Shenmue

aka: Project Berkley, Shenmue: Isshō - Yokosuka, Virtua Fighter RPG
Moby ID: 3558
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Special Edition

Description official descriptions

On a November day when the snow turned to rain, Ryu Hazuki arrives home just in time to see his father killed by Lan Di, a man Ryu's father obviously knew very well. Ryu attempts to stop Lan Di but is effortlessly beaten to within an inch of his life. After recovering from his injuries Ryu sets out to track down his father's murderer, as well as uncover his family's secrets and the mystery of the Phoenix and Dragon mirrors that Lan Di seeks.

Shenmue is a hybrid game that incorporates elements of life simulation, adventure, and fighting with light role-playing. The game is set in a 3D environment that can be freely explored by the player. Much of the gameplay involves talking to Ryu's friends and the various people around town, hoping to find hints or clues that lead to the next step in the story. Any details Ryu learns are written down in his notebook for future review. Ryu can buy items from stores or try his luck with capsule toy machines, but most items that can be bought have no purpose outside of filling his inventory. Ryu can also visit an arcade and play accurate versions of Hang-On and Space Harrier, as well as games like darts and pool.

Ryu is a trained martial artist, and while a true martial artist knows it is better to avoid a fight, sometimes it is still necessary. Ryu can train his moves, either by repeatedly doing them while training or by sparring with his friend Fuku-san, which constitutes the role-playing element of the game. The fighting system is similar to that of the Virtua Fighter series, although with toned-down air juggling. Ryu's training also gives him heightened reflexes, and sometimes during a cutscene the player will have only a moment to press a button (displayed onscreen) to get Ryu out of danger. Failing an input prompt is not always fatal, but whether Ryu survives or not depends on the danger he was in.

Included with the game is the Shenmue Passport disc. On this disc, players can receive tutorials about various aspects of the game like mini-games or the battle system, watch cutscenes they've already seen in the game, and listen to music from the game. This disc also includes the option to go online to a special site where players can review worldwide mini-game rankings, get hints for the game from Nozomi, review game maps of Yokosuka, trade uncommon items found in the game for even rarer items only available on the passport, and visit the official homepage. This service went offline along with the rest of SegaNet, and all online features are currently impossible to access.

Spellings

  • シェンムー 一章:横須賀 - Japanese spelling
  • 莎木 第一章 橫須賀 - Chinese spelling (traditional)

Groups +

Screenshots

Promos

Credits (Dreamcast version)

955 People (850 developers, 105 thanks) · View all

Composers
Words
Arrangers
Conductor
Orchestra
  • Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra
  • Shenmue Orchestra M-1
Kokyu
Yanchin
Vocal
Producers
Director
Recording, Mixing & Mastering Engineer
Promotion Staff
Recorded at
  • PolyGram Studios STUDIO-A
  • Avaco Creative Studios 301st
Mixed at
  • PolyGram Studios STUDIO-D
[ full credits ]

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 90% (based on 58 ratings)

Players

Average score: 4.1 out of 5 (based on 165 ratings with 8 reviews)

An amazing, incomparable experience. Pure genius.

The Good
For every clone of Ocarina of Time, there is only one Shenmue. Ocarina of Time was the poor mans adventure, simply a 3D version of a 2D game which is Nintendo's style. It added very little to the established conventions of the series, relying on gimmicks such as time travel (which affected little not pertaining to the plot) to sell units. While Shigeru Miyamoto was busy scribbling his brain farts onto a notepad and sliding them under the door of whoever would read them Yu Suzuki was working on what would become the most engrossing, cinematic adventure I have ever played.

You play Ryo Hazuki, a young man, burgeoning on manhood. His relationship with his friend Nozomi is a source of much drama throughout the course of his adventure. At the beginning of the game Ryo's father is killed by a mysterious Chinese fellow named Lan Di. Shenmue then chronicles Ryo's day to day exploits as he tracks Lan Di down around his home and neighbouring areas. The story is heartbreaking at times, the sound design marrying perfectly with the action on screen to produce a delicate harmony of thematic elements. In addition to Ryo's search for Lan Di and his awkward relationship with Nozomi minor characters in the game also feature their own developing personal lives that you can check up on from time to time. One of the best story features I noticed was the inclusion of the telephone. You can call Nozomi occasionally and other people too and have conversations with them. Doing this is a great way of gaining a deeper insight into the characters outside of traditional cut scenes.

Shenmue is different in the sense that everything it does is an effort to differentiate itself. Suzuki San incorporates a flood of ideas into the game and while if others attempted this, the game would seem fragmented, Suzuki San's genius shines through and it all works.

