Game Review: Shenmue (Minor Spoilers)

Game: Shenmue
Console: Sega Dreamcast
Developer: Sega AM2
Release Date: 7th November 2000

Shenmue is one of my all time favourite video games, I got the first disc along with my Dreamcast when I first got it. Little did I know that there are three game discs, and a fourth "passport" disc included in a full copy of Shenmue, until later. As you can imagine, any game which spans three discs is massive in proportion; at the time of its release, Shenmue held the record for the most expensive videogame ever produced, with a whopping $47 million spent on it.

You play as Ryo Hazuki, witnessing in the opening cutscene your father's death at the hands of a mysterious man called Lan Di. The game begins a few days later, as the player has to pick up the pieces and attempt to work out where Lan Di left for, where he is now and how to get revenge for Ryo's father's death. Using information given to you by friends, townsfolk and even gang members, you trace the story through, revealing new leads to help you in your quest.

Graphically the game is beautiful, both for its time, and even now it still has an undeniable charm in its detail and features. Ryo is able to purchase items from stores, go to a videogame arcade, listen to cassette tapes, collect gacha toys, and use vending machines in addition to other activities. There's so much to do that isn't even related to the plot of the game that it's easy to get caught up just living Ryo's daily life. Ryo can train his martial arts skills in the dojo next to his house as well as in any open area big enough, which can be useful in fights later on in the game.

Musically there's a large amount of themes and sound effects used in game, immersing the player even further into the game world. Each shop, bar and restaurant in town has its own background music, even just the sound of a motorcycle going down the street takes the player to Japan in 1986, when the game is set. The only fault I can find with the game's sound is that the dubbed voices can seem insincere at times, and the only game option for the PAL version is English so you're stuck with it.

As the plot advances, physical combat situations are met in one of two ways. First there's QTE's (quick timer events) where a buttons must be pressed within a certain time for Ryo to perform preset actions, for Ryo to win the fight/come out on top in the situation. The other combat element is Free Battle in which Ryo can use moves that he has learned and practiced in combat, via their button combinations. Both he and the opponents have health bars for this type of combat.

Used pretty sparingly, these combat situations move the plot along, where it seems like Ryo's information stream has come to a close. The main part of gameplay sees Ryo setting out everyday to collect more information, and gather leads as to the whereabouts of Lan Di. These take him from his hometown of Yamanose, to the Dockyards where he has to find a job and infiltrate the "Heavens" gang which is based there.

The game ends with Ryo setting off in search of Lan Di, further afield, but not before he's managed to have a 70 man fight at the dockyard, get fired, raise a kitten, play arcade games, collect capsule toys, play on his anachronistic Sega Saturn (its 1987 for goodness sake...), and live his life in the hopes of catching up to Lan Di. The story is continued into Shenmue II and its easy to think that nothing really happens in Shenmue. The atmosphere and way the story is presented is so immersive however, that you'll care about every little detail, right down to receiving a double of a particular capsule toy.

The pacing of Shenmue has been criticised somewhat, in that the game moves somewhat slowly (there are 4 minutes to an in-game hour), and the action is very sporadic, however the level of immersion and detail begs that you take the game slowly. The worst thing you could do with Shenmue is to rush through it, as there's so much you'd be missing. The real charm in this game is living Ryo's daily life in search of his father's killer, deciding whether to spend your last hundred yen on a game of Space Harrier or Hang On (both original arcade games are fully playable on here).

Overall, Shenmue is a hard game to describe; the plot doesn't really hot up until Shenmue II, but it lays the foundations, there's a lot to do, in an immersive world which is beautifully modelled. The fighting system is nicely implemented, both moves and QTE's, and the control system works nicely. Musically the game has a great original soundtrack, and sound effects with the voice acting being the only minor complaint. The sense of immersion into this game is greater than any other game I've played, and although its paced slowly, it gives you a chance to enjoy all of the features.

Rating: 94/100
Grade: A