Sony has just confirmed that now that the Kickstarter goal has been reached they are in fact helping with funding and development of Shenmue 3

[mornelithe]

Puppyroach said:
And why would Yu even need to convince Sony that fans of Shenmue wanted a sequel when that has been common knowledge for the last 15 years? This was Sony trying a PR stunt at the cost of the fans and Kickstarter. I sure hope Kickstarter can prevent this somehow and Sony can pay for it with their own cash instead of exploiting fans.

Because what people clamor for online, isn't necessarily quantifiable as units sold.  Adam Boyes explained this in an interview posted earlier in the thread.