Shenmue

From Sega Retro

For Japanese re-release version of this game, see US Shenmue.

n/a

Shenmue title.png

Shenmue
System(s): Sega Dreamcast
Publisher: Sega
Developer:
Peripherals supported: Dreamcast Modem, Visual Memory Unit, Dreamcast VGA Box
Genre: F.R.E.E./RPG

















Number of players: 1
Release Date RRP Code
Sega Dreamcast
JP
¥6,8006,800 HDR-0016
Sega Dreamcast
JP
(Limited Edition)
¥6,8006,800 HDR-0031
Sega Dreamcast
US
$49.9549.95[1] 51059
Sega Dreamcast
US
(Limited Edition)
$49.9549.95[1] 51059
Sega Dreamcast
EU
MK-51059-50
Sega Dreamcast
BR

Shenmue, called Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka (シェンムー 一章 横須賀) in Japan (i.e. "Chapter I: Yokosuka") , is an adventure game produced and directed by Yu Suzuki and developed by Sega AM2. It was published by Sega for the Sega Dreamcast in late 1999.

Shenmue stands as one of the most significant video games ever published by Sega, at the time being the most expensive game ever produced, and having unparalleled interactivity and freedom, real-time day/night and weather systems, fully voiced non-playable characters and cutting edge graphics. Borrowing from many genres of video games, Suzuki coined a new genre name, "F.R.E.E." (Full Reactive Eyes Entertainment) to describe it.

As the Japanese name suggests, Shenmue consists of the first chapter in what is currently an unfinished story.

Story

File:Shenmue035.jpg
Ryo Hazuki, protagonist of Shenmue.

The fictional story of Shenmue begins on November 29, 1986, in the perspective of the protagonist Ryo Hazuki (芭月 涼 Hazuki Ryō) returning home to his family dojo to witness his father, Iwao Hazuki battling with a man named Lan Di, dressed in Chinese attire, who demands he hand over an item known as the "Dragon Mirror". Ryo intervenes in battle after his father is felled, but is injured by a blow from Lan Di. As his father refuses to reveal the location of the mirror, Lan Di lifts Ryo from the ground and threatens to kill him with a final blow, which prompts Iwao to reveal its location underneath the Cherry blossom tree.

After Lan Di's henchmen recover the mirror, he asks Iwao if he knows of a man called "Sunming Zhao" and then kills him after forcibly asking him to stand as a warrior to face his end. As Ryo lies injured on the floor of the dojo, Lan Di and his men leave the Hazuki household. After Ryo has partially recovered he feels that he must dutifully gain revenge for the murder of his father, and begins to instigate inquiries into the incident with the local people of his hometown, Sakuragaoka.

Ryo's first clue is a car that some of his neighbours saw on the day of the murder. Though his leads are few and far between, Ryo slowly makes progress in his investigation by interviewing people all over Yokosuka. Just as he is about to run out of leads, a letter from a man named Yuanda Zhu suggests that he seek the aid of a certain Master Chen, who works at the harbour. Through Chen and his son Guizhang, Ryo learns that a local wharf gang known as the Mad Angels is connected to Lan Di's crime organization, the Chiyoumen. Ryo also learns that "the mirror" stolen by Lan Di is part of a set of two mirrors. After much investigation, he locates the second mirror underneath his father's dojo. This mirror is decorated with a Phoenix.

Ryo takes a job on the waterfront in order to learn more about the Mad Angels gang, and eventually he causes them enough trouble that the gang kidnaps his friend (and principal love interest) Nozomi Harasaki. To rescue Nozomi, Ryo must first fight Guizhang, then team up with Guizhang to defeat all seventy members of the Mad Angels gang. Upon defeat, the gang's leader reveals to Ryo that Lan Di has left Japan for Hong Kong. With the aid of the Chen family as well as his family and friends, Ryo boards a boat to Hong Kong. Before the close of the first chapter (and subsequent end of the game itself), he is instructed by Master Chen to seek out the help of a master of the Chinese martial arts located in Wan Chai named Lishao Tao.

Shenhua, a mysterious young girl who haunts Ryo's dreams.

Concluding the first chapter of Shenmue, Ryo boards a boat and travels to Hong Kong in pursuit of Lan Di.

Gameplay

Shenmue was envisioned as the next evolution of RPGs, although its design incorporates a number of genres, attempting to simulate life in the mid-1980s while also including puzzle solving, fighting segments and even the occasional race. The game is very much story-driven, and uses very simple mechanics designed so that anyone could play (as opposed to the likes of Virtua Fighter, which Yu Suzuki claimed were too daunting for younger players).

