allowing Yu the right to make Shenmue 3. They didn't have to do this. There are other examples of companies asking IP holders to let them do something like this, and them saying no, and sitting on said IPs and doing nothing with them. Sega has been pretty lax about letting people at least try, though. Sega's not perfect and hasn't exactly ingratiated themselves to gamers in recent years, but this one aspect of their behavior is really cool and should be applauded. Especially since, other than any potential good PR or future Shenmue related releases they can use this as a springboard for, they have no financial stake in doing it that we know if.

Sixthly, the PS4 physical copies through Kickstarter. Another example of a big company doing something they didn't have to do. Sony isn't going to see a dime for those physical copies, and we know they're the ones handling publishing (presumably PS4 porting) so in short, they're throwing money away with each of those physical copies. Just to help the Kickstarter out. Again, yes, admittedly, this gives them good PR, and the more successful the game is the more money they theoretically stand to make once its released on PS4, but it's still a risk and something they didn't have to do. It's pretty respectable.

Penultimately, breaking the record for most funded game precisely when we did. We broke the record just before dawn on the west coast of the U.S., where many major gaming sites and companies have their headquarters. Arguably, this is what gave us a huge final wave of publicity that launched the surge we witnessed throughout the final day. We were always going to exceed what we had made the previous day, but over 900K? That's publicity in my opinion. That it worked out precisely when it did is amazing indeed.

And last but not least... we finished on 6.333 I mean... REALLY? Seriously! Shenmue 3. 3rd of the month #SaveShenmue campaign. 30 on the 3rd. And we finish on 6.333? Tell me that's not the least bit improbable! Lol.

In short... the journey to Shenmue 3's Kickstarter success has been amazing, especially considering all the obstacles it had to overcome. I consider it a literal miracle, and a once in a lifetime event that I will remember forever. Seriously, this is the stuff of legends. Things simply don't ever work out this way in life. That they did for Shenmue 3, is kismet.

Three Blades wrote:Friends?

Friends.

I'm a bit of a strange Shenmue fan. When the first game came out, I was only two years old. However my brother had a Dreamcast and Shenmue and I always watched him play it. A few years later, I too began to play the game, but being a very young child the most I ever did was buy toy capsules as I didn't even know that there was a story to progress (I also thought that Ryo's name was Shenmue :oops: )

Soon we got an Xbox and the faithful Dreamcast was put away but I never forgot the game where you buy drinks and toys. That eventually blossomed into my love for Shenmue. As I got older, I realised that there was much more too the game and that there was a deep story to be found. I started looking into the game more, reading about the characters and watching other people play it online. My understanding and love for the series kept growing until I pretty much knew the entire plot and almost every detail.

But when the Shenmue III Kickstarter was revealed, I realised that I never did revisit the game for myself. I never sat down with the intention of playing it on my own and taking in everything at my own pace. Tonight, despite being a huge fan of the game and franchise (which I know after reading this, some of you are going to debate), I finished Shenmue I on my own for the first time. It was completely different to watching a lets play. I feel that only now can I truly appreciate just how immersive the game is - something I didn't get from reading about the game or watching videos. It really feels as if I've rediscovered the game. It took me back to when I first started researching the plot properly. After doing such research I didn't think my love and passion for the franchise could grow any more, but I was very, very wrong and I realise now that whilst I thought the wait for III was a painful one, it was nothing compared to what a majority of you here were forced to endure. I got it easy.

So I want to thank the community for doing what they did to make Shenmue III a possibility. Whilst I'm a latecomer in loving the franchise (and an even later one for appreciating it fully) there's very little I wanted more than a third installment. I can only imagine how bad the people who have appreciated the game fully for 14 years wanted one. This is one of the most passionate fanbases I've ever seen and It's an honor to finally appreciate and hold the same passion.

I have a feeling that this is not the end of the road yet either. I still have Shenmue II to play. Maybe it will happen again.

Ok cool guys we get it.. you both dont like insults, so one of you be the better man and drop it. It's useless continuing.

I don't believe in equality at all. That is, I think it is self-evident that all people are radically unequal in ability, irrespective of gender, race, metaphysical beliefs, and so on. And in terms of unprovable metaphysical beliefs, I believe all people are equal in 'value', but that has nothing to do with jobs, income, numerical presence in various politico-economic assemblies, etc. Securing everyone's survival and opportunity has nothing to do with guaranteeing an equal amount of money, power, and respect, for all. Therefore, I always laugh when people reference statistics about the presence (or lack thereof) of particular demographics represented in parliaments or companies, as if it were a law of nature that every particular type should be equally present in every circumstance. Also, I believe it is remarkably self-evident that the only distinction that actually affects 'success' in the sense of accumulating wealth and fame, et al, is between ugliness and beauty. This trumps even physical ability and inventiveness, since, no matter what, the better can be outshone in mass gossip by the prettier. Constant mass gossip is both a professional and amateur ubiquitous human activity that modern technology makes more intense than ever before, and the ultimate purpose of such language is the comparison of appearance unto the glorification of the delightful and the denigration of the repugnant. Ergo, I believe most dissatisfied people/"activists" are really just bitter because they don't look as beautiful as they think they should, or they think they are, but not sufficiently appreciated as such. Ergo, I strongly believe that if everyone merely felt stunningly gorgeous (with ample opportunity for all the pleasures that kind of existence entails), there would be no noticeable dissatisfaction in society, no violence, no wars, no poverty, no sense of inequality, but also no convictions. Genetic jealousy and (on the other side) vanity basically drive all human behaviors. In Buddhist terms, genetic jealousy -- the desire to be physically something better than you are -- represents the last and most primordial desire. One cannot reach Enlightenment until one overcomes this fundamental obstacle. All desire, even for clothes and adornments, indeed anything beyond our natural state, basically rests upon this deeper desire to appear so perfect as to awe everyone and be awed by one's self. The absence of this perfection (and all perfection) in life results in constant dissatisfaction and consequent blame placed on everything blamable, which results in samsara, which means prolific blogging, including this post.

