Shenmue 3 is out today after a Kickstarter campaign and a bit of a wait, but you might not be seeing many, if any, reviews for it yet. This is simply because press didn't have access to Shenmue 3 until very recently, and it's a decently long game from what we can tell--these things take time! We have the game now and a review is in the works, so stay tuned.
It has been 18 years since the last game in the series, Shenmue 2, which debuted on the Dreamcast in 2001. Now, Shenmue 3 is on PS4 and on PC as an Epic Games Store exclusive. Its recent launch trailer includes some story details if you're looking for more information while waiting for reviews to come out; it features series protagonist Ryo Hazuki as well as Ling Shenhua, plus series antagonist Lan Di, who was responsible for the death of Ryo's father in the original game. It also directly addresses the long wait between games. Opening text reads: "18 years ago the clock stopped. Time vanished into an unfathomable future. But passions never waver. A moment in motion, a story renewed."
Shenmue 3's Epic exclusivity stirred up a bit of a controversy, however. In response, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney confirmed that the company would be providing refunds for Kickstarter backers who were upset by the deal. In a tweet, he wrote, "Epic is funding the cost of all Kickstarter refunds resulting from Shenmue III’s move to the Epic Games store." The refund opportunity was limited-time only, though, and has since concluded.
If you instead want to catch up on the series before checking out Shenmue 3, a remaster of Shenmue 1 & 2 was released last year. In our impressions of the HD versions, Justin Clark wrote: "Shenmue is so broken and creaky in so many ways, and yet it's a game dependent on the calm of passing time, and reminding its protagonist (and you) of all things good in the face of life's hard and harsh moments."