Most of the game is spent, as Ryo, walking around Yokosuka in Japan, talking to people. It is interspersed with many "mini-games", including forklift and motorcycle races, bar fights, chases down crowded alleys, full versions of Sega arcade games Space Harrier and Hang-On, dart games and 'free fighting' sequences. The game was remarkable for its time for allowing the player to talk to every NPC they came across (who are in turn, fully voiced) and allowing Ryo to interact with hundreds of object seen in the game.

Shenmue is governed by an in-game clock and fully implements a day-to-night cycle, with certain events only occuring at certain times of day (or indeed year, in some cases). Players are not, however, restricted by the date and time - it is fully possible to spend in-game months and years in an area. How the player plays the game in this first chapter of Shenmue was originally set to influence the story in later chapters, though this feature was never fully implemented.

Weather also changes depending on the time of year, and is reportedly based on observed real-world weather patterns of the mid-to-late 1980s.

Most of the action occurs in quick-time event (QTE) sequences, in which cutscenes differ in outcome depending on your accuracy in hitting buttons in a timely fashion.

As opposed to standing still and dispensing the same lines of dialogue, as is common to most RPGs, non-playable characters in Shenmue live their lives in accordance to Japan's then-5½-day working week, leaving their houses to start work, taking lunch breaks and going home at the end of the day[4]. The development team also made sure each NPC has its own name, age and hobbies, and characters will also react to the weather, with some taking out umbrellas when it begins to rain.

There are 168 different capsule toys in Shenmue, featuring characters and objects from Bonanza Bros., Daytona USA, Fantasy Zone, Golden Axe, Hang-On, NiGHTS into Dreams], Panzer Dragoon, Phantasy Star, Rent A Hero, Ristar, Sonic Adventure, Sonic the Fighters, Space Harrier, Virtua Fighter and Virtua Fighter Kids. Alex Kidd also makes an appearance, as does Hidekazu Yukawa, alongside a number of smaller versions of Shenmue objects.

History

Development

Main article: Shenmue/Development.

Release

Shenmue saw wide critical acclaim after release due to the many revolutionary features it brought to the world of video games. However, despite the praise, Shenmue struggled to sell. Some critics believed the game was far too slow and self indulgent. Though easy to sell to Japanese audiences, Western consumers found the game's themes unappealing.

The game sold at a massive loss, and it is predicted that every Dreamcast owner would have needed to buy the game twice in order for it to turn a profit. Initial plans were to create a trilogy of Shenmue games, and although Shenmue II saw a release (with a much smaller budget), Shenmue III has been in development hell for nearly a decade. In June 2015, a Kickstarter campaign for Shenmue III was announced by Yu Suzuki at Sony's 2015 E3 press conference. It was successfully funded and the game is currently scheduled for release on August 27, 2019.

Shenmue includes both Japanese and English speech/subtitles in the West. However in Japan, only Japanese was an option. For unknown reasons Sega would later release U.S. Shenmue in Japan - exactly the same game but with the English dub.

During its first week of sale, 260,000 copies were sold in Japan[5]. 1.2 million copies of the game were eventually sold worldwide[6].

On August 21st, 2018, a remastered version of Shenmue (bundled with Shenmue II) was released for Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Legacy

While considered a market failure, Shenmue has developed a cult following and remains one of the highest rated Dreamcast games ever made. Many of its ideas regarding an open, freely explorable world have been revisited in the Yakuza series of games, starting with the original PlayStation 2 Yakuza in 2005.

