Shenmue

Developers Sega AM2 - Published by Sega. Europe release date December 1st 2000.

Shenmue is one is THE greatest videogames ever to have appeared on any console. Full Stop. And only a decrepid, hungover, vengeful baboon would say different. Written by legendary Yu Suzuki (creator of such arcade classics as OutRun and Hang On) and costing a staggering £70m to make (in 1999/2000 remember) how could it not be? You might as well get used to it, my fanboy nerdy love for Shenmue is going to be dripping from this piece like grease from Tom's hot dogs.
The adventure takes place in Yokosuka, Japan over 3 discs and begins in the peaceful suburb of Yamanose when hero of the game Ryo Hazuki returns home to find the sinister but splendidly silk robed Lan Di in confrontation with his father, Iwao. Lan Di is searching for a mysterious Dragon Mirror and is convinced Hazuki senior has it hidden. When Ryo enters the dojo, Lan Di 'subdues' him with some fine martial arts, then tells the father Ryo will die if he does not give up the mirror. Naturally dad reveals the location and when Lan Di's thugs retrieve it from under a cherry blossom tree near the dojo, Lan Di mentions a man called Sunming Zhao, much to Iwao Hazuki's suprise and fear. Lan Di tells it was Iwao who murdered Zhao and the two engage in a final battle where Lan Di kills Hazuki-san in front of the wounded son then disappears leaving Ryo out cold.
And so begins a truly brilliant game with Ryo, revenge in his lungs, in furious pursuit of his fathers killer.
Yu Suzuki coined the phrase FREE (Full Reactive Eyes Entertainment) for Shenmue pertaining to its open world, go anywhere feel. Combine that with a progression through day and night with a sleep system (Ryo had to go to beddie byes) and real time variable weather effects and Sega AM2 had a truly innovative, groundbreaking title on their hands.
There were four districts in all. Yamanose and Sakuragaoka being suburbs/villages complete with gossiping neighbours and a little grocery store (Abe's Candy). Third location Dobuita was larger boasting better shops and market stalls, a red light district with bars and nightclubs, and the super cool You Arcade where you could actually enter and play arcade classics Hang On and Space Harrier. (It also had other games like darts and a quick time event punching game not to mention a jukebox but the former were a nod to Yu Suzuki's past glories.)
The fourth and largest district was Yoksuka Harbour where much of the action unfolds. And this is also where you as Ryo will land a full time job driving a fork lift truck and delivering crates to the many warehouses. Everyone in the districts you can talk to and question about unfolding events. Even simply walking around taking in the sights and sounds is satisfying because there exists in Shenmue a unique charm that ive not felt in other videogames. It nails the atmosphere dead on. Ive never been to Dobuita and yet I feel as if I have and its this ability to make everything so familiar which makes Shenmue stand alone.
It is a staggering title and eventhough it did have its critics, the majority of players were gobsmacked and revelled in the adventure. Little things like collecting toy capsules featuring famous game/anime characters or having the ability to open every drawer in Ryo's home piled on the realism while huge martial art brawls against multiple opponents in the streets, warehouses and harbours gave it a big movie type flavour. The massive fight at the end which is made up of Ryo and Chen Gui Zhang versus 50 (yes FIFTY) Mad Angels gang members is astonishing.
Fighting is done in two ways; some battles involve basic X button to punch and B to kick controls while others are QTE (Quick Time Event) affairs, requiring the player to press a button matching the one which flashes on screen for a few seconds. These need quick responses to be successful in battle. Controls are easy enough, and this goes for all tasks.
The various different characters in Shenmue flesh it out even further and each has a fair bit to say for themselves. A few stand out characters are Tom, a hot dog van owner with a reggae accent. (You genuinely feel sad when he leaves for America.) Nozomi, who is in love with Ryo but still pootles off to Canada. Master Chen who helps in Ryo's quest. And Chai, a low ranking thug in Lan Di's Chi You Men, who looks like Gollum's lost twin. But there are a whole host of others which make up a colourful, breathing world.
However, as much praise as this Shen-Nerd can heap on it, no article about Shenmue could ever hope to describe the game as well as actually playing it. As ive previously said, it has a charm that is only felt when you are strolling through Dobuita and watching market stall holders close up for the day, or seeing drunks stagger merrily on streets. Even a Santa saunters through with a Ho Ho Ho when Christmas approaches! Make no mistake, this is a Dreamcast title which NEEDS to be played if you are a videogame fan. If you are a Dreamcast owner your collection is not complete without Shenmue. In my opinion it is simply one of THE greatest games ever to have been made.
The ONLY downside is the price these days. Since Dreamcast games have started to have a resurgence lately among gamers and collectors, Shenmue can be found reaching anything from £20 to £120 on auction sites. But this title IS worth the pounds, even at the higher end. Put it like this; I bought this on its first release a decade ago for £35. In the last four years ive bought another 3 copies for between £20 to £30, being lucky enough to have got them before prices really took off. So ive paid around £100 for Shenmue and you know what? Im happy I did. Essential game. 10/10