Shenmue - Review - SquareXO

SQXO Writes: Shenmue is a great game that’s worth a look if you like playing through the old classics. However, you absolutely need to know what you’re getting yourself into before you start, or you’re not going to have a good time. This is not a quick game, and it’s not one you’re going to speed run with any real satisfaction. If you’re after a game where you can sit back and immerse yourself, and time is of no concern to you, you may be onto something — Shenmue has a rich and wonderful world to explore. Just hope that the bugs mentioned above are fixed before you play though. There’s nothing that ruins a game like not being able to see the cutscenes.

[AngainorG7X]

This review is a joke. They give a 6,5 because it is a "slow" game

[Sgt_Slaughter]

Never heard of the site so this also explains a lot

[The_Sage]

Actually... He gave it a 6.5 because of bugs. Audio issues. Cutscenes not playing video even when they contain quick time events that need to be done to progress. Things of that nature. He does say that the developers are working to fix these issues.

[Marcello]

So basically the reviewer doesn't understand that this game has a day one patch & the enormous task of porting this game.

[The_Sage]

So you would just overlook the game breaking bugs because it just launched?.. Would you do the same with other games? That has become a big problem in the industry.

[Eiyuuou]

That would be a fair score then.

[Marcello]

@The_Sage No of course not but he was given a pre launch copy to review, perhaps Sega shouldnt have done that but i cant see them leaving those bugs in the game. The day 1 patch will most likely adress most/all of them.

[Nate47]

To me, if a game has a day one patch then I feel any review site should include that in the review playthrough. It's basically a launch patch with the game and an important one apparently. Any patches after that is up to the review sites if they want to consider them, but often day one patches make a big difference and are a big difference between what gamers are playing and what the review might not have.

[rob-GP]

To those in this small thread wondering - we were told on Friday exactly what’s in the patch which Is coming Out tomorrow. So providing the guy read the release notes, it’s should have been taken into account :)

[Kribwalker]

it’s currently sitting at a 76/100 on meta and thats with a few 90s, so it’s not just this place that’s rating it lower

[343_Guilty_Spark]

It is slow. You can’t interact with a lot of things. The story is meh. Most of the time you’re just walking around hearing people say the same thing over and over.

[DigitalRaptor]

Every NPC is unique. Hundreds of them. I wouldn't be surprised that some of them have a cross over. It's certainly not close to them all being the same thing. I personally don't think you can judge the whole series on the first game alone, when it's methodically slow, and literally designed as is a "prologue" to ease you in to the story. For Shenmue II to then open up into a much larger and faster paced game with more action sequences, more diverse environments and cooler story revelations. The story is simple but engrossing.

"You can't interact with a lot of things" is the most bogus claim I've ever read, in regards to Shenmue. You interact with everyone, and with the environment in ways that most modern games do not. Your downtime is spent in an arcade where you can interact and play Sega arcade games in full. You can even interact with cutscenes using QTE. Are you sure you've played it?

[Jls1]

I feel this game will get alot of hate. Its a 10 to me even on dreamcast.

[RabbitFly]

This review seem to deel with the new HD ports that are coming. So one should not expect it to automatically be on the level of the original.

Shen Mue is the game I, for the longest time, considered my number 1. I love it to bits, but there is no denying that it is a dated game. Which is doomed to happen to any game that is before its time.

The game still holds a very special place in my heart and I plan on playing the remasters regardless. It's been so long and I need to refresh some of the story beats. I just personally don't put much value on putting numerical values on experiences anymore.

[Gunstar75]

Couldn't agree more. Shenmue was a revelation back on Dreamcast, but it it hasn't aged well at all.

It's certainly a classic retro title but I'm not sure what he gamers will get out if it.

[Kosic]

The game could be a terrible mess in this remaster. I'd still play it so come the 3rd I remember every little bit of detail!
It's a classic and a master piece for its time. It's a shame it's one of those hidden gems, that many people never heard off.

[Concertoine]

Shenmue was never for everybody. And i think a lot of people will be surprised by how much they wont like it when they play it. I was a big DC fan and tried it for the first time a few years ago and just couldnt get into it.

I do recognize why people like it and admire it for being such a unique game. I hope for the sake of the fans Shenmue III is like the old games. Not every game should be for everyone.

[babadivad]

I put more hours into Shenmue 1 than 2. But 2 is the superior game of the two. Part one was slow paced. Building a foundation for a series that was expected to last SEVERAL games.