Production credits

  • Producer/Director/Game Story: Yu Suzuki
  • Screenplay: Masahiro Yoshimoto
  • Game Director: Keiji Okayasu
  • Scenario Director: Takao Yotsuji
  • Planning Director: Eigo Kasahara
  • Program Director: Keiji Okayasu
  • Design Director: Masanori Ohe
  • Sound Director: Takenobu Mitsuyoshi
  • Motion Capture Unit Director: Hiroaki Jinno
  • Voice Recording Director: Susumu Tashiro
  • Promotion Director: Shigeru Ueda
  • Production Manager: Hiroshi Aso
  • Sound Production Manager: Tatsutoshi Narita
  • Scenario Supervisor: Yu Yamamoto
  • Game Adviser: Hiroaki Takeuchi
  • Battle System Supervisor: Takayuki Haneda
  • Interior Coordinator: Manabu Takimoto
  • Location Manager & Adviser: Kazunari Uchida
  • Action Item Supervisor: Kunio Sasayama
  • Hakkyuku Ken Motions Supervisor: Master Gorenshi
Scenario
  • Director: Takao Yotsuji
  • Main Scenario: Masahiro Yoshimoto
  • Free Scenario Plotters: Katsuo Naruse, Junichi Yagi, Tow Ubukata, Akira Okeya
  • Free Scenario Management: Junichi Yoshida, Yoshijiroh Muramatsu, Kouichi Mizuide, Atsushi Komine
  • Free Scenario Writers: Makoto Goya, Masatoshi Kurakata, Yasushi Ohtake, Kiyono Yoshioka, Yasuo Yamabe, Kiyomi Mizushima, Hideyo Ikeda
  • Free Scenario Checkers: Katsuyuki Sugano, Yoshiaki Wakino
  • Free Scenario Character Data Management: Takeshi Kagawa, Shigeyoshi Kumagai
  • Chief Scenario Flow Editor: Tsuyoshi Murakami
  • Scenario Flow Editors: Masanobu Fukazawa, Kenji Takei, Daisuke Tazaki, Tsutomu Uchiyama, Takahiro Iwami, Fumito Suzuki
  • Main Script Writers: Takumi Hagiwara, Masayuki Hiramatu
  • Script Writers: Eiichirou Tano, Yuuki Tone, Ryo Ono, Tatsuya Ohmachi, Koichiro Kurosawa, Kazuaki Ichinohe, Kouki Anbo, Masayoshi Takatori, Kenji Ishikawa
  • Main Dialogue Editors: Toshirou Sasaki, Masayuki Ishikawa
  • Dialogue Editors: Izumi Saito, Yasuyo Kudo, Yasushi Funakoshi, Kaori Uegaki, Miyuki Yamaguchi, Masaru Oowada
Planning
Software
Graphics Design
Motion Capture Unit
  • Director: Hiroaki Jinno
  • Action Director: Sho Tagaya
  • Assistant Directors: Kazuhiro Tsuboy, Rei Kato, Genichirou Suzuki, Hitoshi Tawada, Chidori Hirano, Takuya Tsukamoto, Lumi Umehara, Yufu Shiomi, Kunihiko Matsunaga
  • Research and Development: Hans Van Veenendaal
  • System Operator & Manager: Yaekko Okadaya
  • Unit Assistants: Akihiko Nagao, Tomoko Morikawa, Takeyuki Izumi, Satoru Yanagai
  • Hiroaki Jinno's Secretary: Tomoko Ieiri
  • Casting Directors: Kenichi Kuramochi, Toshie Tabata
  • Cast: Hiroshi Fujioka (Iwao Hazuki), Masaya Matsukaze (Ryo Hazuki), Haduki Ishigaki (Shenhua Rei)
  • Motion Actors & Actresses: Seiji Matano, Yoshie Yamamoto, Shinmei Tsuji, Jinta Tsuboi, Ei Kawakami, Indy Takahashi, Aya Kosaka, Taiki Itou, Nobuyuki Hikichi, Yuuki Fujikura, Miduki Tsuruoka, Kensaku Maeda, Takafumi Ohwa, Yuki Shiina, Junji Oshima, Tetsuhiro Ikeda, Yuki Imahira, Yousuke Sakaki, Mayumi Sato, Takeshi Takimoto, Takakazu Tsukamoto, Chiyo Tsukamoto, Takashige Tsuda, Ryouhei Nakamura, Takashi Hashimoto, Tomonari Mizuno, Yubie Mitsuse, Wataru Murakami, Yumiko Watanabe
  • Stunt Actors: Yuuichi Aida, Masanori Tomita, Hiromi Shinjyo, Kazuyuki Nakamoto, Hiromi Shinjyo, Kazuyuki Nakamoto, Kouji Hatta, Ryosuke Shiba
  • Hakkyoku Ken Actor: Tetsuya Hattori
Sound & Music
Song of Shenhua
Wish...
  • Performed By: Yumiko Yamamoto
  • Written By: Yumi Asada
  • Composed By: Ryuji Iuchi
  • Arranged By: Nobuhiko Kashihara
  • Directed By: Kaori Takai
  • Executive Producer: Junji Fujita
Overseas version Voice & Sound
  • Manager: Tatsutoshi Narita
  • Chief Voice Recording Editor: Osamu Murata
  • Voice Editors: Akihiko Onda, Ryohei Kohno, Megumi Takano
  • Voice Recording Executive Producer: Shuichi Kakesu
  • Voice Recording Producer: Koji Kobayashi
  • Voice Recording Director: Hirotaka Tashiro
  • Voice Recording Project Manager: Sohtarou Maeda
  • Voice Recording Scripter: Shieko Tanakadatu
  • Voice Recording Production Coordination: Kei Kimura, Megumi Igei, Kei Miura
  • Voice Recording Assistant Manager: Emi Wakamatsu
  • Voice Recording Production Account: Yuriko Mameshiro
  • Translation Coordinator: Mayumi Sakazaki
