Shenmue 3 - Part 1 and 2 Remakes

[HiddenX]

PCGamesN reports that Shenmue 1 and 2 could be released this year:

Shenmue 1 and 2 remasters still due this year according to further leaks

Rumours of high-definition remasters of Shenmue and Shenmue II were strengthened over the weekend, as Rice Digital, an online blog and retailer, say “a trusted source” close to the USA branch of developers Atlus has confirmed that they’re in development. Atlus are a subsidiary of original Shenmue publishers Sega.



Rice Digital’s source says both games “may be released together rather than separately” as episodes one and two, with a targeted release date later this year. It's worth noting that Rice Digital have been accurate with leaks from Atlus before, revealing in April last year that the developers would publish King of Fighters XIV a few days before they announced it.

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Thanks Farflame!

More information.

 

[GuybrushWilco]

Cool. I have wanted to try these games for years, but didn't ant to get a frickin Dreamcast or whatever just for it. I want them out in time for Shenmu 3.

 

[Vindicator]

I thought the Shenmue games were great. I'm looking forward to the sequel that will tie up those lose ends left hanging for 16 years.
Shenmue was the first 3D open-world adventure game (GTA3 wasn't released for another 2 years). Despite being a fairly deep brawler with dozens upon dozens of combat moves, it was at heart an adventure game, so for a Dreamcast videogame, some with ADD criticized it for being too slow and boring. Shenmue was also the first game to feature the dreaded QTE.

 

[Avantenor]

Shenmue was definitely not the first 3D open-world adventure. Outcast released months earlier, and even before that there was Elder Scrolls. QTE have been in use at least since the 80s, even in it's modern form there have been predecessors before.

Said that, it doesn't make Shenmue a bad game, quite the opposite. They evolved that principles and formed a pleasent mix, although they should have relied less on QTEs. These mini games became annoying after some time.

 

[Vindicator]

Shenmue was definitely not the first 3D open-world adventure.

You're right, the PC had them first…
Ultima Underworld (1992) was the first true-3D first-person RPG,
and Betrayal at Krondor (1993) was the first true-3D open-world RPG.

I should've been more specific… Shenmue was the 1st true-3D open-world brawler/adventure console videogame.

QTE have been in use at least since the 80s

Yes, Dragon's Lair from the early 80's used them, but they weren't called Quick Time Events until Yu Suzuki coined the term when he made Shenmue.

 

[JDR13]

Ultima Underworld isn't true 3D, it just uses a 3D view. It's still a 2D engine. Not sure about BaK, but I'd guess the same is true for that game.

 

[Avantenor]

Nope, Vindicator is right. Underworld is real-time 3D with texture mapping.

 

[JDR13]

No, I don't think you understand what I'm saying. UU is a sprite-based engine. It's 2D that simulates 3D, just like Doom, Duke Nukem 3D, etc. The objects, characters, etc, are not actually being rendered in 3D.

 

[Avantenor]

There is a significant difference between Doom and UU. Doom etc. is based on raycasting technique, UU is not. I can't speak for the characters, but the game world is real-time 3D with texture-mapping. There are several sources for this.

 

[JDR13]

There is a significant difference between Doom and UU. Doom etc. is based on raycasting technique, UU is not. I can't speak for the characters, but the game world is real-time 3D with texture-mapping. There are several sources for this.

It's 3D in the sense that you can look around in a 360 view yes, but either you still don't understand what I'm saying or you just have a different concept of what "true" 3D is. It doesn't use polygons or actual geometry to render anything, it's being rendered with good old-fashioned 2D sprites. It's a sort of "2.5D" like Duke Nukem 3D.

I don't think a true 3D game engine even existed yet in 1992. At least not for gaming.

 

[Vindicator]

It's 3D in the sense that you can look around in a 360 view yes, but … It's a sort of "2.5D" like Duke Nukem 3D.

No, Ultima Underworld was true-3D… System Shock used an upgraded UU engine.
I used to do a lot of 3D programming, so I know the difference between pseudo-3D and true-3D.