Shenmue is not an open world game, but it does incorporate a world. It is strictly linear, but everything in this linearity seems to exist. Every single person on the street has something to say, with their own distinctive personality. You encounter different people depending on what time of day you go out, some more willing to give you information or directions than others. While Suzuki San wanted Ryo's world to be perceived as realistic he still does his best to emphasise that this is a game. While the vending machines have been criticized by some less than reasonable people they play into the collectibles that could be traded with the Shenmue Passport disc when the service was still active. Elaborating on the living world Ryo inhabits you can pick up nearly everything loose in his house, look at them and put them back down. There is no real practical purpose for them other than to emphasise that Ryo's world is tangible. It's so clever. The player can also play arcade games like Hang On and Space Harrier, or a game of darts of practice the game's QTE system using QTE Excite. High Scores for these games could then be shared online with other Shenmue players.

The QTE system was one of the most heavily advertised features of Shenmue before its release. These sequences are scripted story sequences that feature quick timed button presses necessary to advance the story. If you miss a button press it doesn't always mean you will fail, but most of the time you will need to restart. Shenmue is by no means the first game to feature QTE's. The concept has been around as long International Track and Field but Shenmue is the first game to incorporate them into the progression of the story.

Shenmue isn't all love stories and Space Harrier. Ryo has a plethora of martial arts move he can execute, learning more from scrolls or helpful NPC's. You can practice these in your father's Dojo or around Yokusaka or Dobuita. You then utilize these moves in what is dubbed "Free Battle" a system wherein a cutscene will trigger a fight between Ryo and whoever seems to be antagonizing him. The system takes a little getting used to, being a hybrid 2D/3D fighting engine. The moves you end up being able to pull off though make it worth learning the system. It's satisfying being able to successfully shadow step behind an enemy and then paralyze them with a punishing blow to the back of the neck.

Then there are minor incidental details about Shenmue you might even not notice, because they are so well integrated into the core game. The weather in the game is called "Magic Weather" and in Japan you could dial up your Dreamcast to the internet and Shenmue would download the forecast for your area, changing the weather to match what you could see by looking out of the window. Finishing the game allows you to play with the actual weather from 1986 painstakingly researched for you. The time I mentioned before adds a degree of strategy to how you play the game. You can head into town, looking for clues but if you spend too much time in one place you might miss someone, so you need to plan accordingly what you are going to do that day. You have no shortage of things to do though to pass the time. You can find and talk to Nozomi, give someone a call, grab a Soda, play a game or simply walk around and soak up the guy walking around with a Santa suit on. Whatever you want to do, is up to you. The game doesn't tell you how to play it, it lets you work out what you want to do in this living world.

The Bad
While the music is beautiful, cinematic in its own way the voice acting in Shenmue comes off as lacklustre at time. Ryo's voice sometimes lacks emotion however I believe this is primarily because of the way he was raised, his character is very emotional.

Eventually you have to get a job to advance the story. Compared to the previous section of the game you've just played this tends to drag a bit. There are lots of exciting fights though, so it is balanced in that respect.

You can no longer use the awesome internet features of the Passport disc that comes with Shenmue. It's a shame because there is some really cool stuff on it.

The Bottom Line
Shenmue is Yu Suzuki's magnus opum. It went places that no other game had gone before. It went somewhere different while remaining comfortably familiar. You are engrossed in Ryo's plight as he searches for Lan Di and how his world changes as he matures through this experience. The music is an amazing, cinematic achievement and the graphics are beautiful. Ocarina of Time is often quoted as the best game ever made, but if you ask me it was more of the same flushed with gimmicks that appeals to only the most low brow of gamers with a closed mind.

Shenmue is a masterpiece of the highest order, polished to an incandescent sheen and in a place no other game will ever go.

Dreamcast · by AkibaTechno (238) · 2010

A work of Art (Capital A intentional)

The Good
This game is full of firsts. Let me count the ways:

  1. It's the first dubbed game I have ever played where I didn't feel compelled to assemble an elite cadre of ninja to hunt down and punish the voice actors for their crimes. It's bad, but oddly fitting. Ryo's speech is stiff and stilted, but so's he. His mom's voice is grating yet forgettable, and so's she. In fact throughout the whole game Ryo is either ignoring his mother, or trying to wheedle cash out of her. If the CAPalert guy did video games, he'd have a heyday with this one.

  2. This is the first game I have ever played where I can honestly say I was engaged and enthralled driving a forklift around all day. Granted, it's the first one that's ever tried, but that's beside the point.

  3. It's also the first one in which I got my throat sliced by a small gang of japanese schoolgirls. Why this doesn't happen in more games, perhaps I'll never understand.

    The Bad
    Though I loved the idea of upgrading Ryo's moves on a daily basis, I found the system confusing. I never found out whether your moves improve through practice or through that menu you get every night. I assume it's a combination of the two.

    The Bottom Line
    Most important, of course, is the reality of this game. I rented it, and had to play it for three days straight to beat it in time to return it. Upon quitting, I found myself constantly comparing reality to the game engine. At times, I found Shenmue to be superior. If that doesn't justify purchasing it, I don't know what does.

Dreamcast · by Tom Blackwell (6) · 2001

The soda-buying simulator

The Good
The level of detail is unsurpassed by any other Dreamcast game I have ever seen, period. This is the closest thing to walking down an actual street in a claustrophobic small Japanese town besides actually getting a plane ticket and just doing it. Also, the playable Sega classics in the arcade will have you yearning for the days of the single quarter game.

