Project Update #55: April Report

[Sonoshee]

日本語の記事はこちらです。

Hello Everyone,

Before getting into the main part of the update, we would like to respond to two issues brought up by the community—the Shenmue III logo and voice audio options.

First for the Shenmue III logo. There have been many comments from Shenmue fans wanting the logo to match the original logos from Shenmue 1& 2. We have heard your calls and will of course put it on the to-do list. This particular issue will take some time, however, as game development is currently taking a front seat to other design issues. Designers and other parties will also need to be consulted with, so before we can give a more definite answer, we would ask you please give us some time.

The second issue receiving a lot of attention concerns the voice audio options. Many people have asked for there to be an option to switch between Japanese and English voicing. We understand how strongly people feel about this feature, and it is something we would like to include as well, but the inclusion of a dual audio option will ultimately come down to budgetary limitations. Whether it will be added or not, will need to be decided as development progresses.

Thank you very much everyone for your input! Please keep contacting us here at Kickstarter with your ideas, comments and suggestions!

And now on to our inside look for April…

Manabu Takimoto, Environment Architecture Designer for the Shenmue series and resident in-world character, is now fleshing out all the different set pieces that will become the backdrop for Shenmue III. If you missed his profile update during the campaign, the link is HERE, or catch his interview video below:

phpBB [video]

Let's drop by the office to see what he is up to!



Manabu Takimoto at the drawing board.



In a meeting session with Yu, Manabu puts form to the ideas on the spot.



The coloring process. Here the soil of Guilin gets tilled, giving the land that “lived-in” feeling.



In a matter of hours, a page in the world of Shenmue takes form on the desktop.

[Yokosuka]

Finally they stand by their word regarding staff portraits.

[GYO6161]

The dual audio budget thing worries me, i hope that they don't decide get rid of the English dub altogether, that would really be a big dealbreaker for me.....

[Mugen]

Original logo confirmed, finally!

[Kintor]

A nice update, I'm glad they're taking the time to look at some of the people who are doing the concept work for Shenmue 3. Keen attention to detail has always been one of Shenmue's strengths, one of its most beautiful qualities. The more time spent on concept work like this the better the final game will eventually be.

[Ziming]

Even if dual audio is not offered in the original release it could be added later on through a downloadable update or patch which is quite common now in both console and PC games. I foresee fans or those familiar in modifying game files eventually doing this for the PC version.

MGS5 did allow gamers to download a Japanese language voice pack on Steam.
http://gamingbolt.com/metal-gear-solid- ... pc-version

[Yokosuka]

Original logo confirmed, finally!

I'm afraid of not. They will only try to be close as much as possible to the original logo. That means we could get an ugly mixed logo to please the fans and the newcomers but convincing any of them.

[Mugen]

I'm afraid of not. They will only try to be close as much as possible to the original logo. That means we could get an ugly mixed logo to please the fans and the newcomers but convincing any of them.

It is all so weird, the logo was there already in the KS-pitch video. To minimize costs they could just use it and not waste any more time and money on it. On all digital stores the title of the game will be displayed in regular text anyway, most people will not find the game in a store and be confused by the logo. This team sometimes seem to enjoy overcomplicating.

[Snakiest]

It is a "we don't have much to show" kind of update. -)

Something is telling me it will be like this for a while. We might or might not get lucky at E3.

[Let's Get Sweaty]

If we accept that the Bradley Hand ITC logo was a "lazy" effort, then the fact that they haven't gone with the even "lazier" effort of sticking with the original logo exactly as it was would suggest that, perhaps, the choice may not be as simple as people commonly assume.

[wataro]

I hope they prioritise Japanese audio over English
I can't even believe this is being considered
Corey will work for free anyway haha!

[Yokosuka]

Even if dual audio is not offered in the original release it could be added later on through a downloadable update or patch which is quite common now in both console and PC games. I foresee fans or those familiar in modifying game files eventually doing this for the PC version.

MGS5 did allow gamers to download a Japanese language voice pack on Steam.
http://gamingbolt.com/metal-gear-solid- ... pc-version

But Konami did have money. Servers are not free.

[Spaghetti]

Was hoping for the long-awaited update that showed the new Ryo and Shenhua models, but I enjoyed this quite a bit too.

I figure we're in a 'submergence' period like we were between October and February where the devs just get their head down and work. It does bode well for an E3 blow-out though.

[KidMarine]

Hmm... not too much here. I was kind of hoping for direct footage of the videos shown off at Monaco.

[johnvivant]

if the process of providing dual language is too expensive, i'd much rather they spent the money on improving other areas of the game. if the game is successful enough they can always patch in other language options later.