Is this game worth buying?

[Sodie Popping]

I've wanted to get this game for a while, now it being on sale I'm more inclined to. However I'm not sure if I'll actually like this game, I've played through the Yakuza series and loved that but I know this is a different game, I've seen reviews and to be honest it's really confusing to me. Some reviewers say its the best game ever but I can't tell if thats genuine or nostalgia driven, I know this game was groundbreaking at the time but as a new comer is there any value in playing this in the modern age of gaming. Don't get me wrong I love older games, however I'd rather play good quality old games rather than groundbreaking at the time like 20 years ago games. I see other reviews that say this game not only is boring, but the combat, time aspects and story has not aged well. SO overall im confused, i want to like this game but so much tells me not to get it, can anyone other me help without nostalgia driven opinions.

[R3N]

It definitely not nostalgia-driven, I enjoyed Shenmue now as I did in the past.
The thing about Shenmue is that is a very unique and completely different game back then,
Even though you can find a lot of Shenmue in Modern games.

You can see Shenmue in witcher games and they obviously were inspired by Shenmue.
Here is the creators of Witcher giving praise to Shenmue https://i.imgur.com/fiazGps.png

Shenmue was for many years the most expensive and highest production quality game ever build and took years for is budget to be surpassed by another game.

You getting 2 Entire High-quality games that took 70 million+ dollars and years to produce for only $7.49 USD. That is a very sweet deal. I paid 30$ when it was released here and don't regret it.
1) About fighting engines, it truly depends on your skill level, but if you get good at it the fighting engine is amazing. Here some videos of skilled player
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlCrIWaoAIY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXdxca5LyoU

2) If you like 80's, martial artists, Japanese culture, and Chinese folk tales you will love Shenmue.
Shenmue is based on a real-life City in Japan and the city is very similar to the game, is very surreal since I been to that city and feels like been in the game is very surreal. Since they caught the atmosphere perfectly in the game.
3) The game is also very peaceful, some people don't like that, yet I like that.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1laFdRH7TA the neighborhood feels like "home" and you get to know characters since they sometimes tell you about their life events.
4) Now graphics are aged but you can fix that with HD mods.https://www.flickr.com/photos/49405595@N02/albums/72157700477569224
5) NPC all have unique AI daily schedule if you go to town early you can sometimes see npc getting out of their home and heading toward work then at night you see them walking toward their home which was ahead of its time, as well in Shenmue I the weather based on actual real life data of the town Yokosuka in Japan.

[Sodie Popping]

Is it a good game though, will i get bored and feel like it's a waste of time though

[Sodie Popping]

I love peaceful games don't get me wrong but I stil want a game though to enjoy, that's why i dont like walking sims because they're relaxing but usually there is no engaging or useful gameplay so I'm wondering if shenmue is anything like that, I'm trying to find the appeal for the game to see if i want to buy into it

[R3N]

Postat inițial de ☭Sodie Popping:

I love peaceful games don't get me wrong but I stil want a game though to enjoy, that's why i dont like walking sims because they're relaxing but usually there is no engaging or useful gameplay so I'm wondering if shenmue is anything like that, I'm trying to find the appeal for the game to see if i want to buy into it

About Shenmue been "boring" is because Shenmue is very RPG like, where you go to town and talk to NPC's to progress story and some people don't like that.
They the type that want to kill something every 5 minutes or they get "bored"
But that is part of being "realistic", in real-world you not going to fight and kill every 5 minutes. You get to talk to people and investigate. So is a detective game like point and click game type in those situations.

Shenmue there is lots of engaging and extra activities you can do during "wait time"
sometimes you got to wait till certain hour or wait till next "game" day. Which is what people criticize a lot about and call it "slow"
1 hour real time is equal to a day in the game (roughly 15 hours IGT). An hour in game is about 4 minutes.
People complain about this a lot, even thought this does happen a few times but is not common. Even through with experience the best "productive" activity to do that time is explore your house for clues and get new items needed to progress story, which you will to do anyway later in story.
During that time you free to explore the world, you can talk to main NPC to check how they doing (sometimes they tell you about a current event or future plan they want to do etc)
You can also go to arcade, slot machine, go to shop to buy food for pet cat and then feed it. Also you can buy martial arts scrolls, buy capsule toys and most importantly train your moves which is what I prefer to do. When you level moves by training and fighting they unlock a new animation and more powerful move. This happens mostly in Shenmue I but in Shenmue II you can skip time with "wait" feature and is more action-based. Also during that time there is sometimes a "secret event scene" either a cutscene with some character or a secret fight or QTE fight.
During that wait time you suppose to be invited to explore the game world. There are lots of indoor locations to explore as well.