In other words, "I can't believe I'm not happy! It must be your fault!" One may insert anything from 'God' or 'people' to the 'universe' in place of 'your'. The bearer of this bad news is especially despised. One useful question to ask any dissatisfied person (including yourself) is what could possibly be done to make one truly happy. We ultimately find our own personal specific solutions aren't actually enough to satisfy forever, even if they were possible, and do not exhaust our desire for more anyway. Nothing does, nothing can. Be kind; everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle for the impossible.

wow you guys are still going on about this? you're worse than women...

http://piksellstudio.deviantart.com/art ... -547870066

On July 17th, the Kickstarter campaign for Shenmue III drew to a finish. Because of you, the backers and the fans, Shenmue III set the Guinness record for the fastest game to reach $1 million, past the funding goal of $2 million in just 8 and a half hours, set the record for video games on Kickstarter, and became the 6th most funded project on Kickstarter, collecting $6.33 million.

All of this was accomplished by your efforts. Through the illustrations you drew, the videos you produced, and all that you did throughout the campaign, I could not help but feel the deep love you have for Shenmue.

Even after 14 years have gone by, to see this outpouring of support is something one as a creator can only dream of. There can be no better feeling than what you have given me, and for that I will be eternally grateful.

We have just started getting into development, and as we move ahead, I will listen to all of you to make Shenmue III even better.

I thank you again all for your support, and wholeheartedly look forward to the rest of our journey together.

Yu Suzuki

-

Or he could keep Shenhua in his green backpack and she could pop out from time to time like in Banjo Kazooie!

Considering we were forced to use the d-pad.

Seriiously the fact that Shenmue controls as well as it did is a miracle... it controls way better than RE even with "tank controls".

I think the reason is because Shenmue had the perfect camera system that constantly stays right behind you.

Just like RE4 had great controls even though they were digital was because of the tight behind the back camera the same is true of Shenmue.

Also Shenmue gets props for using the trigger for "analog" movement.

I give Shenmues controls an 8.5.. the only weird part is sometimes having to slightly adjust itself using the B button.\\

I almost kind of hope to use the D pad agin in SIII but of course we need true dual analog control since it will be 2017

I think the best and most succinct answer to the question, "Is Shenmue a Good Game?" is simply:

"At least good enough for thousands of people all over the world to lose their minds when a sequel was finally announced, and for somewhere between 50,000 and 70,000 people to voluntarily donate more than 6 million dollars to see it happen."

Enough said.

That Sarkeesian woman is a genius. She got people to throw 160,000 $ at her for making some comedy videos on YT. She can't be for real, with the stuff she said, right? Those are comedy videos, aren't they?

Anyway, she's a tremendously skilled businesswoman. That girl really knows how to make easy money. :)

Haha, I guess this is kind of amusing in retrospect, I'm not sure it was intentional though

Yeah please ask about Japanese VO with English subs. Very important to me.

Then Ryo runs to Fuku -Sans room grabs an AK 47 and runs outside and starts shooting the blacksuits and Lan Di.

Lan Di lays gasping for life on the ground and Ryo yells "father get out here and watch me get my revenge from when I was in an alternate timeline and you got killed!"

Iwao runs outside and screams "Ryo what the fuck Lan Di is my friend and he was coming to visit me on my wedding day!"

Ryo "Father... you're getting married... to who!?"

Iwao: "I'm marrying Fuku san gay marriage is legal now god dammit!"

Ryo: "Jesus Christ father! I will never allow you to marry Fuku San. Ryo then shoots Iwao and kills him."

Just then a second Ryo materializes in front of him.

Second Ryo" I'm here from the future to avenge my fathers death! Have at you!

First Ryo: "If you kill me then YOU will never exist in the future to get revenge on your past self in the first place!"

Lan Di" HEY! Will one of you Ryo assholes finally kill me or do I have to wait for Shenmue 3!"

Both Ryos "THIS IS SHENMUE 3!"

The 6.8 review score was crap and Gamespot totally sucks for allowing that review.

The reviewer ---whatever his/her name was--- was wrong about Shenmue and should have excused him/herself from even writing it.


That review was like getting someone who was illiterate to review Hemingway... the end product was NOT an objective opinion. It was flawed output due to an inherent comprehension deficit which precluded all rational analysis.

Shenmue doesn't have a great story, but it's presented very well as a game.

Video game or nothing -- I don't want no stupid Shenmue Anime.

These newbies man... oh my god... This is classic fail thread if I have ever seen one, its just keeping me in stitches

Three Blades wrote: Ryo has wasted countless chances to sample a good variety of some of the finest p*ssy China has to offer, so of course I want to slap him.

I know right, he's like a chick magnet. He's got a harem growing that would make even Indian royalty envy him, yet Ryo does nothing.