[343_Guilty_Spark]

It was a 100 for me on Dreamcast at the time. I desperately wanted the Dreamcast to topple the PS2 and thought Shenmue might do that. It seemed like the pinnacle of gaming. I remember huge gaming mag spreads talking about how Yu Suzuki wanted Shenmue to be a 16 game title. From the first cutscene I was in awe with how beautiful the game was. Sadly I realized even then outside of heavily scripted events it was as a largely lifeless, repetitive, and boring game. The highlights were the big 70 man fight, QTE, and forklift driving. Yea forklift...

[Nicknasty]

Exactly and it'll get alot of hate because of all the new modern games. They just don't make them like this anymore. Quality over quantity! Shenmue is an instant classic and should be held up there with pong and dragons lair!

[rainslacker]

I can see it not appealing to younger gamers who may not have been used to getting slower paced adventure games. It is a game that one should really know what to expect before buying or else they'd be disappointed if they are hoping for something faster and more exciting that relies on a lot of flash.

Its a different kind of game, from a different generation, but it is a part of gaming history, and did a lot of things that shaped modern games. its worth giving a chance if one can get over the slower pace. There's a long history of good hype and talk about the game, but one should understand that it doesn't play like most modern games do.

[IMissJimRyan]

I don't like the review, but I think Shenmue needs to be played with a historical perspective in mind

[DigitalRaptor]

I think the review is honest.

The first game is known to be much, much slower paced than its more exciting and masterful sequel. I expect this guy to rate Shenmue II higher, unless it's the bugs that drag it down, which (as we know) the day one patch is supposed to fix. :)

[rob-GP]

I don’t want to ruin your expectations but all the bugs and issue I found in both games aren’t listed in the patch notes we were given when we got our codes. I’ve reported all the issues I’ve had but they most likely won’t be in the patch tomorrow.

We already received a big patch before we got codes - as we only got the game on Friday. That also didn’t fix any of these issues.

Shenmue 1 is buggier But can be ‘fixed’ by saving and reloading. Shenmue 2 however suffers from crashing.

[DigitalRaptor]

@ rob-GP

The only patch I have seen in the wild is 1.01.

From what I've heard from reliable sources about today's or tomorrow's patch (which I imagine is going to be 1.02), is an overhaul and introduces massive fixes, and it should have been made available to reviewers, which is quite appalling in my opinion especially for a release as crucial as this. I could be wrong there, but I don't have a reason to distrust anything they said.

[Weeblordbad]

"a release as crucial as this"

Alright buddy slow down, you're getting a bit excited.

[DigitalRaptor]

"Alright buddy slow down, you're getting a bit excited."

I thought it would be obvious, but I'm talking about it being crucial in the sense that folks have been waiting many many years for it to be re-released on modern consoles, and this is the only chance Sega has to release it and treat it as it deserves, without mistakes like this. Sega is not going to re-visit the games after this. This is it.

[rob-GP]

@DigitalRaptor - I wouldn’t say Shenmue is a “crucial” release. It’s A very niche title which will most likely only sell to hardcore fans.

We have the full patch notes, we have known what it’s going to fix since Friday. It’s not a massive list of fixes and it doesn’t address the major issues. All it covers are missing audio files/lines, static noises, some graphical errors in very specific areas and a few other bits across both games.

There is no mention of the cutscene errors, the crashing, the darkness, the watch buttons remaining in the second game etc... you know, all the kinda big things that affect gameplay.

As such, we were all advised to take those things into consideration when reviewing the game. Fixing the sound and graphical errors in the day one patch won’t magically make the game less boring or instantly control much better.

I reported all my issues over the last 3 days to Sega, those probably won’t be updated for about a week or so.

[S2Killinit]

One of, if not the greatest game ive played in my life.

[Orionsangel]

The only review you need to see is from a mega fan like Happy Console Gamer

https://www.youtube.com/wat...

[Weeblordbad]

Because you know that really makes their perspective impartial, and nothing is rooted in nostalgia.

[Orionsangel]

It's coming from a fellow fans perspective. I trust their opinion.

[CrimsonWing69]

oh shut up, the game is old so review it accordingly and for its time! Nobody reviews old times classic movies by the current standards. It shouldn't be any different with games.

[nowitzki2004]

They cant review it for their time because the reviewer probably was too young at that time to even know what it was like

[MWH]

It's a mistake made by many modern reviewers, most of them are incapable of transporting themselves and experience a game in its time ranking it with modern standards. It's the dumbest thing.

And you have those who for example like sports games and then review a rpg and critisize it because the game is long.

[rob-GP]

That’s the problem you, And everyone else has here. You’re all saying the reviewer should review it as is it’s the early 2000’s. Why?

The game comes out tomorrow. Regardless of the fact it came out years ago, we are reviewing the product out tomorrow, not 20 years ago. The game itself is riddled with bugs and glitches atm so that obviously impacts your enjoyment from the game, plus the game has aged badly and doesn’t hold up to today’s standards.