[RegionsRules]

if you decided to get the game,check out the trading section for my trade offer for a copy of the game.

[R3N]

Postat inițial de ☭Sodie Popping:

I love peaceful games don't get me wrong but I stil want a game though to enjoy, that's why i dont like walking sims because they're relaxing but usually there is no engaging or useful gameplay so I'm wondering if shenmue is anything like that, I'm trying to find the appeal for the game to see if i want to buy into it

Did you decide the game during the sale?
if you do check out these mods https://www.nexusmods.com/shenmue/mods/30
it will improve the graphic a lot.
As well if you don't like the game you can always ask for refund from steam. You got a 2-week window.
https://store.steampowered.com/steam_refunds/
Also the game is not a "walk simulator" at all. Walk simulators usually are wolds/maps that are empty and feel dead.
Shenmue feels very alive since there is a Lot of NPC in the game.
Each one has a different daily schedule, some characters have more than 2 schedules that changes at random.
https://shenmue.neoseeker.com/wiki/Complete_Characters_of_Shenmue_I
Each NPC even minor ones have own background and story.

As well here some strategy guides.
https://archive.org/details/ShenmuePrimasStrategyGuide
https://segaretro.org/images/7/78/Official_Shenmue_Perfect_Guide_US_Book.pdf

[Sodie Popping]

Postat inițial de kenxeus:

Postat inițial de ☭Sodie Popping:

I love peaceful games don't get me wrong but I stil want a game though to enjoy, that's why i dont like walking sims because they're relaxing but usually there is no engaging or useful gameplay so I'm wondering if shenmue is anything like that, I'm trying to find the appeal for the game to see if i want to buy into it

Did you decide the game during the sale?
if you do check out these mods https://www.nexusmods.com/shenmue/mods/30
it will improve the graphic a lot.
As well if you don't like the game you can always ask for refund from steam. You got a 2-week window.
https://store.steampowered.com/steam_refunds/
Also the game is not a "walk simulator" at all. Walk simulators usually are wolds/maps that are empty and feel dead.
Shenmue feels very alive since there is a Lot of NPC in the game.
Each one has a different daily schedule, some characters have more than 2 schedules that changes at random.
https://shenmue.neoseeker.com/wiki/Complete_Characters_of_Shenmue_I
Each NPC even minor ones have own background and story.

As well here some strategy guides.
https://archive.org/details/ShenmuePrimasStrategyGuide
https://segaretro.org/images/7/78/Official_Shenmue_Perfect_Guide_US_Book.pdf

my final question is has the game aged well at all? Does it still hold up?

[cineas]

On that last part, I cannot say it has aged very well, despite the new version. (but I did not try the original, so I can only say from a "nowadays games" perspective)

Controls feel a lot like a lot of japanese game ports controls, not so intuitive
You might find some boring aspect of the open world system
You come across some inconsistencies in character behaviors (this is amplified by the main character Ryo, who acts like a robot and might even be one of the less "human" characters of the game)

However I would still recommend it.
I only knew shenmue from its name before and discovered it with this PC port. I wasn't enjoying it that much as first and had no "nostalgia factor" at all. But after finishing it, I know I will buy the third one. I know Shenmue 1/2 is a game I will remember.
It still kinda makes me think of walking simulators, maybe because this is one of those games where the gameplay is sometimes put aside for world building and storytelling (but that's just me interpreting).

A lot of people find it boring though, not without reasons. I would suggest you to buy it on steam to try it, and maybe refund it. In <2 hours, you might not really appreciate the game, but will probably know if you want to give it its chance.

[Sodie Popping]

Postat inițial de Zessirb:

On that last part, I cannot say it has aged very well, despite the new version. (but I did not try the original, so I can only say from a "nowadays games" perspective)

Controls feel a lot like a lot of japanese game ports controls, not so intuitive
You might find some boring aspect of the open world system
You come across some inconsistencies in character behaviors (this is amplified by the main character Ryo, who acts like a robot and might even be one of the less "human" characters of the game)

However I would still recommend it.
I only knew shenmue from its name before and discovered it with this PC port. I wasn't enjoying it that much as first and had no "nostalgia factor" at all. But after finishing it, I know I will buy the third one. I know Shenmue 1/2 is a game I will remember.
It still kinda makes me think of walking simulators, maybe because this is one of those games where the gameplay is sometimes put aside for world building and storytelling (but that's just me interpreting).

A lot of people find it boring though, not without reasons. I would suggest you to buy it on steam to try it, and maybe refund it. In <2 hours, you might not really appreciate the game, but will probably know if you want to give it its chance.

so what parts do you like about the game, what makes you like it and what makes you want to carry on?