The Bad
Um... where's the game? Fight sequences are extremely rare until the later part of the game, which tries to make up for the lull by having you beat the drud out of about 50-60 guys. Until then you're treated to Ryo's burning hunger for vengeance taking the form of him wandering around town looking largely apathetic to the events around him. The plot advancement is pretty tepid, featuring you asking every single person you come across the same question again and again, some of which the player has observed in the intro. It's a pretty boring verbal scavenger hunt. "Have you seen a... car?" "Why yes, it was a... black car." And thus you start asking everybody if they've seen a... black car. Ryo's personality is bad enough, but the budget voice talent will have even the most die-hard dub fan turning on the original voice track with subtitles. Also, considering this is about a sixth of the intended product... not cool.

The Bottom Line
It's a fascinating attempt, and certainly one that took a whole lot of sweat and love from the developers. I just couldn't imagine forking over full price for it.

Dreamcast · by Vance (94) · 2002

[ View all 8 player reviews ]

Discussion

Subject By Date
I don't think this is a simulation game White Snail (122) Jan 3, 2021
Clear Game Save GNJMSTR (106) Jul 3, 2009

Trivia

1001 Video Games

Shemue appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Budget

In the 2008 Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition, the Dreamcast version of Shenmue is listed as the most expensive game ever to develop at $70 million.

Development

Shenmue started development on the SEGA Saturn. The Dreamcast and Xbox versions of Shenmue II both contain a video of scenes from the Saturn prototype, accessible when you beat the game and save your file. The scenes are impressive given the limited power of the Saturn. The working title was Virtua Fighter RPG and the protagonist Ryo was in fact based on Akira from the Virtua Fighter series.

The game was supposed to be quite longer than what it ended up to be. The game progressed further into Hong Kong and even had flashback sequences were you got to play as young Ryo. Due to time constraints and market pressure the decision was made to cut the game at the point were Ryo sets sail to Hong Kong, however lots of the mentioned sequences were already produced and included in Shenmue 2.

Inaccuracies

The game takes place in the mid-80s on a definite timeline, but the weather is inaccurate. There is an unlockable mode to play with the actual historical weather for that period of time.

Marketing

During promotions at Tokyo of the original Dreamcast version Sega used displays featuring real forklifts (as used in the harbour scenes) holding TV's displaying previews of the game.

Mini games

Shenmue features the ability to play Space Harrier and Hang-On, the original 80's arcade games made by Sega. Both games were also created and designed by Yu Suzuki.

References

Although the game takes places in the 1980´s, Ryo Hazuki has a Sega Saturn hidden under his TV set. Said console was not available in Japan until late November of 1994, but like the references to Sonic, Virtua Fighter and Virtua Racing games, these things have no effect in the game and where included to please Sega fans.

Soundtrack on vinyl LP

In summer 2015, a remastered recordings of the Shenmue soundtrack are released on vinyl LP by Data Discs. The recording contains 13 tracks from the game by the composers Takenobu Mitsuyoshi, Ryuji Iuchi, Osamu Murata and Yuzo Koshiro. The remastering was done by Shawn Hatfield (Audible Oddities). (Sources: Data Discs product description, LP at Discogs)

Awards

  • GameSpy
    • 2000 – Dreamcast Game of the Year

Information also contributed by Chris Chidester; David Mackenzie, J. Michael Bottorff, Juan Pablo Bouquet, Karthik KANE, Lain Crowley, Jo, tangledcontrolpads and Vance

Analytics

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Related Games

Shenmue II
Released 2001 on Dreamcast, 2002 on Xbox
Shenmue III
Released 2019 on Windows, PlayStation 4
Shenmue I & II
Released 2018 on Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Shenmue III: Battle Rally
Released 2020 on PlayStation 4, Windows
Shenmue III: Story Quest Pack
Released 2020 on Windows, PlayStation 4
Bright Memory: Episode 1
Released 2019 on Windows, 2020 on Xbox Series
Shenmue III: Big Merry Cruise
Released 2020 on PlayStation 4, Windows
Shenmue III: Complete DLC Collection
Released 2019 on PlayStation 4, 2020 on Windows

Related Sites +

  • Shenmue Dojo
    The biggest Shenmue fansite online with videos, music, artwork and everything else related to this great series.
  • The Hazuki Dojo
    A fansite that contains videos, fan fiction, downloadable material and all kinds of information for the dedicated Shenmue fan.
  • The Shenmue Legend
    Everything you could want from a dedicated Shenmue site plus more. All the info, on all Shenmue topics, no matter how obscure.

Identifiers +

  • MobyGames ID: 3558
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Grant McLellan.

Additional contributors: Julian McKenzie, Zovni, Kaliban, Unicorn Lynx, Sciere, Joby Kuriako, Игги Друге, —-, Patrick Bregger, Jo ST, FatherJack.

Game added April 3, 2001. Last modified March 25, 2024.