An Ode to Shenmue

Strangely, for a blog called Nintendocs (a portmanteau of 'Nintendo' and 'documents,' if you hadn't already noticed), my first article on this site actually concerns a PS4 version of a twenty-year-old Dreamcast game. On top of that, these are ports of the original Shenmue games: they're in HD, the loading times are considerably lessened, and neat effects like anti-aliasing and bloom lighting help to smoothen out those rough edges, but these are not remakes by any stretch of the imagination. Furthermore, I haven't played the original two games, and my only knowledge of Shenmue was, prior to about 2018, a vague memory of its Virtua Fighter cutscenes, which I must have seen in GAME around 1999 or 2000. Add all this to the fact that the original game almost bankrupted SEGA when it was originally released... Say, why does this rerelease deserve a review again? And why should I be the one to do it?

One good reason might be that I've fallen in love with Shenmue; the first game, anyway, which I'm talking about here. You play Ryo Hazuki, a Japanese teenager and gifted martial artist, as he seeks to avenge the death of his father. Armed with little more than a notebook and the knowledge that the murderer was a Chinese mobster, Ryo slowly gathers clues about how to locate the cartel - with an emphasis on the word slowly. Unlike the story of a Hollywood film or a more contemporary game, Ryo's mission can't be completed overnight; he's only 18, after all, with school and college to think about, and he's constantly impeded by practicalities like money and transport.

The bulk of the game, in fact, involves little to no action. Faced with the prospect that Lan Di - his father's murderer and leader of the Chi You Men cartel - may have already left for parts unknown, Ryo turns to his friends and neighbours for information: about how to make money, about how to follow Lan Di's trail, and even about aspects of Chinese culture and history (which help to explain why his father was being pursued in the first place). This requires you to navigate the game's open-world rendering of 1980s Japan (a remarkable experiment in 1999), and specifically the districts of Yokosuka, Sakuragaoka, and Dobuita, populated by a range of quirky and memorable characters. Each character even has, in the vein of say, Majora's Mask, their own schedule, as they go to and from work, go shopping, or spend time at a bar or arcade. Each of these activities are even available for you, Ryo, to do as well: later in the game, you pick up a part-time job, and in-between scheduled appointments and conversations, you're free to kill time however you please.

If the prospect of having to 'kill' time sounds (whisper it) boring to you, then you're not alone: upon its release, Shenmue was regarded by many as a failed, flat experiment. Sure, an open world is impressive, but unless it's filled with interesting things to do, or some kind of action or event to keep the plot ticking over, how good is it? Is it merely a Sims game where you play the Sim? The prospect of having to wait for a bus to take you home from work or having to spin the rotary dial to each digit in a phone number might sound mind-numbing for some. Shenmue isn't helped - especially in 2019 - by its archaic voice acting and bizarre character models. Though the game arguably contains more recorded lines of dialogue than some current-gen titles, it can seem atavistic when played on a PS4.

Yet Shenmue is a game that merits (and rewards) patience. First impressions are of a slightly creaky Dreamcast game, with stilted acting and wonky writing; but nonetheless, I would cite these as some of the things that lend Shenmue its charm. Because the delivery of the voice acting is goofy, the characters are memorable and idiosyncratic: there's a woman in Sakuragoaka that sounds like Edward G. Robinson or W.C. Fields (you'll know the one when you meet her), and Goro's lines are ridiculously over-the-top. Even Ryo's own lines are basic, delivered in a wooden fashion (he'll say "I see" or "OK" even when it doesn't contextually make sense), but it's nonetheless in keeping with his personality and goals - his mild-mannered responses disguise his single-minded determination. Such is his commitment to finding Lan Di that he shuts himself off from those who care about him, like potential love interest Nozomi. Even when Nozomi admits her feelings for Ryo, his one-note answers remind us that his mind is elsewhere, rather than being evidence of unimaginative writing and acting.

And even though the graphics are, by today's standards, rather lacklustre, it somehow manages to be an absolutely beautiful game. As time progresses, and the year comes to an end, snow begins to settle on the streets, Christmas lights are hung up around the district, and townspeople begin to carry umbrellas. Music and visuals combine to convey an incredible sense of atmosphere: around 7pm, the street lights are turned on, shop workers stay indoors, and various ne'er-do-wells take centre stage in nightclubs and bars. You can bide your time until the next event by visiting the casino, playing games at the arcade, by training your various movesets (there are some sections where Ryo must mete out punishment to gang members and criminals), or by exploring the Hazuki dojo for secret items and flashbacks. My favourite thing to do, personally, is purchasing a soft drink from the vending machine - a mundane task, but one which epitomises Shenmue's extraordinary attention to detail (see video below).

It's a relatively short game (I imagine you could complete it rather quickly once you've worked out all the mysteries once), but it permits the player an exceptional amount of freedom in those 15-20 hours. Effectively, you can control the pace of the game, deciding whether you want to bypass certain leads in favour of a grand objective or choosing to get your information from alternative sources (for example, there are multiple characters who will translate Chinese text). There are also an enormous number of items to collect, ranging from Gashapon toys and jujitsu scrolls to cassette tapes which you can play on in-game Walkmans! Even the most superfluous items don't go to waste, as collectibles can be transferred to Shenmue II (where Ryo's financial woes are even more desperate) and pawned for cash. These side-quests encourage you to spend each of your days productively, while making careful use of your money at the same time.

Shenmue isn't for everybody, but it certainly captivated me, and because of that maybe I was the right person to review it after all. Here's a game that almost wants you to be bored, giving you in-game afternoons on which you have nothing on, no leads, no one to talk to - and asks you to find your own fun; as if you were an actual teenager in the city with hours to kill until the next bus home. It dares to leave you to your own devices, to figure things out for yourself, and therein lies Shenmue's experimental, unique, magical quality: in striving for that everyday, mundane realism, it becomes like nothing else you've ever played.

Shenmue I & II are available now on PS4 and Xbox One.
Argos: €29.99
GameStop: €35.99

"Shenmue HD Ryo Drinks Cola" (Watch on YouTube)