Sh3nmu3

*rubbing hands*

It's almost time for the monthly update too. I gotta get my Shenmue fix bro. I gotta.

It's not just a case of swapping the VO, guys.

If they're making an effort at localisation that means there will be changes between the English and Japanese dub to better suit the markets. It's the same reason why the Shenmue Undub mod just has periodic silences because there's no equivalent for the English subs.

Dual VO could possibly mean full retranslation for all subs (and don't forget, the game will be in 5+ languages subtitled), to properly translate the VO.

shengoro86 wrote: All went well! Lots of support from people at PAX East

I'd be interested in reading a write-up of promoting the game at the event, if you're not already doing one.

The French media are "doing it" again :???:

http://www.jeuxactu.com/shenmue-3-les-doublages-anglais-et-japonais-ne-sont-pas-garantis-103756.htm?

According to this article, there will be probably only ONE audio language in Shenmue 3 (For all regions). English or japanese.

Misunderstanding of the Shenmue 3 Kickstarter updates became a bad habit...
It's just negligence at this point. The update is very clear about what it is talking about in regards to dual language tracks. The requirements for a games media job must be that you have enough working fingers to type and little else.

https://twitter.com/CedricBiscay/with_replies

See Cedric's first retweet. I think we're getting close to something.

*update the total every day leading up to $6.6 million*
*get to Thursday, seems likely it'll cross the threshold tomorrow*
*take Friday off*

AWESOME JAPAN

Something to take our minds off the count:

I saw this retweeted by the Shenmue Dojo account but I'm not sure it was ever really discussed here: https://soundcloud.com/ryujiiuchi/erhu

It's basically a demo track for Shenmue III in everything but its name.

At least by the time we next get a total update we should be well over $6.6 million, right?

The extra funding is already here: Sony will help the development (publishing, dev milestones, advertising, etc). http://www.gamespot.com/videos/the-point-how-did-shenmue-3-raise-63-million/2300-6426535/
It's not strictly accurate that they're helping fund development. They're offsetting other costs so more money from KS, YSnet, Shibuya Productions, etc, can be dedicated towards development.

In your opinion, did Cédric Biscay say too much this time?

http://i.imgur.com/P1w7bJX.jpg

Q: Why not launch a crowdfunding for the Xbox One version? It's a shame to do without 20 million of players.

A: The PS4 has console exclusivity.

Q: Did Sony buy the exclusivity? The Kickstarter FAQ's says Xbox One version is not impossible.

If true/confirmed, what could a strong Sony PS4 exclusivity mean for the future (and the past) of the Shenmue franchise?
And on this subject, Sony didn't buy exclusivity. That kind of deal is dying out, because it doesn't make sense for the console manufacturer or the developer. What's more common is to take limited exclusivity for helping with marketing, distribution, etc.

The lack of an Xbox One version is more likely down to limited development resources, and the fact that Cedric and Yu approached Microsoft prior to the KS and got given the cold shoulder.

I think when I was younger I would have loved to see a lot of characters return, but thinking about it now, the concept of Ryo travelling and meeting an entire fresh cast of characters with each wildly different location is very interesting. Not only do we have the concept of a man so bent on revenge he's leaving behind all the places and friends he makes, but also a concept where each entry (or chapter if you will) represents almost kind of a new "world" each time, with new people to meet inside of them.
I agree with this, and I think that's the direction Yu is taking. He's spoken pretty openly about Shenmue having strong themes of personal growth through engaging in different cultures with new people, I can't see that being thrown away to keep fan favourites in the game.

Here's a translation of Ryuji Iuchi's message in Japanese on SoundCloud:

あくまで個人的なデモ曲です。
森の中の村、森の中の水辺をイメージしました。
習作を兼ねて、あのゲームのサウンドに少し寄せています。

This is purely a personal demo piece.
The image I had in mind is of a village and waterside in the forest.
I've been experimenting composing practice pieces to evoke the sound of "that game".

Nice to see it confirmed that Iuchi is getting into gear to start work on Shenmue music again.

Wow, you've dampened my enthusiasm big time! :lol:

I'm aware that none of my points are solid enough to point towards new Shenmue 3 material or Shenmue HD annoucement.

