Taking time away from his record-breaking Shenmue III Kickstarter campaign, creator of the franchise, Yu Suzuki, conducted a Reddit AMA over the weekend to chat about the upcoming game.
Shenmue III surfaced on the crowdfunding giant just a week ago and gained over $3 million in three days. The game is described as the true sequel to the classic open world action RPG games, Shenmue and Shenmue II.
During his chat with devoted fans, Suzuki discussed the game’s plot and more plans for the series.
“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.”
While revealing detail about “character perspective system” and the “rapport system,” Yu explained:
“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.”
Noting what helped him create Shenmue, the developer explained:
“Inspiration: When I was making Virtua Fighter, I went location hunting in China. I was very inspired by Chinese martial arts. That very well may have been the beginning.”
Also confirming what Shenmue means, Suzuki stated:
“It is more like a cherry blossom tree that blooms its flowers in the springtime. It is actually a tree I made up for the story.”
In regards to the future of Shenmue, Yu added:
“If fans are not happy with [Shenmue III] there will not be a [Shenmue IV]. So I please hope we can together make this game the best it can be.
“I will say this; if we reach the $5 [million] mark, one of the things I really want to do with Shenmue III will become a reality. At $10 million it will truly have the features of an open world.”
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