Shenmue 3 Will “Truly” Have Open World Features if it Raises $10 Million, Says Suzuki During Reddit AMA

Shemue 3 creator Yu Suzuki held an AMA session on Reddit today, and answered quite a few fan questions regarding the upcoming title. Among other things, Suzuki said that if the game manages to raise $10 million, “it will truly have the features of an open world.”

Interesting bits from the Q&A are compiled below:

AlexWatchtower: Will practicing moves make a return in Shenmue 3 along with the FREE battle system?

I want to do it yes!

kncrnr: Any possibility of a bicycle finally being added to Shenmue 3?

There is a 60 horsepower bike in Shenmue 1. For Shenmue, 3 I was thinking about something with 1 horsepower.

RyoHazuki12: Will we see Ryo’s Journal return? Would be cool to be able to flip the pages using the PS4’s touchpad.

I would like to bring back the Journal. That is an interesting idea, I will look into it. Thank you.

The_Dukkhanator: How accurately will Shenmue 3 be compared to your original vision of the game or will there be major compromises?

There are a total of 11 chapters that make up the whole story. Over the past 14 years I originally planned for there to 4 or five games to the series. If at all possible, I would still like to realize the full story of 11 chapters.

OfTheCoast: I’ve always wondered, why did you set the game in the 1980s rather than present day?

I wanted put forward the differences in culture and values between the two periods.

omgdonerkebab: What will Ryo do to earn money in Shenmue 3? As great and engrossing as the story and gameplay were in Shenmue 1 and 2, I (and many others) really really liked the forklift driving.

There will be part time jobs that will be indicative of those you would find in China. In the Stretch goals there will also be the old favorites.

bejii: Do you have any more details to share about the stretch goals? It’s not clear to me what a “Rapport System” or “Character Perspective System” entails.

They are new systems, so naturally they need new names. The Rapport System will govern changes in Shenhua’s actions depending on your conversations with or actions towards her. The “Character Perspective System” will highlight different characters personalities as they go through the story.

MagFreakingNeto: Will players have access to both the Japanese and English voice overs for the game?

I am thinking about that, yes. However it is not for sure.

GuppyBerkley: How much game elements/features will we be missing in the game if the campaign doesn’t reach the $5 million mark?

I will say this: if we reach the $5 mil mark, one of the things I really want to do with Shenmue 3 will become a reality. At $10 million, it will truly have the features of an open world.

vspectra: Will a day-to-night cycle and weather system return to Shenmue 3?

Of course!

The_Dukkhanator: Will the gameplay in Shenmue 3 be more contemporary or will it be more in line with past Shenmue iterations?

As for III, I would like to make a less stressful user interface, that will feature more usability. From now on, I will make that a focus.

fluidmint: Shenmue 3 is just the start. How successful does the game need to be for us to get Shenmue 4 and so on until the saga is complete?

If the fans are not happy with 3 there will not be a 4. So I please hope we can together make this game the best it can be.

2ndOpp: Will the game take advantage of the virtual reality goggles on PS4 and PC?

Right now, there are no plans for a vr system compatibility, but I love the idea of using it to peer into the world of Shenmue.

shenmue_500k: Will Shenmue 3 have any sort of multiplayer component? Perhaps Co-op or a versus mode?

I am thinking about something that would resemble that.

We’ll update our readers when more details about the game become available. 

[Source: Reddit]

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