That said, if I have to throw myself into battle, I need to believe that I can succeed.
This is of course also true for Shenmue :king:
Sorry, man.

I'm pretty hopeful we'll see an update around E3 time! I just don't think the big E3 re-reveal on Sony's stage is going to happen this year.

Nobody should be getting their hopes up about a trailer on an E3 stage at all .

It's far too early, and these fully produced trailers take a long time and dedicated resources to create. The focus is clearly on creating the game right now, and Shenmue III punching above its weight by getting into the AAA hype game is a waste of time and money.

Best case scenario is:
. Shenmue III gets name-checked on-stage at Sony's conference
. Shenmue HD
. Large KS update on the game's progress

Thinking we're getting much more than that is setting yourself up for disappointment.

We'll get a well produced reintroduction trailer eventually, but this year's TGS/PSX is the very earliest I can imagine it happening. E3 2017 would be the right time to start getting people excited.

It's been the elephant in the room for years at this point.

Closest we've gotten to any kind of acknowledgement was when that SEGA rep had a slip of the tongue, and mentioned Skies of Arcadia and Shenmue as hotly requested re-releases.

Why do I think this is a subtle confirmation?

Actually stating they're investigating making it happen is a big turning point. The business case has likely been made to have the go-ahead for figuring out the legal wrangling, and the legal situation must be workable enough, or have a viable alternative, to talk about a HD Collection publicly like in the video.

SEGA probably wouldn't set themselves up for a fall by talking about Shenmue HD before they were confident it could happen one way or another. I think the battles to be won now are just getting the games as accurate to the Dreamcast originals as possible by making an agreement on the licenced aspects.

My number 4 in the list. :P

4. Sega Europe #AskSEGA campaign. Inconceivable (imo) that they didn't anticipate the #SaveShenmueHD effect.

Doesn't mean that they will announce Shenmue HD at E3, BUT to me, it's almost like they know that finally, the Shenmue question isn't tabou anymore and can fit into a campaign like the #AskSega one.

The licencing problem may be tough, but definitely not an insurmountable challenge.
If they decide to remaster Shenmue I & II, they will remaster Shenmue I & II no matter what licencing or technical issues they may face.
Haha. I don't think either of us could have predicted it quite like this.

That said, I don't think they suddenly decided to look into Shenmue HD since #AskSEGA, but it probably gave them incentive to address it sooner rather than later. The decision to talk about Shenmue HD likely came all the way from Japan, and probably after extensive debate on the business case for making it happen. It's a long time coming for sure.

If they're ready to talk about it as a legitimate possibility, they must be at the fork in the road where they decide to make a licencing deal, or replace the licenced items. I really admire them for wanting to go the extra mile in preserving the Dreamcast originals in their entirety. I just hope the licencees play ball.

Hopefully they get it sewn up in time for TGS/PSX this year.

Am I correct in thinking that some middleware used in the development of the first two games are no longer in business? This could also be one of the licensing issues.
The video specifically says the licencing issues are with productions in the originals, so naw.

I'm of the personal belief the engine licencing issue was never real, because nothing besides a single forum post ever backed up that urban myth. Not saying it couldn't be true, but if it was, it has already been solved if product licencing is the last big roadblock.

https://twitter.com/CedricBiscay/status/730754247449559040

Re-confirmation that nothing is planned for E3. Cedric said as much during MAGIC, and has little reason to play games with people about this, so we can accept what he says at face value I think.

Not to say they won't put together a KS update over the next month for an E3 launch, but again, anybody expecting a showing on Sony's stage better temper their expectations.

And thus the struggle to $6.7 million... begins.

No matter what, as always I'm probably going to spend the whole night awake watching E3 when I should be asleep.

I don't think there's really much point making the distinction of "Oh, I meant internal SEGA of Japan development", and then discounting Yakuza entirely when it's a high quality series they're regularly putting out. Kintor is right in saying that ultimately it was a loaded question.

SEGA doesn't put out a whole lot these days, but the games are usually quite good. It's much more preferable to their more prolific period during the mid-2000s when they were a glorified shovelware developer. They're also doing small cool things like the Megadrive/Genesis Collection hub on Steam.

From barely $50 to nearly $800. Unpredictable as always!