So again, why would you review a game as if you’re back when it came out? In my review I said I can understand why fans love it from when it came out - but based on a new gamer buying it tomorrow - it’s not a very good game.

[rainslacker]

If I were to rate something like FF7 today, I'd probably give it a 7 or 8, and much of that would be because of its story...although I may even take another point off because of the graphics. Back in the day, it'd easily be a 9 or 10. Playing it today, I can still consider it a 9 or 10, because I take it for what it is, and realize that its an older game.

When I rate something like Octopath Traveller, I will rate it higher based on what it's trying to do, which is match the JRPG's of old, even if the game itself doesn't advance on the JRPG genre in any way.

So, yeah, you rate classic games differently, but of course its worth mentioning that people need to realize that its an older game, and should consider it more of a retrospective look back at gaming history, and not a modern game that was built to modern standards. When rating a remaster such as this, you rate the game as it was, then part of the score should be based on how well they did in the remaster...like graphics, performance, improvements or lack thereof, etc.

[MWH]

@rob-GP because it is common sense, an old game that is re-released and not remade with modern tools cannot be put to comparison with today's gaming standards and be criticized as such. if you must compare then it's only fair to be within that factual context.

some outlets are still selling legacy refurbished goods and with your logic I might as well compare a CRT TV with a OLED TV because I bought it today and not 20 years ago.

but i agree with you on that last part; most new gamers won't be attracted to an old game in general.

[Weeblordbad]

It was bad then, so I'm not exactly sure what it you're looking for.

[2pacalypsenow]

Yeah, giving the game a 6.5 because you cant speed run it very easily or it's too slow compared to current games is BS.

I get it has some audio glitches but since when have reviewed affected a game so much for some glitches that will ber addressed?

[rob-GP]

It’s most likely not just because of the pacing. You’ve not played the game - the issues are pretty bad and we don’t know when they will be resolved. Also, a review score is just their opinion. It isn’t right or wrong. However, I agree with the points made as I also found the game not that fun based on it being a game out tomorrow a disregarding the fact it came out 20 years ago.

It should have received a remaster - instead, it’s nothing but a port with a few additions.

[showtimefolks]

Thank you for the honest review I know many don't like the review score but like you said game has issues that needs to be fixed

I still don't understand why sega didn't outsource this to Bluepoint and totally remaster these games

[Strafe]

You review a game for what it is, not what it will become. If I gave you a turd and asked you to review it, would you review it as a turd, or as the polished turd it could become? Serious question. Because some of you people make me laugh. You're so hung up on your memories of a game that you immediately jump on a review of that 'remastered' game.

Grow up Buttercup.

[Weeblordbad]

This community is nothing but children, weeaboos and gate keepers of the highest order. I'm not surprised by any of the sniveling in here

[Weeblordbad]

The game is and always was awful.

[DafunkyRebel]

I always add a 2 points to old games being reviewed in modern times since they didn't have the same tech design, resources and power as the modern games do. So this review should be a 8.5

[YodaCracker]

I always take away 2 points from old games being reviewed in modern times because of nostalgia. So this review should be 4.5.

[Artemidorus]

6.5? It's still a better game than some of the yearly trash offered today.

[TheGamez100]

I like yakuza and most jrpg which are very slow, so im sure Ill like this one. It is a classic so of course review scores may not be up to the standards today.

[Nicknasty]

People have no business reviewing the game if they don't understand where it came from. This was a game that was way ahead of its time. It's not to be compared to any modern game. This is a huge cult classic of a game and must be experienced with an open mind to fully enjoy.

This was Sega dreamcasts big game. It's like how god of war was to PlayStation. From the games world to the music. An instant classic of the early millennium! A game that all us Shenmue fans have been waiting to port over.

[rob-GP]

So you would rather have someone lie to you and tell you it looks and runs great with no issues and pretend the game is interesting and exciting when you’ll be spending 40 mins just stood there waiting for the clock to tick half the time?

The game is about 20 years old. The guys review was based on the version that’s out tomorrow. If you want To keep your rose tinted glasses on, don’t read reviews. Critics have to be unbiased and based their reviews on the latest version and not pretend it’s the 90s.

I’d rather hear the truth if I was a new consumer, not lies and exaggerations of the original game. I personally didn’t like the game either and I’ve played 25-30 hours this weekend and completed I and almost II.

