Can't get past shenmue launcher

[DeathOfCloud]

I've recently purchased shenmue 1 & 2 on steam and i was wondering if anyone else had this persistent problem? whenever i click shenmue 1 on the launcher it just reboots the launcher like as if nothing happened but if i click shenmue 2 it works perfectly fine and runs fine i'm not sure what to do i've tried many options such as trying to bypass the launcher by creating a text file in the game's folder but it didn't do anything and instead it just boots the launcher....again unless i'm doing it wrong? i'm not too sure but help is very much appreciated

 

[spud1897]

I've recently purchased shenmue 1 & 2 on steam and i was wondering if anyone else had this persistent problem? whenever i click shenmue 1 on the launcher it just reboots the launcher like as if nothing happened but if i click shenmue 2 it works perfectly fine and runs fine i'm not sure what to do i've tried many options such as trying to bypass the launcher by creating a text file in the game's folder but it didn't do anything and instead it just boots the launcher....again unless i'm doing it wrong? i'm not too sure but help is very much appreciated

I had that exact opposite issue with being about to boot Shenmue 1 but not 2 recently.

I ended up doing a clean install of the games and it kicked it into gear. Have yiy done that?

 

[Seaman]

Source:
PcGamingWiki - Shenmue 1&2 HD Remaster

Issues fixed
Cannot get past the launcher

It is possible to bypass the launcher if it does not work properly (usually related to .NET Framework issues on the system).

Create a launcher bypass file
Go to <path-to-game>.
Open either the sm1 or sm2 subfolder, i.e. the binary folder of either game (which will include either Shenmue.exe or Shenmue2.exe).
Create a blank text file within that folder called steam_appid.txt.
In that text file, enter 758330 and then save the file.
Create a shortcut to/run the game via the aforementioned Shenmue.exe or Shenmue2.exe.
(Optional) Repeat for the other binary folder if required.

Note: Also, many problems with .NET Framework comes from faulty installations, which can be repaired with its setup file. Remember that some games require installing the x86 update too, no matters its x64 binaries