Some important ones:

. Sony's role is limited to marketing and publishing the PS4 version only of Shenmue III (Source: http://www.gameblog.fr/interview_948_shenmue-3-notre-grande-interview-de-yu-suzuki-et-cedric-bisc )

. SEGA's role is limited to providing the IP and production materials from the first games (Source: http://www.gameblog.fr/interview_948_shenmue-3-notre-grande-interview-de-yu-suzuki-et-cedric-bisc )

. SEGA/YSnet/Shibuya Productions formed the agreement to use the Shenmue licence before Sony was ever involved (Source: http://www.gameblog.fr/news/57133-shenmue-iii-pourquoi-la-ps4-et-pas-la-xbox-one-cedric-biscay )

. Shibuya Productions is the main investor in Shenmue III, and has a much greater role than Sony (Source: https://twitter.com/CedricBiscay/status/645483756371873792 )

Seeing how the "SONY/SEGA ARE SECRETLY FUNDING SHENMUE" lies are still put out there by the gaming press and the people who religiously take the media's conjecture as fact, I think it's up to us to put these real facts out there.

From barely $50 to nearly $800. Unpredictable as always!

http://i.imgur.com/aK7NTHU.png

I am one of the seven backers from May 19, and my birthday is just in a few days that's why I pledged a bit more than usual.

As a side note: it would be nice if they could also add a donation option. Maybe it is something we could request in the upcoming Tweetathon on June the 3rd?
Nice job, and happy birthday in advance!

A donation option would be nice, but I don't think it'll happen even if we ask. Implementing KS upgrades and adding the PC version to the PayPal would be more beneficial right now.

Hey guys... it's getting near the end of the month. It's almost Kickstarter update time again.

This is starting to get kind of ridiculous; actually, it's been ridiculous for a while. I'm glad that they're contemplating adding options, but the game is supposedly a little over a year away from release and has a final budget. How long has it been since they opened the Slacker Backer?

I'm sure there's a good reason they've taken so long to include PC and Kickstarter upgrade options (I hope it's not just incompetence), but I think it's too late for either to have much of an impact at this point. Maybe that's not the point. I don't think they're going to reach many people when, or if, they add these options, though. Their audience has significantly diminished since the summer of 2015, unfortunately. Most people aren't going to notice.

Just getting kind of tired of getting excited about these Cedric tweets, which have been a thing for what, seven months now?
Every little bit helps, so I'm certainly not going to turn away the chance to put more money into the project. Worrying about the hows and whys is pointless when there's nothing we can do, as fans, to move things along. Well, besides keeping Cedric and company aware these are still desired and expected.

I wouldn't get bogged down in if we reach certain numbers or not with any increases to monthly backing amounts. If the PC version and KS upgrades brings in another couple thousand a month, that could easily pay for more staff to be brought onto the Shenmue III project.

We have to remember, the stretch goals aren't what it costs to implement a feature, it's effectively the time, resources, and people to research, experiment, prototype, and then implement the feature. Even if we don't hit $7 million or above, the money raised is helping increase the number of staff on the project and raise the overall production qualities of the title.

Yeah it would have been nice if this was all prompt and smooth to capitalise on the initial hype, but we knew we weren't going to get that when it became apparent Awesome Japan were inadequate for a production of this size. We've just got to accept things as they are and stay on their case when things aren't changing. We know they're finally listening after the logo u-turn, so maybe they're getting their act together at long last.

Another one for the pile regarding Shenmue III not being Sony's project:

Luke Crane, head of Games at Kickstarter.

Source: http://www.nodontdie.com/luke-crane/ (thanks to the TeamYU forum, where I found this)

I think people felt that if Sony wanted to promote it, they should fund it themselves. This is what I saw floating around the internet.

Right, because that's how that works. That's totally 100 percent how that works. Yup.

There's actually a cyborg that sits at the center of Sony and just churns out all of their work. Just one biological mechanical interface. You feed it and it says, "I will make Shenmue 3 now."

Yu Suzuki's the creator. He talks to his team and he's like, "Yeah, let's do it. Let's do this. What is this Kickstarter thing?" [Koji Igarashi] had just used Kickstarter and the Mighty No. 9 team, obviously, [Keiji Inafune] had used Kickstarter. So, obviously it's in his circles of friends and they're talking about it. They know it exists, and so he's like, "Yeah. Let's do Shenmue 3 Kickstarter." And his team calls Sony and they're like, "Hey, Suzuki-san, like, he's into this." And Sony's like, "Great!" But also, Sony's saying, as a publisher "Does anybody wanna play Shenmue anymore?" And his team goes, "Um, yes."

