Am I the only Shenmue fan who has...

[mindcrime]

...only played the game(s) once?

Reading about other people's experiences with Shenmue, I see quite a lot of "I'm currently on my 11th playthrough", or "I bring out Shenmue for a spin every christmas".

Shenmue is by far my most powerful gaming experience - a real milestone for me - but in 14 years I have only played it once from start to fi... erm... cave. I loved it so much it actually scared me away from playing it again. Sounds weird as f*ck, I know... but welcome to my world.

Shenmue changed pretty much everything for me when it comes to gaming, and (as cheesy as it may sound) had a pretty big impact on my everyday life as well. As soon as I finished the second game I knew that I didn't want to "trivialize" the experience by repeating it. I knew the magic would never be the same. Most likely still awesome, of course, but never the same.

As the years went by, and the gaming industry moved on with bigger worlds and shinier graphics, I actually became more and more afraid of returning to Shenmue because I knew I would never forgive myself if all those wonderful memories from my time with the game would be tainted by slight disappointment. What if that "magic vibe" just wouldn't be there like the first time? I just couldn't take that risk.

I also knew that when - or if - Shenmue III was released, I had to return to 1 and 2 in preparation for the third, and the longer I could stay away, the more plot details I would forget and hopefully get a few nice surprises the second time around.

Now, with all that said, I did actually play the first game a second time in 2003 to break in my brand new tv, but I didn't touch the second one. "I'm sorry, Ryo... you'll have to stay on this boat for about 14 years now".

I know I'm rambling here, but I guess a potent mix of fear and extreme forward thinking has kept me away all these years. Now, finally, I can sort of see the benefits and I plan to return to 1 and 2 when the planned release date of Shenmue III draws near. Hopefully it won't mess too much with all the fantastic memories I've been guarding for all these years.

I guess I am the only one, right..?

[TwiceFriedRice]

Well, I'm currently doing my first play through of the first game in a decade, and will do my first play through of 2 in 7 years. The experience hasn't been tainted by time whatsoever.

[Hyo Razuki]

...only played the game(s) once?

Never say never but probably you are.

[Miles Prower]

Yeah, I've honestly lost count of how many times I must have played the two games over the years. Well over double-digits, for sure. But I'd held off from playing them recently, I'd been a bit burned out from S2 especially as I'd 'played' it a lot in order to complete my character profile project (mainly loading specific saves to double check character details/locations etc, but still playing it), and as Shenmue III was seeming ever more unlikely I just didn't feel like playing them anymore...but now we've got this news, I definitely plan on another playthrough, just knowing that there actually will be a continuation to this story after I've completed Disc 4 of S2 for the billionth time will be a great feeling indeed

[south carmain]

Well I had only played shenmue 1 once up until I got the chance to emulate it which was around 2009-2010 I think. The amount of hours I put in to shenmue 2 was probably in the hundreds though, I was obsessed by that game.

[NeoShredder]

Would you replay it if it was a HD remaster?

[Mitsuzuki]

I've only played the games twice for the same reasons.

I wanted to go back for more playthroughs to discover everything, but I've always held back because I want future experiences to be real and fresh.

I figure I'll replay both starting early next year and take my time with them. Build up some nice momentum toward 2017 Shenmue III developments.

[JaySw34]

Ive played them both more times than I can count. And every time I play I discover at least one new thing.

[Yokosuka]

I played Shenmue I two times, the first on Dreamcast, the last on emulator. I can't do anymore. The game is really too outdated imo. I understand all the criticism around. The irony is that I have viewed Shenmue the movie more times than played the game as I discovered IIx first. Yeah the first touch is probably the key in the global appreciation.

[Yama]

I'm in the can't keep track camp. The game has aged beautifully, so that's really not an issue. Check my 4K thread in the Shenmue forum to see, it should give you some confidence to go back to it.

[Sonoshee]

I play them through once every 1 or 2 years. I've gone through about four Dreamcasts in that time, the lasers are horrible.

[Yama]

I play them through once every 1 or 2 years. I've gone through about four Dreamcasts in that time, the lasers are horrible.

Do you play many burned games?

[drunkensailor]

I play dreamcast for 16 years and have yet to have a laser die out on me and I own 4 dreamcasts

[mindcrime]

Would you replay it if it was a HD remaster?

For me personally, I don't think a HD remaster would change things that much. Some of my fears are obviously related to graphics and other technical aspects, but I'm definitely not picky about that stuff. I play old PS2 games on a regular basis so I'm not really that worried. What I fear the most is to find that replaying Shenmue "only" feels like playing any other good game... and I would not be ok with that.

It all feels a bit silly when I try to describe my Shenmue-experience to people, but it was an incredibly important game for me, arriving at the perfect time. I was a diehard FPS-fan and never ever touched any other genres, with the exception of a racing game once in a while. Hardly even knew that gaming consoles existed, and certainly didn't care about them. At that time I was also, quite frankly, a bit tired of gaming. A friend introduced me to Shenmue (the game was still in development) and the mighty Dreamcast. To my surprise I became curious.

The game hooked me from the first second and -- cheese alert -- changed my f*cking life. I had never experienced anything even remotely close to the feeling of living the life of Ryo Hazuki. Sure, I've had many amazing gaming experiences since then but I kind of expected them to be. Shenmue was a bit of a gamble for this jaded old FPS guy, but it worked out perfectly and no other game comes close in terms of "unexpected surprise" and general wow factor.

Yeah... rambling again. Shenmue has that effect on me. But no, I don't think it would matter much if I replay the original games or HD remakes. My fear lies more with my own expectations and the way I've put Shenmue on a pedestal over the years.

Check my 4K thread in the Shenmue forum to see, it should give you some confidence to go back to it.

Yeah, that looks really interesting. As of now I know absolutely nothing about that technical stuff but I can always educate myself when the time comes. Maybe when I buy myself a new tv. Replaying Shenmue in 4K (or even 1080) certainly won't hurt!

[81Zero]

I hold them in high regards too and am a little afraid to play them fully again. I have finished both games only once but I have played them a lot more just having fun and doing random stuff. Trying to collect all the capsule toys, games, cassette tapes, duck races and playing at a very slow pace. I'm planning to replay and complete them again soon though.