  • Translation Project Manager: Pako Hanaoka
  • Translation Localize Engineer: Akiho Tazukuri
  • Translation Chief Editor: Sid Lloyd
  • Cast: Corey Marshall, Debora Rabbai, Ruth Hollyman, Paul Lucas, Robert Jefferson, Terry Osada, Eric Kelso, Dennis Falt, Ryan Drees, Jerry Ledbetter, Alex Hayns, Rob Croker, Eric Jacobson, Gregg Ladd, Anne Slater, Terry Osada, Guy Perryman, Lenne Hardt, Brian Matt-Uhl, Claire O'Connor, Cara Jones, William M. Sullivan, Lynn M. Harris, Dario Toda, Patrick De Volpi, Julia Yermakov, Jeff Manning, Jerri Sorels, Chris Wells, Colleen Lanki, Mireille Watanabe, Jeff Gedert, Kurt Common, Patrick Harlan, Robert Belgrade, Amanda Satchell
  • Other Cast: Tom Clark, John Ogelvee, Bianca Allen, Walter Roberts, Brit Ofstedal, Carlos Teuscher, Mark Hagan, Kezia Tobin, Mike Thro, Kimberly Forsythe, Michael Naishtut, Clark Bowdoin, Miki Sato, Greg Irwin, Mona Alawdeen, Jun Shimoda, Monica Taylor Horgan, Scott McCulloch, Monika Hudgins, Douglas J. Kirl, Yuho Yamaguchi, Takashi Yamaguchi, Rumiko Varnes, David Chester, Ross Mihara, David Schaufele, Lonnie Hirsch, Dennis Gunn, Donna Burke
  • Voice Talent Coordination: Voice Talent Coordination, New York Imagic Inc.
Development Support
Shenmue Passport
Overseas version
  • Director of Overseas Version: Eigo Kasahara
  • Chief Localization: Isao Murayama
  • Localization Staff: Junichi Kobayashi, Shu Hiratou
  • Main Programmer: Makoto Wada
  • Translation Supervisor: Monika Hudgins
  • Overseas Coordinator: Shinobu Shindo
  • Chinese Advisor: Qi Ning
  • Chief Shenmue Passport Localization: Shigeki Terajima
  • Main Shenmue Passport Programmer: Takayuki Ohta
  • Shenmue Passport Programmer: Noriaki Yoshizawa
Debugging
  • Director: Shinichi Yoshino
  • Assistant Director: Shigeki Terajima
  • Debug Management: Takayuki Suzuki, Yutaka Kawasaki, Masaki Harada, Kenji Yamane, Shinichiro Inoue, Masaaki Somaki, Motokazu Tsubono, Masaichi Taira
  • Debug Foremen: Kenichiro Suizu, Yuji Nakamura, Yousuke Ito, Masaki Takahashi, Hirokazu Toyoshima
  • Debuggers: Seiichi Kawasaki, Kazutaka Otsuka, Atsushi Miyamoto, Daisuke Hosogi, Youichi Maruta, Junji Enomoto, Kazuya Sakamoto, Takuma Sato, Hidetoshi Oota, Hitoshi Nishimura, Takayuki Hirano, Shinya Fujita, Hiroshi Matsui, Takayuki Yanagishita, Ken Kaneko, Mayuko Mizomoto, Masahiro Ito, Hiromi Miura, Yusuke Matsui, Makiko Arii, Kazunari Tajima, Masaki Sakamoto, Teruhito Uchida, Akiko Nishida, Taiji Ochiai, Masashi Yamakawa, Naoyuki Harada, Makoto Sakuma, Masaaki Motohashi, Kazumi Kikawa, Takeshi Yokoyama, Masayuki Baba, Noriaki Tanaka, Satoshi Yamagata, Hisanaga Toriumi, Koichiro Mizutani, Makoto Tanaka, Seiji Hirasawa, Akihiko Chatani, Kyouichi Hashimoto, Naoto Numata, Rie Yokohama, Kazuhiro Aida, Daisuke Sato, Takuma Akiba, Kiyokazu Arai, Takashi Yuki, Hiroaki Muguchi, Yukihiro Kawakami, Ryo Kobayashi, Hideaki Koike, Ken Sato, Kyouji Yokomichi, Shinpei Fukasawa, Yuji Nagatomo, Tatsuya Suzuki, Toshiro Nemoto, Yutaka Watai, Masashi Wakabayashi, Yasuhiro Ide, Yusuke Suzuki, Tatsuya Fukumura, Yusuke Baba, Tmoya Nakamura, Yoshitaki Ito, Gouma Enomoto, Tomohiro Hata, Hiryu Aoki, Kazuhiro Agata, Tatsuaki Tsujimoto, Takumi Murai, Yoshikazu Nagai, Kim Chun Gun, Isamu Kimura, Junichi Mitsuma, Takeya Kojima, Shinichi Naito, Rie Onozeki, Koichi Hagiwara, Wataru Taguchi, Takayuki Ishii, Yuichi Yonetani, Yuuta Sasaki, Syuichi Takeuci, Yusuke Utsunomiya, Tomoaki Abe, Noritugu Hironaka, Gen Tonotsuka, Kenta Tsuruoka, Shin Nakazawa, Satoru Morita, Tsunenori Ushiama, Hiroyuki Ono, Daisuke Orio, Noritaka Kumagai, Ryosuke Itabashi, Akira Nakamura, Shinichi Nishiyama, Kentarou Mine, Hiroyuki Kondoh, Shunsuke Satoh, Jin Suganami, Taishi Tsukiji, Katsuhiko Morihiro, Fumio Yusa, Keisuke Yoda, Satoshi Asakawa, Hideyuki Okano, Nobuaki Ihara, Satoshi Kamekawa, Kazuya Kojima, Kengo Tominaga, Mitsuhiro Haneishi, Hiroaki Yukawa, Tomoya Kubo, Toshiaki Kurihara, Kenji Akagi, Tomoko Koyama, Benjie Galvez, Lindsi Kimizuka, Chris Meyer, Paulita Escalona, Ed Brady, Rick Ribble, Gabrielle Brown, Steve Peck, Joe Gora, Todd Slepian, Keehwan Her, Benjamin Daniels, Joshua Schaaf, Anita Wisniewski, Nicholas J. Schaaf