Right? The team doesn't know. It's not like there's any market research on this or anything.

Well, also, too, among that group of creators you mentioned, I know crowdfunding is not as big in Japan as it is over here.

Right.

There are some, but it's not as popular over here.

Right. We're not live in Japan or anything, yet. For creators, at least. For backers, yes. But not creators.

Yeah. Yeah.

Right. And I can tell you, it's not some shadow project for Sony. It's not like -- the email address is not "[email protected]."

"[email protected]"

Right. It's not. I mean, honestly, if you look at their project, it looks like it's a small dev team put that project together. It doesn't look like a splashy E3 presentation.

Awesome. Shenmue fans continue to be good people.

But thats the point you are not getting. No one is going to be disappointed if Shenmue 3 isn't at E3, despite hoping for it. We have Shenmue 3, E3 appearance or not.
Naw, I get it, but at this point there is overwhelming evidence that nothing is getting shown at a conference, so why continue to expect it?

Watching the Sony conference thinking "I wonder if Shenmue is next..." through the whole thing will at least bring some disappointment when it doesn't show. It's easier just to accept we're probably getting a Kickstarter update and that's that. If it's anything more than that, great!

But let's not kid ourselves. We've been told since February, point-blank, there are no plans to show Shenmue III at E3 2016. SEGA are seemingly fumbling in the dark on Shenmue HD. There's nothing to expect, and there's no teasing to the contrary. It's all very matter-of-factly been put to us as "Not this E3".

E3 2015 was great for Shenmue fans, but now the dream is becoming a reality and we've got to accept that every big gaming event won't bring similar earth-shattering news about the series. We've got the peace of mind knowing the game is coming, but we also need to wean ourselves off the "Could this be THE YEAR?" feeling we've had to deal with since 2001.

Ultimately, people can do what they want. I'm not the hype police or nothin', pfff. But y'know, maybe I'm just trying in some small way to spare us pages of "Shenmue III/Shenmue HD wasn't at E3, what a disappointment! They were teasing it too!".

And besides, it's still wayyyyyy early for any kind of conference trailer. The game didn't officially go into production until late August last year.

More funding should in theory make a better game. If the game falls short in areas because it didn't get enough money (say they fell behind in some areas of development because they couldn't afford another three/five staff members), that'll negatively impact the perception of the game and sell less as a result.

If more people pledging to the PayPal campaign can afford more staff, then the game gets improved overall as a result even if we don't manage to hit a specific stretch goal. Good games do sell. Maybe not as much as they should in some cases though, but that's neither here nor there.

It's to do with licensing tech from companies that have gone bust and it's not clear who they'd need to pay licensing fees to, etc.
Nah. That's an urban myth that started on GAF and was never substantiated by anybody other than one poster.

The Ask SEGA video outright states the licencing issue is with the real-world products and brands included in both games, and that they want to preserve the games' atmosphere as close to their Dreamcast originals as possible. "We would love to release them tomorrow", "We would love to do it", and "We are currently investigating how to make [Shenmue HD] them a reality" means they effectively have control over releasing the game, but if there were an engine licencing issue it would prohibit them completely until solved, and we wouldn't get any comments on a potential Shenmue HD until cleared up.

Yeah, I've heard that joke too. It's obviously a joke, since no serious game company would make such a stupid statement.

Look, I always tried not to get mad at Sega, yet that "investigating statement" was the boiling point for me. Like... they do what??? INVESTIGATE on how to make a GAME??? WHAT??? Is there nobody left at Sega who knows how to do what this compaty did for over three decades? Only managers?

That statement was an insult. Much worse than "No plans for Shenmue right now".
It's no joke, and it's actually quite a logical statement. The licencing issue with products does need investigating if they want to ensure a re-release is as close to the Dreamcast originals as possible. The most likely Plan B is retexturing the branding, but I think it's really admirable they're making an effort at preserving the original games as they released.

