The first teaser for the long-awaited Shenmue III is here and we are hyped. For those new to the franchise, it’s totally OK if you look at the trailer and wonder why it’s such a big deal. You have no emotional connection to Ryo Hazuki and his family. It’s cool.
But those of us who fell in love with Ryo’s story while playing on our Dreamcast systems are so pumped; don’t take away our joy. Ryo traveled the world to learn why his father Iwao Hazuki was murdered. It’s also the game that innovated Quick Time events in cutscenes before it was the cool thing to do.
Yu Suzuki, director of Shenmue III , announced during Sony’s press conference at E3 2015 that the studio would help the game’s distribution. The game needed funding, so Suzuki launched a successful Kickstarter to get the funds necessary to complete the project. For Suzuki, Shenmue III is a passion project he started and needs to finish.
Fast forward to 2017 and Suzuki released the first teaser for Shenmue III just in time for Gamescom. Suzuki released the following statement regarding the teaser:
To celebrate the news, I would like to share with you a teaser video built from a small slice of an in-development build of the game. As you will see, the latest chapter in Ryo and Shenhua’s journey begins with a beautiful set piece in China. You’ll also see that we’re aiming to significantly upgrade the game’s visuals, and you may also notice a new character during that quick glimpse of our new battle gameplay…
I’m pleased to be able to offer a small peek into what we’ve been building thus far, and I am looking forward to the opportunity to show you more as we get closer to our 2018 release.
Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to all those who have supported me and the team. I will continue to work hard to deliver the best possible realization of Shenmue III.
The teaser includes Shenhua and Ryo in what may be a location set in China. Suzuki has yet to confirm details about the game, but it hasn’t stopped internet trolls from ripping the teaser apart. Yes, the animations are slow and the facial movements aren’t quite right, but this is a game in progress made by an indie studio. It’s not going to look like a triple A game. And quite frankly, people weren’t playing the original Shenmue games for the graphics. You played the game to learn more about Ryo’s family history and help him avenge his father’s death.
Shenmue III will be released exclusively on the PlayStation 4 some time in 2018.
