Shenmue I & II (2018) review scores?
- Thread starter Let's Get Sweaty
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Nobody reads reviews and Yakuza and Shenmue's similarities are superficial. Thank you.
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Lots of people still read reviewes, but I agree that they're no longer as impactful as they once were.
It's the age of Youtubers now, hopefully it resonates with the more popular ones.
I noticed that Dunkey uses Shenmue's music in several of his videos, hopefully he is a fan and ends up reviewing the Remastered collection .
Youtubers have a LOT of influence nowadays. I am pretty sure Shenmue 1 & 2 will sell well just from positive Youtube reviews alone. I can think of several reasonably popular Youtubers who are Shenmue fans or at least seem to like the games:
- Easy Allies
- Happy Console Gamer
- DreamcastGuy
- RGT 85
- Adam Koralik (of course)
- DigitalFoundry
- Game Informer
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positive reviews are not enough to ensure good sales numbers. there are a lot of games and movies
that have really really really good reviews and hardcore fans
but the sales numbers are below average because "no one" cares about the theme or genre.
and there are games and movies that have just "okayish" or below average reviews
but the series or franchise is so big that it manages to sell more than enough regardless
because the market for that theme or genre is huge.
you need a very very big hype or franchise name to get people interested. (people outside of the fanbase)
or a mechanic / game style that is well known - like Dark Souls.
people wont run to the next shop just because DigitalFoundry or Easy Allies said in a video that Shenmue HD is great.
it only works for games that have a specific game style that a lot of people like or if the franchise is super well known in general.
its way easier to promote games like Assassins Creed or Battlefield or Fallout
because you dont really have to do anything special. the fanbase is enormous even if you dont show any footage.
its way harder to hype special interest genre games or movies. all the more when its a game about a japanese boy
who just talks to people most of the time. (no offense)
that have really really really good reviews and hardcore fans
but the sales numbers are below average because "no one" cares about the theme or genre.
and there are games and movies that have just "okayish" or below average reviews
but the series or franchise is so big that it manages to sell more than enough regardless
because the market for that theme or genre is huge.
you need a very very big hype or franchise name to get people interested. (people outside of the fanbase)
or a mechanic / game style that is well known - like Dark Souls.
people wont run to the next shop just because DigitalFoundry or Easy Allies said in a video that Shenmue HD is great.
it only works for games that have a specific game style that a lot of people like or if the franchise is super well known in general.
its way easier to promote games like Assassins Creed or Battlefield or Fallout
because you dont really have to do anything special. the fanbase is enormous even if you dont show any footage.
its way harder to hype special interest genre games or movies. all the more when its a game about a japanese boy
who just talks to people most of the time. (no offense)
I am sorry but I have to disagree. I have already seen lots of people in the comments on Youtube saying they want to buy Shenmue just because their favorite Youtuber is so passionate about it.
Also see these:
https://www.wired.com/2013/10/stanley-parable-sales/
https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/266684/The_stats_on_how_YouTube_affects_game_success.php
https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news...ame_sales_alive_and_well_with_NecroDancer.php
spud1897
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It's smart marketing strategy as these people on YouTube etc have an instant reach and as mentioned above their fans will listen to them.
Also it will likely detract some people away from the likely crappy reviews some of the 'mainstream' gaming media might give the HD collection.
OP
OP
This certainly helps, which is why it's frustrating that whenever Shenmue is likened in a positive way to a popular, familiar franchise, there's always someone eager to say "No! It's not exactly like that game, therefore it's not like that game at all!"
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People will understand if you liken Zelda to Okami or Darksiders, there are many differences, but at it's core, it's very similar.
This is not the case for Shenmue and Yakuza, where the differences are so significant, they practically occupy different genres.
What will result from these comparisons is that some people might frustrated that this wasn't like their Yakuza games, or others who decide against buying Shenmue because they've heard it's similar to Yakuza.
No good will come out of these comparisons. It's better to make Shenmue stands on it's own merits, instead of likening it to a vastly different franchise that brings along with it a host of problematic expectations.
