Shenmue III Deluxe Edition

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3.6/5

( 9 Reviews )

3.6

9 Reviews

English & 8 more

Overall most helpful review

Posted on: November 22, 2020

Cal_Neill

Games: Reviews: 31

Meeting the Bare Minimum

Having played Shenmue 3 on Steam a few times after replaying Shenmue 1 and 2, I'm going to say that Shenmue 3 is passable. My opinion does not include the wait that every Shenmue player had to go through in-between Shenmue 2 and 3 along with the 'messes'. It meets the bare minimum. It also feels like a sequel that was developed and released in the late 2000s rather than 2019, so there's some charm in that. - Shenmue 3 controls like a modern Shenmue 2 - if not worse. - Shenmue 3 has a ridiculous amount of padding when compared to Shenmue 1 and 2. - Shenmue 3's story progression of the entire series is almost nothing (and is at the end of the game), and it focuses on reintroducing Shenmue players back into the Shenmue world instead. - Shenmue 3 has a few nice mini-games, but - otherwise - they do get dry; you'll need to play them a lot to earn money and to eventually gamble based on a fortune teller's word to progress the game efficiently. - Graphically, Shenmue 3 is like most janky Japanese 3D video games in the early 2010s and is very faithful to the Shenmue style. - Shenmue 3's voice acting is somewhat better than Shenmue 1 and 2, but its dialogue has more filler than both of those games combined. - Shenmue 3's music is, hands-down, the best part of it. - Shenmue 3's QTEs are as expected, like Shenmue 1 and 2 but a little more polished. - Shenmue 3's character background explorations can be very much appreciated, especially if you had played Shenmue 2. - Shenmue 3's combat is a lot worse than both Shenmue 1 and 2; it's janky, unresponsive at times, lacks polish, has somehow worse animations, and provides no real feedback for hits. - Shenmue 3's environments stand out a lot too; I love the town near the final act. Shenmue 3 is faithful to a fault; it's so Shenmue that it highlights the best and worst aspects of both Shenmue 1 and 2 to an extreme. I like parts of Shenmue 3, but I do not recommend it at all, especially when the series' story is nowhere near done.

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Posted on: November 20, 2020

JLH

Games: 399 Reviews: 29

It still has the Shenmue mojo but...

So the art direction, voice acting, and gameplay feel very much in the spirit of the two previous games. The pacing is almost fine with the exception of several points where you have to raise money to progress the story. It feels like a forced uncreative way to lengthen the game. The mini games are not classic sega games. Practicing martial arts to raise your stats feels as tedious as chopping wood or finding plants to raise money. The story doesn't bring you anywhere closer to closure for this franchise and you're left in a spot where you got a few tidbits about the history of the mirrors but that's about it. However the game still has a certain charm, and as a day 1 backer i'm glad we got this game. It could've been better. Especially the physical release. It was really disappointing to know that people who waited after the kickstarter got a better value collector's set than what we were offered. I mean, the way this game released (not talking about the game itself here) was just bad. Whoever handled the PR after the kickstarter did a horrible job. So...It's not a great game and it's not bad either. It's not exactly a beautiful game but it does feel right for shenmue today. The music was fine and the locations were just okay. I miss the bustling cities and kowloon walled city was probably the coolest setting for a game ever. There aren't crowds in the streets in shenmue 3 which is a bummer. To sum this up...if you love shenmue you should really play this game. Make sure your expectations are in the right place and you'll have some fun. Although not as wonderful as the original games it still has the shenmue mojo all over it. Worth it for fans. It'd be hard to appreciate what is here without playing the first two games. Overall a C+ game in my opinion. I'd say my love of shenmue helped make this a strong C instead of a weak one.

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Posted on: February 5, 2023

natemus75

Games: 20 Reviews: 1

Worst of the trilogy

Major downgrade from the previous installments. I helped fund the game when it was first announced, Shenmue I and II are two of my favorite games of all time, but I can't recommend Shenmue III. I looks fine, sounds great but it controls like a dollar store ripoff. Shenmue I and II used the Virtua Fighter engine for its combat. Shenmue III uses random button mashing. Blocking, countering, grapple attacks, all gone. Just mash buttons and hope you ate enough garlic beforehand. "Garlic?" You ask... That's right, in Shenmue III you need to eat to keep your health up outside of combat. Having a basic needs system isn't the issue, the problem is it's tied to your health and you'll often enter fights with half of it depleted. On a positive note fishing is fun tho. I'm not saying don't get it, just temper your expectations.

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Posted on: June 21, 2023

bladerunner01

Verified owner

Games: 749 Reviews: 108

shenmue 1 and 2 needed

shenmue 1 and 2 are really needed over here i have the shenmue trilogy on steam and would be an instant buy if shenmue 1 and 2 were to make their way over here as i would like to have a drm free copy of these games

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Posted on: November 20, 2020

Kazlab208

Verified owner

Games: 37 Reviews: 1

Shenmue 3 is what it is meant to be

Shenmue 3 is a game that we hardcore fans have been anticipating for years with no avail. 2015 however saw a change in this with the announcement of Shenmue 3 being in development. 4 ½ years later was when we saw the release of the game on PS4 and Epic Games Store and today (November 19th 2020) we see the release of the game on Steam and GOG. Shenmue 3 takes place immediately after Shenmue 2 with it continuing on from the cliffhanger. Again we are in Ryo’s quest in China to take revenge for his father from the hands of Lan Di. This new chapter goes into more detail with Shenhua, the girl you met in the forest originally in Shenmue 2, with Ryo able to get into more of her backstory when you are resting at her house. More new characters are introduced that help Ryo on his journey who feel like they belong in this game world. I played through Shenmue 3 twice since it was originally released and can say it definitely meets expectations for hardcore fans. It was supposed to be a game for the fans first and it shows for better or worse. Newcomers might want to start with Shenmue 1 & 2 as a litmus test before jumping into 3 because if said players don’t like how those original games play then they will also feel the same way about 3. Hoping for a Shenmue 4 in the future and with the future anime series coming out will maybe bring more interest in the series to make 4 a reality.

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