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

[Burek]

TheSpindler said:
That 'gauging interest' line sounds like BS to me. Of course there's interest. But launching a Kickstarter just means you've essentially milked your hardcore fans of more money than they would have spent on the game itself, not to actually see its viability in the global market.

40,000 people doesn't show global interest, it just shows 40, 000 people who are willing to put up 3 million dollars of their money to fund a game. So congrats in getting 3 million(or however much they end up with at the end) extra towards your development I guess.

It makes me actually wonder how much it would have gotten if Sony hadn't announced that they were backing it as well. probably would have been at 3.5 or 4 million by now I think.

So, where is the problem? Are you concerned about what people you don't know spend on stuff you don't care about.

The reward list is public, people know exactly what they are paying for, and if they are willing to pay $10,000 for a dinner with Suzuki, why does it bother you? You can always pay nothing, just like I chose to do, wait for the game to come out and buy or not buy it then.