The Shenmue video game debuts as an anime in Japan in 2022

October 10, 2021

Shenmue is a 1999 action-adventure video game developed and published by Sega for Dreamcast. It follows the story of martial arts warrior Ryo Hazuki, who takes revenge for the murder of his father in the 80s in Yokosuka, Japan. The player explores an open world, battling opponents in brawl battles and colliding with sudden events. The environmental detail was considered unprecedented, with numerous interactive objects, a day and night system, variable weather effects, non-player characters with daily schedules and various mini-games.

An anime adaptation of Shenmue was announced on September 4, 2020 at the virtual Crunchyroll Expo and will debut in Japan in 2022.

After developing several successful Sega arcade video games, including Hang-On (1985), Out Run (1986) and Virtua Fighter (1993), director Yu Suzuki wanted to create a longer experience and conceived Shenmue as a ' epic in several parts. In 1996, Sega AM2 began work on an RPG for Sega Saturn set in the world of Virtua Fighter. Development switched to the Dreamcast in 1997 and the Virtua Fighter connection was severed. Shenmue became the most expensive video game ever developed at the time, with an estimated production and marketing cost of $ 47- $ 70 million, although this also covered part of Shenmue II (2001).

Shenmue has received positive reviews. Critics praised its graphics, soundtrack, and ambition, but criticized its controls, slow pacing, and vocal acting; its realism and attention to mundane details have divided the players. Despite sales of 1,2 million, Shenmue did not recoup development costs and was a commercial failure. It has attracted a cult following, has appeared on several lists of the greatest video games of all time, and is credited for pioneering game mechanics such as quick-time events and open worlds.

After the release of Shenmue II, other Shenmue games entered development hell and Suzuki left Sega. In 2018, Sega released Shenmue and Shenmue II ports in high definition for multiple formats. Following a successful crowdfunding campaign, Suzuki developed Shenmue III independently; was released for PlayStation 4 and Windows in 2019.

How to play

The player controls the young warrior Ryo Hazuki as he investigates his father's murder in Yokosuka in 1986. They must explore the open world, looking for clues, examining objects and talking to non-player characters. Occasionally, Ryo battles opponents in combat sequences similar to Sega's Virtua Fighter series; outside of combat, players can practice moves to increase their power. In fast-time events, the player must press the right button within a time limit to be successful. Shenmue presents a persistent world with a level of detail considered unprecedented for the games of the era. Shops open and close, buses follow schedules, and characters have their own routines, each based on the clock in the game. The player can inspect items including drawers, cabinets and shelves, although not all items are interactive. Ryo receives a daily allowance that can be spent on items including food, lottery tickets, audio tapes, and capsule toys. There are several minigames; in the local arcade, for example, Ryo can throw darts or play full versions of the Sega Hang-One Space Harrier arcade games. Later in the game, Ryo gets a part-time job at the docks and has to haul crates between warehouses and compete in races using a forklift.

Edge described Shenmue as “a middle management game, often made up of unattractive daily routines - being home to go to sleep, wisely spending the money earned from a daily job, or training fighting moves through solitary practice - which others games bypass ”.

History

In 1986 in Yokosuka, Japan, teenage martial arts warrior Ryo Hazuki returns to the family dojo to witness a confrontation between his father Iwao and a Chinese, Lan Di. Lan Di easily incapacitates Ryo and threatens to kill him unless Iwao gives him a mysterious stone artifact known as the Dragon Mirror. Iwao tells him the mirror is buried under the cherry tree outside. While his men retrieve the mirror, Lan Di accuses Iwao of killing a man in China. He delivers the coup de grace and Iwao dies in Ryo's arms.

Vowing revenge on Lan Di, Ryo begins his investigation by asking the locals what they saw. As he is about to finish the trail, a letter arrives addressed to Ryo's father from a Chinese named Zhu Yuanda suggesting that he seek the help of master Chen, who works at the port of Yokosuka. Through Chen and his son Guizhang, Ryo discovers that the mirror Lan Di took is one of the two. Locate the second one, the phoenix mirror, in a hidden basement under his father's dojo.

Chen reveals that Lan Di has left Japan for Hong Kong. Ryo borrows money to buy a plane ticket from a disreputable travel agency; when he goes to collect the ticket, he is ambushed by Chai, a member of Lan Di's criminal organization, the Chi You Men, who destroys the ticket. Ryo discovers that the Chi You Men are connected to the local harbor gang, the Mad Angels, and accepts a job at the harbor as a forklift driver to investigate. After causing trouble, the Mad Angels kidnap his schoolmate Nozomi. Ryo rescues her and makes a deal with the leader of the Mad Angels to beat Guizhang in exchange for a meeting with Lan Di. Ryo realizes the deal is a trap and teams up with Guizhang to defeat the Mad Angels.

Ryo organizes a boat trip to Hong Kong with Guizhang. On the day of departure, they are attacked by Chai. Ryo defeats him, but Guizhang is injured and pushes Ryo to go without him, saying he will meet him in China later. Chen advises Ryo to seek the help of a Hong Kong martial artist named Lishao Tao. Ryo boards the boat and leaves for Hong Kong.

Technical data

Original title Shenmue Isshō: Yokosuka
Platform Sega Dreamcast, Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4
Publication date Dreamcasts:
Japan December 29, 1999
Flags of Canada and the United States.svg November 8, 2000
PAL area 1 December 2000
Windows, Xbox One:
World / unspecified 21 August 2018
PlayStation 4:
Japan November 22nd 2018
World / unspecified 21 August 2018
Gender Dynamic Adventure, Role Playing Game, Life Simulator
Origin Japan
Software Sega-AM2
Publication SEGA
Direction Yu Suzuki, Keiji Okayasu, Toshihiro Nagoshi
Production Yu Suzuki, Toshihiro Nagoshi
Design Eigo Kasahara
Programming Keiji Okayasu
Artistic direction Masanori Ohe
Film script Yu Suzuki, Masahiro Yoshimoto, Takao Yotsuji
Music Takenobu Mitsuyoshi, Yuzo Koshiro, Ryuji Iuchi, Takeshi Yanagawa, Satoshi Miyashita, Osamu Murata
Game mode Single Player with Online Features (SegaNet)
Input devices Gamepad, keyboard, DualShock 4
Support 4GD-ROMs, Blu-ray Discs, downloads
Digital distribution Steam, Xbox Live, PlayStation Network
Age range CERO: B ELSPA: 11+ ESRB: T OFLC (AU): M PEGI: 16 USK: 12
Shenmue series
Followed by Shenmue II