Do You Have To Play Shenmue 1&2?

[Dave]

I plan to get this but I was wondering if I should pick up 1&2 for story purposes.

[Hapless]

Yes I would recommend you play the first 2.

[Beans]

Yes, you wouldn't understand the story otherwise

[-__-]

Yes and no, There will be a story recap in 3 so in theory you could jump in there, but I'd recommend playing 1 & 2 to get a better understanding of what's going on and get a feel for the kind of game Shenmue is.

[Hotdog Air]

The story carries directly on from 1 & 2 and alot of plot points gets set up in those games which are mostly likely going to come up in 3. To fully enjoy and get hyped for 3 you really need to play the first 2. The first two are such an epic Journey and if you jump straight into 3 you will be missing out on alot of the journey

[KenW77]

Yes you should definitely play 1 and 2 first so you know the story. The story is a big part of what makes the Shenmue games special.

[SplashBreeze]

My understanding is that there will be multiple flashback cutscenes from Shenmue 1 and 2 in Shenmue 3 to assist new players understanding of the story. That said, I would still recommend playing 1 and 2 first. They remain great gaming experiences that can be had for not too much money on here.

[=.KoG.= Kosmos]

I would dare compare that question for a different licence: The Witcher.
So yes, you can play the third alone, but ... playing the previous ones will allow you to:
1/ Enjoy GREAT games
2/ Fully grasp the storyline in its entirety

In addition, buy getting Shenmue 1&2 on Steam, you'll be able to play in higher resolution than on Dreamcast, and even if it's a lazy port (though for Shenmue 1, in EU we finally got the chance to enjoy original VA. as back in 1999 the first episode was only with English VA), it's an experience on it's own.

[Ralen]

Yes. It's the equivalent of playing The Witcher 3 or Mass Effect 3 without playing the previous games. You are going to miss out on a lot of what is happening and not know many of the characters.

[BComplexity]

Shenmue is a MUST play for everyone. do yourself a favor and play the others

[Redblaze27]

I believe it will have a recap movie for each of the other games, so you at least know the jist of the story so far.

[Crouching Cracker - Hidden Weabo]

there will probably be a movie, made from the important scenes from 1/2 as a refresher so you can jump into 3 quickly and easily. Which was the original plan actually, when they were unsure about securing the license to rerelease the original games again.

[¤☣wing☢zeяo☣¤™]

While the game play might not be upto mordern standards if your a fan of gaming this is gaming history that spawned many games to follow, it was a ambitious title for the time.

If you do play it mods are starting to appear to enhance things further, I'm waiting for a full texture pack before I jump back in as I've played them on Dreamcast already but want to play again before 3 drops.

This is a game I thought I would never see along with HL3.

[Dekonega]

Yes. This game series has a story which makes playing them before jumping to part 3 worth it. This is true even during the times when the gameplay doesn't entirely hold up. No recap film can make up for the experience of playing Shenmue 1&2.

[Stnank]

That's like watching Return of the Jedi without watching Empire Strikes Back and A New Hope first.

You'll probably be able to enjoy it by itself, but a lot of the characters/ events might be lost on you.

[Bleep Bloop]

Originally posted by 美国标准自由✞:

I plan to get this but I was wondering if I should pick up 1&2 for story purposes.

Honestly no, both Shenmue 1&2 are heavily padded with filler and the plot almost doesn't progress from the beginning of 1 to the end of 2.

As someone who enjoys playing crappy games that were historically important I regret wasting time playing through S1 and S2. They have more flaws and frustration than redeeming qualities.