Info about Shenmue III:

Official game description:
Digital Deluxe Edition
======================
The Digital Deluxe Edition includes the full game and DLC Season Pass (the complete post-launch DLC content and the “Burning Sandstorm” Advanced Technique Scroll) and the legendary Ryo’s Flight Jacket.  
**DLC1 Story Quest Pack**  
One day, Ryo encounters Zhang Shuqin - a subordinate of Zhu Yuanda, who had helped Ryo out in the past. Just as Ryo thinks that he's renewed an old friendship, he learns that Zhang has been kidnapped. But by whom - and why?  
**DLC2 Big Merry Cruise**  
A new cruise ship has arrived in the Niaowu harbor. Various types of entertainment can be enjoyed aboard the ship, as well as challenge missions which can only be played here. Also, new outfits for Ryo can be obtained by clearing mini-quests encountered onboard.  
**DLC3 Battle Rally**  
A battle race set in Bailu is about to begin! The three contestants engage in battle while racing their way through the course. Reach the finish line in first place to acquire awesome items.
About the Game
==============
The brainchild of award-winning game director, Yu Suzuki, Shenmue is commonly known as one of the most ambitious game projects in history, which captured the imagination of players from around the world. Shenmue established the open-world format for action RPG games. An awe-inspiring world with an immersive story, featuring cinematic sequences, a realistic fighting system, and entertaining mini-games, Shenmue garnered acclaim and adoration all over the world.  
Play as Ryo Hazuki, an 18-year-old Japanese martial artist hellbent on avenging his father’s death. In this third installment of the epic Shenmue series, Ryo seeks to solve the mystery behind the Phoenix Mirror, an artifact sought after by his father’s killer. His journey takes him to an immersive representation of rural China, brimming with activity and surrounded by beautiful landscapes. Ryo’s adventure leads him to towns and mountain villages where he can further his training, try his hand at gambling, play arcade games, and work part-time jobs while investigating those who know truth behind the Phoenix Mirror.

Release date: Nov 19, 2020

Categories: Action-Adventure, Open-World Exploration, Martial Arts Combat, Mini-games, Story-driven Gameplay, NPC Interaction, Quick Time Events, Character Customization


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price:
  - Community fair range: $10.00 - $15.00
  - Reasoning: The evidence suggests that the community generally finds the game worth purchasing only when it is on sale, indicating that the base price of $29.99 is considered too high. Multiple reviews mention waiting for a sale or discount, with specific mentions of a 66% discount, which would bring the price down to around $10.19. Additionally, while some reviews find the game worth the price, this sentiment is not strong enough to outweigh the majority opinion that the game should be purchased at a discounted price.
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 40.0h
  - Story completion: 36.0h
  - Session length: 20.0h
  - Endgame: N/A
  - Reasoning: The evidence provides several key points that help estimate the playtime metrics. The first quote indicates that the reviewer completed Shenmue 1 and 2, suggesting a significant time investment. The second quote mentions a 40-hour playtime before reaching the finale boss, which aligns with the game completion time. The third quote specifies nearly 20 hours spent in one area and another 20 hours in another, supporting the session length and story completion metrics. The fourth quote directly states a 36-hour playthrough, which further supports the game completion time.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: Shenmue III starts off slow and tedious but becomes more enjoyable after the initial hours, particularly when players engage in various side activities and mini-games.
  - Stance: Fun then drops
  - Anchor: Engaging in mini-games and side activities
  - Time to anchor: 2h 0m
  - Friction: Slow story pacing; Tedious tasks; Dated mechanics; Unskippable animations
  - Unlock drivers: Mini-games; Gambling; Martial arts training; Side activities
  - Conditions: Patience for slow-burn storytelling; Willingness to engage in side activities; Appreciation for nostalgic tone
- Player Archetypes:
  - Nostalgic Franchise Loyalist (sale)
    - Motivation: Continuing the story and reliving the nostalgia of the Shenmue series.
    - Playstyle: Patient and willing to endure grind and slow pacing for the sake of the story and nostalgia.
    - Experience: veteran
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: fan of the series; Shenmue diehards
    - Reference games: Shenmue I; Shenmue II
  - Patient Explorer (deep sale)
    - Motivation: Experiencing a unique, immersive game world.
    - Playstyle: Exploratory and patient, willing to engage with slow pacing and routine tasks.
    - Experience: newcomer
    - Purchase stance: deep sale
    - Labels: newcomers; casual fan
    - Reference games: Shenmue I; Shenmue II
  - Frustrated Achievement Hunter (no buy)
    - Motivation: Overcoming challenges and achieving completion.
    - Playstyle: Completionist and critical, often frustrated by the game's grind and mechanics.
    - Experience: mixed
    - Purchase stance: no buy
    - Labels: achievement OCD
    - Reference games: N/A