Promotion & Publicity
Special Thanks To
  • Main Scenario: Tetsuya Mizuguchi, Soichi Ueda
  • Free Scenario: Shunsuke Ozawa, Retsu Iwakata, Takashi Tsuzuki, Kenichi Tomizawa, Kotaro Iizuka, Etsuo Hashimoto, Masaru Takeuchi, Tikashi Nakajima, Nobuyuki Kato, Atsushi Kameo, Ryuji Arai, Midoro Ito, Hideki Inaba
  • Script Writers: Takashi Nagasaki, Katsuyoshi Ogawa, Junji Suzuki, Shinji Miyagi, Satoshi Suzuki, Hidenori Aizawa, Tadashi Mitsuya, Hideyuki Shimoyama, Kouichi Kuriyama
  • Planners: Hiroaki Kubo, Myonho Kin, Hisatomo Tanaka, Masato Izumi, Tetsuya Kawabata, Youichi Shibuya, Manabu Tsukamoto, Nobukatsu Hiranoya, Hideyuki Togashi, Gaku Inada, Daisuke Sugihara, Tsuyoshi Tsugami, Goro Motohashi, Yuji Watanabe, Yukinobu Arikawa, Takashi Ishii
  • System Programmers: Satoshi Mifune, Takashi Amani, Kentaro Fujita, Yuichiro Mine, Hiroshi Yamada, Akimasa Tako, Mahito Kida, Tomoharu Yanase, Masaru Hatsuyama, Toshiyuki Kuwabara, Tsuyoshi Kogata, Nariya Takemura, Takuya Nagami, Hiroyuki Oda, Shinya Sato, Tsutomu Kondou, Shinya Yamada, Hiroki Matsui
  • Event System Programmers: Shojiro Aoki, Hiroshi Takahashi, Hiroshi Mizuochi, Daisuke Iwata, Kenichi Yokoo, Kei Takashima, Hajime Sawada, Masato Hagishita, Mario Ikeda, Takeshi Kurosawa, Shuntaro Takazawa, Yoshiaki Tanaka
  • Image Board Designers: Koichi Ohata, Jin Fukuchi, Akiyoshi Harada, Masaki Koizumi
  • Character Designer: Mika Tamura
  • Assistant 2D Graphics Designer: Shuma Fujiwara
  • 3D Character Designers: Jyunko Kawamura, Yukiko Tsuzuki, Hajime Matsubara, Yusuke Takagi, Katsuo Sano, Jeffery Buchanan
  • 3D Back Ground Designers: Mika Ninomiya, Tsuyoshi Okahisa, Makoto Kawatori, Keisuke Miyauchi, Hiroko Mano, Jun Satake, Hiroyuki Kabuto, Katsuhumi Yoshimori, Tetsuji Hayakawa, Masafumi Hatanaka, Keisuke Shimizu, Takayuki Ebata, Jyunichi Kashiwagi
  • Motion Designers: Hiroyuki Nakagomi, Kiyohiko Yamashita, Makoto Wada, Kouji Ootsuka, Yuuri Ohtake, Chien-Sen Peng, Kouji Shinozaki, Michiko Osaki, Masashige Hiranuma, Kazuhiko Takeshita, Kazuaki Arai, Naoaki Tasaka
  • Motion Camera & Animations: Eugene P. Lynch, Mike Bendele, Hiroaki Ohta
  • Motion Camera Supervisor: Kazuya Konaka
  • Motion Capture Director: Ryu Kaneda
  • Motion Capture Staff: Kouzo Tamura, Takeshi Suzuki, Kazuo Kawasaki, Takashi Sasaki, Fumiko Yoshida, Yukihisa Saito, Hiroshi Ichimaru, Ayako Akitaya, Chieko Muto, Takahiro Suzuki, Takuma Hatori, Koki Yamamoto, Yu Inatuki, Yoshimi Aikawa, Isao Iwakuma
  • Sound & Music: Akiko Hashimoto, Ryoko Okada, Shingo Murakami, Tadahiro Nitta, Yayoi Okumura, Naoto Nagai, Fumio Ito, Shinichirou Miki, Yasuhide Takeuchi
  • Publicity Section: Jun Kasahara
  • Technical Research Section: Yoshifusa Hayama
  • Material Support: Qi Ning, Shunichi J. Watanabe
  • Production Assistants: Yaeko Ichikawa, Yasuko Ohtani, Chizuru Ohtani, Miwako Watanabe, Akiko Wada, Kinya Ishikawa
  • Production Managers: Junichi Tsuchiya
  • Assistant Production Managers: Sadako Hattori, Takami Shibasaki
Promotional Material Production
  • JAY FILM Producer: Shuichi Kakesu
  • JAY FILM Assistant Producer: Soutaro Maeda
  • JAY FILM Editor: Tsuyoshi Imai
  • JAY FILM Assistant Editors: Yayoi Otake, Youko Kobayashi, Shigeo Miyagi, Junichi Ito
  • JAY FILM Supervisor: Masahiko Nagasawa
  • Digital Design Studio Producer: Mitsunori Kabashima
  • Digital Design Studio Designers: Yujiro Hato, Hiroki Ogino, Chihiro Miyagawa, Takeshi Nakayama
  • Think Inc. Producer: Hiroaki Takeuchi
  • Think Inc. Staff: Mika Sato, Hajime Yoshida, Yasunori Inoue, Emiko Fujiki, Shinya Kobayashi, Katsuichiro Ishikawa
  • 81 Entertainment Executive Promotion Producer: Yasushi Akimoto
  • 81 Entertainment Promotion Managers: Masatoshi Kawaguchi, Mitsuru Takahashi
  • 81 Entertainment Promotion Coordinator: Shunichi Kobayashi
  • Dentsu Promotion Coordinators: Hiroyuki Kurihara, Seikichi Ueda
  • Dentsu Creative Director: Yuya Furukawa
  • Dentsu Promotion Planner: Kazunori Kase
  • Dentsu Event Planner: Daigorou Nishimura
  • Dentsu Tec Event Directors: Hiromitsu Watanabe, Chikanori Higurashi
The Producer Wish To Thank The Following
Source:
In-game credits