SEGA's comments actively state they are enthusiastic about making Shenmue HD happen, and they're taking proactive steps towards making it happen. They've never made a statement like this before on the matter.

The only thing is Yu Suzuki had planned stretch goals ???? way beyond 10M... can you imagine what they would have been? I could cry thinking about it.
I wouldn't worry about it. They had to plan for larger amounts, because they had no idea how high or low the campaign could have earned.

Yu has said over and over that the game would be appropriately adjusted to the budget, as with any project. Shenmue III is still Shenmue III, we're not getting an incomplete game or a half-measure.

Agreed with the above.

I'm on the $1,200 tier and haven't contributed again since. I'm waiting on the PC version on Slacker Backer Site, plus, I've been at University and not working since last Autumn. I would have liked to have gone for a higher tier during the Kickstarter, but I was saving for an expensive camera I needed for work/University.

Now that I'm working again, I'm going to start saving some cash for a Ryo jacket replica ($2,400) and contribute that way.

Eh, Shenmue 3 is the game with whom we will rise from the grave, Shenmue 4 will be the game where Yu will be able to realize his full vision. For a series dead for more than a decade we couldn't have asked for more than that.
This is also true. While I'm sure they're doing everything possible to make Shenmue III a great and impressive experience, the sequel (and hopefully the sequel after that) will be where the dreams will be realised.

Of course, Shenmue III still needs to be a success on its own terms for that to happen.

Their updates have been horrible. I am mostly dissapointed with them.
We had 2 updates regarding wether or not the kickstarter exclusive rewards should be included in the paypal campaign...
The others just regurgitate stuff we have already seen before.

Is it so hard to interview one of the programmers? Talk about the assembled team and where they are in development?
Hell have show some guy talking about the fªcking tree or grass or pavement he has been working on for the past weeks.

This is a kickstarter project. We should have some inside regular source of progress and information. Obvisouly spoilers would have to be avoided, but at least it would keep the community excited and talking about it.
I think they're just trying to keep their cards close to their chest and just get the work done. They got heavily (and mostly unfairly) criticised for showing very early work, and even the more impressive MAGIC screens from February had people crawling out of the woodwork for drive-by "LOOKS SHIT" comments.

The updates go through peaks and troughs generally. Our first post-Kickstarter look at the game was in October, which was improved from the reveal, and again when we saw the game in February it was an improvement over October. Focusing too much on outside presentation detracts time and resources from the game, but they still want to keep us in the loop, hence the content-lite updates over the last two months.

SMDzero wrote: Seems like the paypal isn't slowing down.

Anyone think we're going to hit 7 million??

Who can say? Always onwards and upwards no matter the goal.

Shenmue has been in the news a bit over the last few days, so hopefully that'll contribute to a nice boost.

How does a single backer contribute $68? The physical game is $60 + $10 for shipping, do they subtract $2 from that for PayPal fees?
I have zero idea. I was triple checking the figure on the PayPal site to see if I'd goofed somehow.

I'd say your reasoning works, but would they add the shipping cost to the crowdfunding total?

Maybe it's a currency exchange thing from Yen or RMB?

Bingo! That 's a very plausible explanation.
Is it? You pay the dollar equivalent irregardless of your region, even if you're paying 6,429 Yen, it'll still be adding $60 to the total. Foreign currency charges are added to the buyer's bill separately too (usually, at least).

It's either some charge on YSnet's end, or a possible goof when the total updated on the Slacker Backer website.

FYI, before anybody gets any ideas, the stretch goals are formulated with the funding breakdown in mind.

We're not losing any stretch goals, period.

And now we wait for a Kickstarter update.

Agree with the majority of Wanderin's post. Sony are still keeping Shenmue at arm's length, despite taking the credit for "bringing Shenmue back/getting Shenmue from SEGA", when that effort was with YSnet and Shibuya Productions.

I don't think Kojima needs the money more than Yu. If anything I think they deserve support equally. Top-tier Japanese game development needs to be kept alive, or else you're risking losing a market altogether as well as a generation of potential talent consigned to mobile dev hell.