This is not the case for Shenmue and Yakuza, where the differences are so significant, they practically occupy different genres.
What will result from these comparisons is that some people might frustrated that this wasn't like their Yakuza games, or others who decide against buying Shenmue because they've heard it's similar to Yakuza.
No good will come out of these comparisons. It's better to make Shenmue stands on it's own merits, instead of likening it to a vastly different franchise that brings along with it a host of problematic expectations.
OP
OP
It's possible to acknowledge the similarities between two games, to give someone a frame of reference within something they know and understand, without ignoring the differences.
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you can see that its not so easy in the articles you posted.
It works for games like Layers of Fear because Youtuber can easily produce a reaction video to horror games
because horror is a genre with a huge fanbase and everyone wants to see how afraid their favorite Youtuber is.
it works for games like Stanley Parable because its a weird little game that is perfect for blind playthroughs and reactions.
same thing for NecroDancer. those are all games that you can push and promote way easier than slow story games.
of course it can help when someone like PewDiePie plays Shenmue
because he has so many viewers that its likely that there are some potentially buyers in that crowd.
but the effect will be much bigger when he is playing a survival, crafting, Dark Souls fighting mechanic, horror or a funny game.
with Stanley Parable or Layers of Fear its super easy to produce a entertaining video
that everybody understands with like 10 minutes of gameplay,
that doesnt work so easily with Shenmue. modern games are way more "in your face".
even the Yakuza games are easier to promote because you can just make a compilation of the weird side stuff.
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That makes a lot of sense, I wish that Sony or another company would purchase the rights to Shenmue and give it the treatment it deserves.
On a positive note, I'm sure that $ega will be pleased with all the success of Shenmue I & II, and might even want to support Shenmue III
I just can't wait to get back to Doubuita....
About the review score, I would of course vote 10. I still play Shenmue on the DC and it is a bit of a pain to set up with VGA adapters on a modern TV. Playing Shenmue on a modern console or PC is so much easier, and then the graphics and loading times have been improved. I'm sure that I will spend even more time playing the newer remaster versions than the original versions.
Anyway, about what score I think reviews will give Shenmue I & II, well I'm no so optimistic with the newer generation of gamer. When we see games like COD, other action based FPS games doing so well in sales and in the charts, I can't see how a game as deep and methodical as Shenmue could get a good score. I think younger gamers don't have the patience any more.
I hope I'm wrong and Shenmue does get a fantastic score and I`ll be presently surprised.
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DigitalDuck
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Can we stop with the HURR DURR $EGA I'M SO CLEVER I USED A DOLLAR SIGN INSTEAD OF AN S stuff? It's stupid when people do it with Micro$oft, it's stupid when people do it with $ony, and it's stupid when people do it with $EGA.
Businesses exist to make money. It's what they are, it's what they do. If you've reached adulthood and not realised that yet then maybe you need to get out in the world more.
SEGA are a business. SEGA didn't fund Shenmue III because they didn't think Shenmue III was profitable, and therefore ran counter to the goal of making money.
Sony are also a business. Sony funded Shenmue III because they thought Shenmue III was profitable, and therefore aligned with the goal of making money.
Neither business produces games out of "love". If you think SEGA funded the first two games because they cared about their fanbase and wanted to make them happy, you're naïve. They did it because they thought it would make them money. They were wrong. They didn't do the same for Shenmue III because they thought it would follow the trend set by the first two games and not make them money. Let's hope they were wrong.
Similarly if you think Sony are funding the third game because they care about the fanbase and want to make them happy, you're naïve. They're doing it because they thought it would make them money. Let's hope they're right.