Magazine articles

Main article: Shenmue/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Main article: Shenmue/Promotional material.

Artwork

Merchandise

Physical scans

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
91 №97, p78-81[7]
№107, p72-74
100 №230, p84-87[8]
100 DC-UK
93 №2000-01, p26[9]
88 №2002-18, p33[10]
85 №16, p36-39
80 №92, p86/87[11]
87 №138
83 №578, p29
99 GameFan
97 №4, p48-51[12]
90 2000-08-11
100 Game Power AU
94 №91, p80-85
60 №92, p120
95 2001-04-27
94 №88, p40-43[13]
100 v2, №12, p98-99
100 Official UK Dreamcast Magazine
100 №8, p52-57[14]
100
70 Video Gamer
Sega Dreamcast
91
Based on
22 reviews
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
576 Konzol (HU)
100
[15]
Ação Games (BR)
90
[16]
Bonus (YU) NTSC-J
96
[17]
Click! (PL)
80
[18]
Consoles + (FR) NTSC-J
91
[7]
Consoles + (FR) PAL
91
[19]
Computer & Video Games (UK)
100
[8]
Dreamcast Monthly (UK) PAL
100
[20]
DC-UK (UK) PAL
100
[21]
Dreamcast Magazine (JP) NTSC-J
93
[9]
Dreamcast Magazine (UK)
85
[22]
Dorimaga (JP) NTSC-J
88
[10]
Edge (UK)
80
[11]
Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U
87
[23]
Entsiklopediya igr dlya Dreamcast (RU)
81
[24]
Famitsu (JP) NTSC-J
83
[25]
Fun Generation (DE) PAL
91
[26]
GameFan (US) NTSC-U
75
[27]
GamePlay RPG (FR) PAL
97
[12]
GamePro (US) NTSC-U
88
[28]
Gamers' Republic (US) NTSC-U
67
[29]
Hyper (AU)
94
[13]
Joypad (IT) NTSC-J
90
[30]
MAN!AC (DE) PAL
90
[31]
Man!ak (PL)
90
[32]
Neo Plus (PL)
90
[33]
Next Generation (US) NTSC-U
100
[34]
Official Dreamcast Magazine (UK) PAL
100
[35]
Official Dreamcast Magazine (US) NTSC-U
100
[14]
Playbox (FR)
96
[36]
Play (PL)
92
[37]
PSX Extreme (PL)
93
[38]
Power Unlimited (NL)
78
[39]
Strana Igr (RU)
100
[40]
Strana Igr (RU)
100
[41]
Video Games (DE) PAL
84
[42]
Sega Dreamcast
91
Based on
36 reviews