 

[Avantenor]

I quote Matt Barton from Dungeons & Desktops (2008), p288:

Origin's Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss, published in 1992, deserves a special place in any book on CRPGs-or computer games in general, for that matter. It was one of the earliest games to offer fluid movement through a 3D world of fully-textured polygons, rendered on the fly in first-person perspective.

 

[Vindicator]

I don't think a true 3D game engine even existed yet in 1992. At least not for gaming.

What about Microsoft Flight Simulator from 1982?
Dynamix modified their flight sim engine from Red Baron and Aces of the Pacific for Betrayal at Krondor... In fact, I remember flying at some point in that game, from a spell I assume.

 

[JDR13]

No, Ultima Underworld was true-3D… System Shock used an upgraded UU engine.
I used to do a lot of 3D programming, so I know the difference between pseudo-3D and true-3D.

System Shock isn't true 3D either. I'm talking about using a real 3D engine where everything is being rendered with polygons instead of sprites. Quake 1 is the first game I can remember that did that.

 

[JDR13]

I quote Matt Barton from Dungeons & Desktops (2008), p288:

Quote him all you want, it doesn't change what I'm talking about. Most of the objects in UU are 2D sprites. You can easily tell this by circling around something while keeping the camera on it. Instead of smoothly rotating, the object will instead suddenly change angles, i.e. you'll suddenly be seeing it from the side rather than from the front, because they're not fully 3D objects. Do you understand what I'm saying?

 

[Avantenor]

Actually, I do. Your claim was, it isn't a 3D game at all. Several sources including the original devs and several gaming literates tell the opposite story. Now we are down to not all objects are 3D. That's a different claim than before. You said, it is a sprite-based engine, the sources give proof that the whole environment is polygon-based with texture-mapping and real-time rendering. If you have textured polygons, it can't be based on 2D sprites only. It is at least a mixed technology. But even if the puppets on stage are 2D, the stage is still 3D.

I think our Holy War is about the exact premises for the transition from 2D to 3D. That's approximately as simple as telling the exact date for the turn from the Middle Ages to Modern Era, as it involves technical and perception criterias among others. No Historican would start his round-up about 3D gaming with Quake. I think he would start with Spasim or Maze War.

 

[rune_74]

Yakuzo is surprisingly a bit like shenmue....but a little over the top at times.

 

[JDR13]

Actually, I do. Your claim was, it isn't a 3D game at all. Several sources including the original devs and several gaming literates tell the opposite story. Now we are down to not all objects are 3D. That's a different claim than before. You said, it is a sprite-based engine, the sources give proof that the whole environment is polygon-based with texture-mapping and real-time rendering. If you have textured polygons, it can't be based on 2D sprites only. It is at least a mixed technology. But even if the puppets on stage are 2D, the stage is still 3D.

No, I said it's not "true" 3D, and it's not. Being able to move around the environment in real time does not make it true 3D anymore than Duke Nukem 3D which uses a more advanced engine but still isn't really 3D either. Same thing with System Shock. They're 2.5D games. The level design is 3D, but the objects within the world aren't truly 3D, and no amount of PR speak is going to change that.

 

[Carnifex]

Never played these myself and after kicking in for the new game, I'd love to be able to play these on my computer.

 

[Avantenor]

No, I said it's not "true" 3D, and it's not. Being able to move around the environment in real time does not make it true 3D anymore than Duke Nukem 3D which uses a more advanced engine but still isn't really 3D either. Same thing with System Shock. They're 2.5D games. The level design is 3D, but the objects within the world aren't truly 3D, and no amount of PR speak is going to change that.

I find it hard to accept that a game, that truly uses 3D to create a 3D effect shouldn't be true 3D.

Your definition of "true" actually seems to be "complete", which I could have agreed to, but is a) black/white logic and b) still not the case today. There are still 2D techniques in use to create or support a 3D appearence. So we're discussing the point when it's enough 3D to call it "true" 3D? What was the beginning of that discussion? We spoke about 3D open world and I think in this context Vindicator was still correct with his mention of UU.