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| Peter Triezenberg |
Plus some interesting information from Yu Suzuki.
04.19.19 - 8:58 PM
At the Reboot Develop Blue 2019 event, Shenmue creator Yu Suzuki held a "Beachside Chat" panel, wherein he shed some more light on the currently in-development Shenmue III. According to Suzuki, one of the goals of Shenmue III is to offer a game world that is "similar" to reality, rather than being a "simulation" of it. In the images below, for example, you can see some food stands that are distinctly Japanese, despite the Chinese setting: this is to give the area a specific "feeling."
According to Suzuki, his team needs to be engaged in order to make the game better: as such, he has shifted the design of the game to accommodate his teams strengths. He hopes to accomplish things with Shenmue III that weren't possible in the previous games, and interlink some of the game's systems: for example, being able to pawn off an item and them gamble away the money.
The combat in Shenmue III is tied to a skill book, where new skills are unlocked by collecting items. In Baidu Village (one of the game's two main areas), players will be able to earn items and prizes, as well as additional skills. There's also a dojo that can be used for training, and to redo fights that surface over the course of the story. Suzuki is exploring accessibility options for Shenmue III, with the controls becoming more or less complex based on the difficulty setting chosen. Speaking of accessibility, Shenmue III will include a recap for those who haven't played the original games or need a refresher.
It wouldn't be Shenmue without minigames, of course, and Shenmue III will have plenty of them. These include gacha games, crane games, a punching game, and electronic video games. The iconic forklift will also be returning, but its use remains a secret for now. Suzuki went on to assure fans that, while it has been a long time since Shenmue I and II and the playstyle of Shenmue III has changed, he thinks fans will enjoy the result.
Check out our updated gallery for more Shenmue III screenshots, and stay tuned to RPGFan for more info!