[Nicknasty]

Yea and that's what the reviewer is doing! He's lying to you, so go ahead and be a close minded gamer like him. You should maybe just stick with COD then, or some other typical mindless run of the mill game. You kids these days have such a short attention span and know nothing about classic games. You don't need to lie to everybody by saying you put in 25+hours into it! If you owned the game you would've seen the day 1 patch that fixed all the so called bugs you speak of! That alone shows me you haven't played it. You bitch about how you didn't like it, but poured that many hours into it? Lol, yea right! If you hated it so much, why pour all that time into it? I'll tell you why, because you never played it! Not now nor back then, so save it! If you did, you would know exactly what I and others were talking about. You know nothing about great games! You and this SquareXO need to go get a room.

[rob-GP]

Nicknasty - So I'm closed minded and I'm lying about playing both games? So I'm not a reviewer of another site which got the game from SEGA on Friday afternoon and then spent all weekend playing through both games - completing the first one on Saturday and almost completing the second game before stopping to write my review on Monday? Okay. Believe what you want to believe.

However, I can assure you at the above is true, yet I hold no nostalgia for the game as I never played it when it came out 17 years ago - but, I do love the Yakuza series, having played 4, 5, 6, 0, kiwami, Ishin and dead souls all through to completion (other than Ishin and DS) and sunk in over 150 hours on a few of them such as 4 and 5. Unfortunately, Shenmue has aged terribly - it looks really bad, the controls are really clunky, the story of the first game is a simple 'go here, talk to them, go there, talk to them' story with very little depth, and the second game is almost impossible to find anything with its terrible level design.

Based on today's standards of gaming, the game is a 6-7 at best, with the second game lower due to its horrific navigation. Nobody, other than nostalgic people will review the game based on how it was 17 years ago when looking at the modern re-release - or at least they shouldn't.

Just because people have a different opinion to you doesn't make them wrong or a liar - it just makes you someone who can't comprehend that not everyone will like the things you do - if they did then this world would be very boring.

If you require 'proof' that I've played the game, as I imagine you're one of those who won't believe it until you see it - https://psnprofiles.com/tur... - as you can see, I'm a few trophies off the platinum on both games. So, who has more of an understanding of how this particular re-release works? The guy who is clearly obsessed and jaded by the original game from 17 years ago - or the guy who has put in over 30 hours now (that's right, I played a bit more last night) and has experienced everything from the crashing, cutscenes screw-ups, terribly textures on a 50" tv, poor audio quality, clunky gameplay, repetitive nature, and overall boredom from playing the game?

I imagine you will still say you, and I honestly don't care - just try not to call someone a liar when they clearly aren't...

[Kosic]

Fortunately, I got my copy in the post yesterday but I do not have the time to play it while I'm getting through Octopath Traveller. So by the time I put in Shenmue the bugs would hopefully be fixed.
Wish there was a ps4 pro enchance option for this classic.

[BLKxSEPTEMBER]

Who really needs a review on this game though? It’s been out for decades and I believe that the majority of the people looking to buy this game have played it before. New comers will probably get frustrated by the old school gameplay (QTE’s) that Shenmue is known for. I enjoyed Part 2 but I wasn’t really a fan of the first game.

I don’t need a review for games that have been out for decades and have nothing added but enhanced graphics. I think younger gamers will be expecting Yakuza but they will be sorely disappointed.

[rob-GP]

That's where a lot of reviewers and people are going wrong. Sure, reviews should include a little bit about the story but as you say, everyone knows the story - or has at least heard bits of it. The main chunk of the review should be on how the re-release performs and operates as a whole and how it runs as a new-comer. I'm 34yrs old, yet I never played either of the two games back in the day as I gamed on different consoles, so this re-release was my first encounter with them - I love Yakuza and everyone has always said it's like those, so I had high hopes.

Also, as you said, I was actually really disappointed and honestly can't see the hype surrounding both games. Technically, they haven't aged well and new-comers to the game will most likely buy into them due to the hype and end up also being disappointed due to the original mechanics being present.

Nothing has been updated to accommodate modern gaming - no autosave (even though they crash), no modern controls (even though it says they are there), no decent textures etc... To me, this collection is for the fans - those who don't need to read reviews. The only ones kicking off at sites who gave the game a realistic score based on today's gaming mechanics are people who are out looking to moan at people with different opinions. Yet most of these sites with lower grades are those who have analysed the core gameplay mechanics and not based their score on the story or memories of playing it 17 years ago.

Seriously, I used to think Nintendo fans were among the most obsessive and aggressively defensive, but now I believe they are the Shenmue community based on the abuse I've received on Twitter over my opinions and observations.

[jznrpg]

People too young to play this when it originally released or never played it will give it low scores. Peoples attention span and inability to take games for what they are and realize this is not a new game. A good example is 343guiltspunk “you can’t ineract with a lot of things “