You wake up on your bed that was produced to make money, turn off your alarm clock that was produced to make money, have a shower with water that is provided to you to make money, using soap that was produced to make money and shampoo that was produced to make money, brush your teeth using a toothbrush that was produced to make money and toothpaste that was produced to make money, spit it into your sink that was produced to make money and fitted by someone to make money, pour your box of cereal that was produced to make money into a bowl that was produced to make money, add milk that was produced to make money, eat it using a spoon that was produced to make money, put on clothes that were produced to make money, step outside your front door that was produced by someone to make money, take out your keys that were cut by someone to make money, and lock your front door in order to stop people from stealing your stuff in order to make money.
Maybe once you've gotten into your car that was produced to make money and driven to the petrol station that produces fuel to make money, you might start to wonder why businesses pay people. After all, they'd make more money if they didn't have to pay people! But then, nobody would work for them, so they couldn't produce anything to make money. Satisfied with that explanation, you arrive at your office and do stuff you don't particularly want to do... in order to make money.
Complaining about a business because they're trying to make money is like complaining about a human because they're breathing.
Businesses exist to make money. It's what they are, it's what they do. If you've reached adulthood and not realised that yet then maybe you need to get out in the world more.
SEGA are a business. SEGA didn't fund Shenmue III because they didn't think Shenmue III was profitable, and therefore ran counter to the goal of making money.
Sony are also a business. Sony funded Shenmue III because they thought Shenmue III was profitable, and therefore aligned with the goal of making money.
Neither business produces games out of "love". If you think SEGA funded the first two games because they cared about their fanbase and wanted to make them happy, you're naïve. They did it because they thought it would make them money. They were wrong. They didn't do the same for Shenmue III because they thought it would follow the trend set by the first two games and not make them money. Let's hope they were wrong.
Similarly if you think Sony are funding the third game because they care about the fanbase and want to make them happy, you're naïve. They're doing it because they thought it would make them money. Let's hope they're right.
You wake up on your bed that was produced to make money, turn off your alarm clock that was produced to make money, have a shower with water that is provided to you to make money, using soap that was produced to make money and shampoo that was produced to make money, brush your teeth using a toothbrush that was produced to make money and toothpaste that was produced to make money, spit it into your sink that was produced to make money and fitted by someone to make money, pour your box of cereal that was produced to make money into a bowl that was produced to make money, add milk that was produced to make money, eat it using a spoon that was produced to make money, put on clothes that were produced to make money, step outside your front door that was produced by someone to make money, take out your keys that were cut by someone to make money, and lock your front door in order to stop people from stealing your stuff in order to make money.
Maybe once you've gotten into your car that was produced to make money and driven to the petrol station that produces fuel to make money, you might start to wonder why businesses pay people. After all, they'd make more money if they didn't have to pay people! But then, nobody would work for them, so they couldn't produce anything to make money. Satisfied with that explanation, you arrive at your office and do stuff you don't particularly want to do... in order to make money.
Complaining about a business because they're trying to make money is like complaining about a human because they're breathing.
spud1897
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Money is definitely a driver hence why we as a fanbase need to make sure these games are a success. However without us being so loud about Shenmue 3 and the HD collections Sega and Sony would never have even thought that they would make anything off the series, especially Sega after they got stung by the originals. If they don't make money we don't get more Shenmue.
Points are very valid. Ever so slightly forcefully made, please keep it civil everyone!
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I expect this game to get mostly positive reviews from gaming press, from 7 to 9. Mostly because of the game itself, which is a true masterpiece.
7 could rise because of things like the aspect ratio, the low poly textures not being improved, the absence of subtitles in some languages like italian, and minor stuff like 4K, and if they don’t address the pop up problems I can see some scores going down to 6.
I also can see other reviewers being disappointed because of the fact that Shenmue has not recived a “Kiwami” treatment like Yakuza.
I think we just have to wait and see
7 could rise because of things like the aspect ratio, the low poly textures not being improved, the absence of subtitles in some languages like italian, and minor stuff like 4K, and if they don’t address the pop up problems I can see some scores going down to 6.
I also can see other reviewers being disappointed because of the fact that Shenmue has not recived a “Kiwami” treatment like Yakuza.
I think we just have to wait and see