Dodgykebaab VS Jim Sterling: Shenmue

[JWeinCom]

I want to point out one moment in Shenmue that was particularly memorable.

My objective was to find a travel agent, that was across the street from a little lunch stand. So I walk around asking people across town where it is, and eventually come to the lunch stand. I don't remember exactly what the woman said but it was to the effect of "You idiot, it's right across the street."

That means they had a line for this random character to say just for that one specific scenario that took up a tiny tiny piece of the game. Just on the off chance that someone talked to her in that situation. In just about any other game I would have gotten some generic NPC response. Here I got something that actually felt like something someone would say in that scenario.

It's really the details like that which make Shenmue stand out to me. There is so much attention to detail and love poured into this game that it's kind of ridiculous. It still stands as one of the most immersive games I've played and the fact that it came out in 1999 makes it even crazier.

Of course, there are flaws. I really don't mind that you can't skip time. The game's main focus is immersion, and I think skipping to the good parts would have ruined that. Still, there should have been a bit more to do in those wait times and some better rewards for doing so.

Ultimately though, the complaint is that Shenmue is not very "gamey". To contrast, we could look at a game like Zelda Skyward Sword (a game which I also love). Everything in Skyward Sword is designed specifically for Link's benefit, and for the player to interact with. There's big piles of dust that just happen to be perfect for Link's new windbag item, there are big targets just waiting to be hookshotted to, and so on. It's a contrived world specifically designed to be played with.

Shenmue is a different kind of game and a different kind of world. You could imagine the world existing completely independently of Ryo. It doesn't feel like a world that was designed specifically for the purpose of telling Ryo's story, or to keep the player entertained. And, for that reason, the moment to moment gameplay of Shenmue isn't always super fun. But, what it lacks in accessibility and instant gratification, it makes up for with atmosphere and immersion. The story of Shenmue, despite its relative simplicity, engaged me like few games have. I played it first in 99 and again a second time last year, and it's amazing how many details stuck with me from nearly 2 decades ago, and how it was still able to blow me away.

Shenmue is a masterpiece. Of course, as a 20 year old game that came out when 3D gaming was still finding its footing, there are going to be flaws you could pick out. And even in 1999, it wasn't perfect. But the ambition and love poured into it still shines through.