It is Sony's home turf, and they should be building that local support whenever possible. I'm hopeful they've stepped into a larger role in Shenmue III since the huge success of the Kickstarter, but we don't really know if they have. If any development problems arise, it's more likely Shibuya Productions will be the ones to help bail YSnet out

The monthly Kickstarter updates have been uniformly pathetic, unfortunately.
Calm before the storm, or at the very least playing their cards close to their chest. Game development is a long and laborious process, and it takes a long time for things to look "right". I'd rather take a few ho-hum updates over the game being shown in a way that misrepresents it and gives ammunition to detractors.

There's always tomorrow for an anniversary update anyway. It's been four months since the last big update, I'd say we're due a new look at some point over this summer.

3rd June

$6,611,560 --> $6,612,455 (+$895) ($447.5 per day)

72,458 --> 72,470 backers (+12) (+$74.6 per backer)
6th June

$6,612,445 --> $6,614,516 (+$2071) (approx $690 per day)

72,470 --> 72,489 backers (+19) (approx $109 per backer)

7th June

$6,614,516 --> $6,614,939 (+$423)

72,489 --> 72,493 backers (+4) (~ $105.8 per backer)

8th June

$6,614,939 --> $6,615,207 (+$268)

72,493 --> 72,497 backers (+4) ($67 per backer)
9th June

$6,615,207 --> $6,615,275 (+$68)

72,497 backers --> 72,498 backers (+1)
10th June

$6,615,207 --> $6,615,583 (+$376)

72,498 --> 72,505 backers (+7)
13th June

$6,615,583 --> $6,616,271 (+$688)

72,505 --> 72,519 backers (+14)
14th June

$6,616,271 --> $6,616,339 (+68)

72,519 --> 72,521 backers (+2)
15th June - Happy Birthday Shenmue III!

$6,616,339 --> $6,616,876 (+$537)

72,521 --> 72,525 backers (+4)

3rd June

$6,611,560 --> $6,612,455 (+$895) ($447.5 per day)

72,458 --> 72,470 backers (+12) (+$74.6 per backer)
6th June

$6,612,445 --> $6,614,516 (+$2071) (approx $690 per day)

72,470 --> 72,489 backers (+19) (approx $109 per backer)

7th June

$6,614,516 --> $6,614,939 (+$423)

72,489 --> 72,493 backers (+4) (~ $105.8 per backer)

8th June

$6,614,939 --> $6,615,207 (+$268)

72,493 --> 72,497 backers (+4) ($67 per backer)
9th June

$6,615,207 --> $6,615,275 (+$68)

72,497 backers --> 72,498 backers (+1)
10th June

$6,615,207 --> $6,615,583 (+$376)

72,498 --> 72,505 backers (+7)
13th June

$6,615,583 --> $6,616,271 (+$688)

72,505 --> 72,519 backers (+14)
14th June

$6,616,271 --> $6,616,339 (+68)

72,519 --> 72,521 backers (+2)
15th June - Happy Birthday Shenmue III!

$6,616,339 --> $6,616,876 (+$537)

72,521 --> 72,525 backers (+4)
June 16th

$6,616,876 --> $6,617,256 (+$380)

72,525 --> 72,532 backer (+7)

The Shenmue community in general have done more for Shenmue III than Awesome Japan has. We should be given medals.

Or mirrors...

I read on the Dojo here somewhere that the future of Shenmue 4 is (surprise, surprise!) based on Shenmue 3's success. I'm not sure how true the information was but it went something like this:

*Shenmue 3 hits its mark of 1 million sales or more = Sega outright fund Shenmue 4 themselves.
*Shenmue 3 doesn't hit its mark of 1 million sales but is still a decent success = Sega will allow Yu Suzuki to do one more game to wrap the story up (via Kickstarter again).
*Shenmue 3 is a failure in terms of sales = Yu will have to finish the story by himself another way, be it through an animation or comic (guessing Kickstarter again).

Again I cannot place complete accuracy on this but I did read it here somewhere (apparently it was a translation of something Yu or Cedric said.)

I do believe getting those Shenmue remasters before Shenmue 3 is imperative to ensure a Shenmue 4, even if the above isn't entirely accurate.
I don't think they've ever spoken about "If Shenmue III does this amount, then Shenmue IV happens". 1 million sales is their goal, but I think Yu and Cedric both have refused to say whether that's any metric for the series to be continued. Though, I do think Cedric said their goal is to have the series continue after III without any Kickstarter financing.