Shenmue

Dreamcast, US
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Cover
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Disc 1
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Disc 2
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Disc 3
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Disc 4
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Inlay
Dreamcast, US (Limited Edition)
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Cover
Shenmue (Limited Edition) DC US Manual.pdf
Manual
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Inlay
Dreamcast, EU (cover)
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Cover
Dreamcast, EU (Discs 1 & 2)
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Cover
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Disc 1
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Disc 2
Dreamcast, EU (Discs 3 & 4)
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Cover
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Disc 3
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Disc 4
Dreamcast, JP

Dreamcast, JP (Limited Edition)
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Cover
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Disc 1
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Disc 2
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Disc 3
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Disc 4
Shenmue DC JP Manual LimitedEdition.pdf
Manual
Shenmue dc jp back cover.jpgShenmue dc jp front cover.jpg
Jewel Case
Shenmue DC JP Disc5 LimitedEdition.jpg
Soundtrack CD
Shenmue DC JP Manual2 LimitedEdition.pdf
Manual2
Dreamcast, BR
Shenmue DC BR Box Front.jpg
Cover

Technical information

In Shenmue, the backgrounds consist of up to 57,150 polygons, while the characters can have up to 14,361 polygons each. This was the highest character polygon count in any video game at the time, surpassing the Sega NAOMI arcade game Dead or Alive 2 released several months earlier. It was significantly higher than the polygon counts on other consoles and PC at the time. In comparison, the highest polygon counts for PC games at the time were up to 15,000 polygons per scene (Quake III Arena) and 2500 polygons per character (Half-Life).[43] The character polygon count of Shenmue was surpassed by the Dreamcast game Sports Jam in 2000.

External links

  • Sega of Japan catalogue pages (Japanese): Dreamcast

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Press release: 2000-11-07: Experience the Music of a Masterpiece With 'Shenmue Limited Edition'; Special Edition of Anticipated Dreamcast Game -- Shenmue -- Includes CD Containing Original Musical Scores
  2. File:SegaMagazin DE 85.pdf, page 7
  3. File:CVG UK 230.pdf, page 85
  4. Interview: Yu Suzuki (2014-09-18) by Shenmue Dojo
  5. Edge, "March 2000" (UK; 2000-02-22), page 122
  6. Press release: 2001-10-12: Microsoft Announces Leading Sega Games for Xbox
  7. 7.0 7.1 File:ConsolesPlus FR 097.pdf, page 78 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:ConsolesPlus FR 097.pdf_p78" defined multiple times with different content
  8. 8.0 8.1 File:CVG UK 230.pdf, page 84 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:CVG UK 230.pdf_p84" defined multiple times with different content
  9. 9.0 9.1 File:DCM JP 20000107 2000-01.pdf, page 26 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:DCM JP 20000107 2000-01.pdf_p26" defined multiple times with different content
  10. 10.0 10.1 File:Dorimaga JP 20021011 2002-18.pdf, page 33 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:Dorimaga JP 20021011 2002-18.pdf_p33" defined multiple times with different content
  11. 11.0 11.1 File:Edge UK 092.pdf, page 86 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:Edge UK 092.pdf_p86" defined multiple times with different content
  12. 12.0 12.1 File:GameplayRPG FR 04.pdf, page 48 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:GameplayRPG FR 04.pdf_p48" defined multiple times with different content
  13. 13.0 13.1 File:Hyper AU 088.pdf, page 40 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:Hyper AU 088.pdf_p40" defined multiple times with different content
  14. 14.0 14.1 File:ODCM US 08.pdf, page 56 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:ODCM US 08.pdf_p56" defined multiple times with different content
  15. 576 Konzol, "December 2000" (HU; 2000-xx-xx), page 34
  16. Ação Games, "Janeiro 2001" (BR; 200x-xx-xx), page 43
  17. Bonus, "9/2000" (YU; 2000-12-25), page 51
  18. Click!, "1/2001" (PL; 2001-01-04), page 20
  19. Consoles +, "Décembre 2000" (FR; 2000-1x-xx), page 72
  20. Dreamcast Monthly, "Christmas 2000" (UK; 2000-11-23), page 92
  21. DC-UK, "Christmas 2000" (UK; 2000-11-17), page 42
  22. Dreamcast Magazine, "No. 16" (UK; 2000-11-30), page 36
  23. Electronic Gaming Monthly, "January 2001" (US; 2000-12-05), page 196
  24. Entsiklopediya igr dlya Dreamcast, "Izdaniye chetvertoye, dopolnennoye" (RU; 2002-xx-xx), page 204
  25. Famitsu, "2000-01-07,14" (JP; 1999-12-24), page 29
  26. Fun Generation, "01/2001" (DE; 2000-12-20), page 46
  27. GameFan, "Volume 8, Issue 12: December 2000" (US; 2000-1x-xx), page 25
  28. GamePro, "January 2001" (US; 200x-xx-xx), page 98
  29. Gamers' Republic, "December 2000" (US; 2000-xx-xx), page 72
  30. Joypad, "Febbraio 2000" (IT; 2000-0x-xx), page 54
  31. MAN!AC, "01/2000" (DE; 2000-12-06), page 40
  32. Man!ak, "Wrzesień 1999" (PL; 1999-xx-xx), page 39
  33. Neo Plus, "Styczeń 2001" (PL; 2001-xx-xx), page 56
  34. Next Generation, "December 2000" (US; 2000-11-21), page 100
  35. Official Dreamcast Magazine, "December 2000" (UK; 2000-11-02), page 8
  36. Playbox, "Décembre 2000" (FR; 2000-1x-xx), page 22
  37. Play, "Marzec 2001" (PL; 2001-xx-xx), page 28
  38. PSX Extreme, "03/2001" (PL; 2001-0x-xx), page 38
  39. Power Unlimited, "Jaargang 9, Nummer 1, Januari 2001" (NL; 200x-xx-xx), page 24
  40. Strana Igr, "Fevral 2000 1/2" (RU; 2000-xx-xx), page 46
  41. Strana Igr, "Sentyabr 2000 2/2" (RU; 2000-xx-xx), page 20
  42. Video Games, "01/2001" (DE; 2000-12-06), page 42
  43. Acceptable polygon count for FPS characters


Shenmue

Shenmue title.png

Main page | Comparisons | Credits | Hidden content | Development | Magazine articles | Video coverage | Reception | Promotional material | Merchandise | Bootlegs


Books: Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Saisoku Kouryaku Guide (2000) | Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Kanzen Seiha no Sho (2000) | Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Complete Guide (2000) | Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka World Guidance (2000) | Official Shenmue Perfect Guide (2000) | Prima's Official Strategy Guide: Shenmue (2000)
Music: Shenmue/Shenhua (1998) | Shenhua: Jiang Qing Ri Bao Hua Ge (1999) | Shenmue Orchestra Version (1999) | You're My Only: Shenmue no Sasayaki (1999) | Shenmue JukeBox (1999) | Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Original Sound Track (2000) | Shenmue (2015)
Videos: What's Shenmue (1999) | Shenmue: The Movie (2001)

Sega Dreamcast
Prototypes: 2000-08-18



Shenmue series of games
Sega Dreamcast
What's Shenmue (1999) | Shenmue (1999) | Shenmue II (2001)
Xbox
Shenmue II (2002)
Windows PC
Shenmue Online (Unreleased) | Shenmue I & II (2018) | Shenmue III (2019)
Mobile phone
Shenmue Gai (2010)
Sony PlayStation 4
Shenmue I & II (2018) | Shenmue III (2019)
Xbox One
Shenmue I & II (2018)
Shenmue Characters
Ryo Hazuki
Shenmue related media
Music
Shenmue/Shenhua (1998) | Shenhua: Jiang Qing Ri Bao Hua Ge (1999) | Shenmue Orchestra Version (1999) | You're My Only: Shenmue no Sasayaki (1999) | Shenmue JukeBox (1999) | Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Original Sound Track (2000) | Shenmue (2015) | Shenmue II (2021)
Book
Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Saisoku Kouryaku Guide (2000) | Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Kanzen Seiha no Sho (2000) | Shenmue: Ichishou Yokosuka Complete Guide (2000) | Official Shenmue Perfect Guide (2000) | Prima's Official Strategy Guide: Shenmue (2000) | Shenmue II Premiere Guide (2001) | Shenmue II Saisoku Kouryaku Guide (2001) | Shenmue II Guide Book (2001) | Shenmue II Kanzen Kouryaku Shinsho (2001) | Shenmue II Complete Guide (2001) | Prima's Official Strategy Guide: Shenmue II (2002)
Film
What's Shenmue (1999) | Shenmue: The Movie (2001) | Shenmue: The Movie II (200x) | Shenmue the Animation (2022)