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Stunning graphics and visuals (weight 0.4): The game features high-quality graphics and beautiful visuals, with improvements noted especially on PC. The environments are richly detailed and visually stunning.
- Shenmue charm and nostalgia (weight 0.29): The game retains the unique charm and feel of the Shenmue series, appealing to fans of the prequels and offering a nostalgic experience.
- Enjoyable and addictive gameplay (weight 0.24): Players find the gameplay enjoyable and addictive, with solid combat mechanics and a variety of activities to engage in.
- Unique and authentic atmosphere (weight 0.17): The game provides a unique atmosphere and authentic experience, capturing the essence of the original games and offering a beautiful representation of Chinese culture.
- Rich story and characters (weight 0.16): The game offers an interesting story with a wonderful cast of characters, providing rich character development and a continuation of the Shenmue narrative.
- Variety of money-earning activities (weight 0.14): There are fun and addictive ways to earn money, including various jobs and mini-games that add to the gameplay experience.
- Highly recommended (weight 0.1): Many players highly recommend the game, citing its enjoyable gameplay, beautiful visuals, and faithful continuation of the Shenmue series.
- Open-world exploration (weight 0.1): The game features open-world gameplay with laid-back exploration, allowing players to immerse themselves in the game world.
- Emotional connection and details (weight 0.09): Players feel an emotional connection to the game world, with many details and touching moments worth experiencing.

Common complaints:
- Poor story pacing and development (weight 0.5): The story is criticized for its slow pacing, lack of progression, and unsatisfying ending. Many players feel the story is sluggish, lacks depth, and does not conclude properly.
- Boring and slow gameplay (weight 0.44): Many players find the gameplay to be boring, slow-paced, and antiquated. The gameplay loops are weak, and the overall experience is mundane and frustrating due to poor controls.
- Clunky combat mechanics (weight 0.41): The combat system is widely criticized for being clunky, poorly designed, and frustrating. Players report issues with combat movement, character speed, and overall combat mechanics.
- Repetitive and tedious tasks (weight 0.27): The game includes repetitive dialogue, fetch quests, and grinding tasks that players find tedious and time-consuming.
- Does not match previous games (weight 0.22): Players feel that the game does not live up to the standards set by its predecessors, Shenmue 1 and 2. The combat system and overall experience are seen as inferior.
- Outdated graphics and mechanics (weight 0.19): The graphics and gameplay mechanics are seen as outdated, with the game feeling like it belongs to an earlier generation of gaming.
- Frustrating stamina system (weight 0.18): The stamina system is seen as tedious and frustrating, slowing down the gameplay experience and not being well-balanced.
- Poor controls and optimization (weight 0.15): The controls are reported as inconsistent, uncomfortable, and not intuitive. The game also suffers from poor optimization.
- Disappointing experience (weight 0.12): Many players find the game disappointing, especially as fans of the series. It does not meet expectations and fails to deliver a satisfying conclusion.
- Lack of modern gaming features (weight 0.11): The game lacks modern features such as Steam Cloud support and the ability to skip unskippable animations, which frustrates players.
- Feels like a budget game (weight 0.06): The game is criticized for feeling like a budget fan game or mod, with limited locations and technical limitations.

Gameplay feedback:
- Sequel maintaining series style (weight 0.18): As a sequel, the game maintains the style of the first two games but introduces revamped combat that some find less effective.
- Story-driven and slow-paced (weight 0.16): The game is noted for its story-driven gameplay and slow pacing, which contributes to an immersive experience.
- Combat mechanics central to gameplay (weight 0.15): The game heavily features combat mechanics, including a turn-based combat system and core gameplay mechanics that are frequently discussed.
- Variety of mini-games (weight 0.14): Mini-games and side activities, such as fishing and arcade games, add variety to the gameplay.
- Comparison to Shenmue 2 (weight 0.13): Players compare the game to Shenmue 2, noting similarities and differences in feel and gameplay.
- Exploration elements prominent (weight 0.12): Exploration is a key aspect, with players highlighting open-world exploration and various exploration elements.
- Character and level design (weight 0.09): Character design and development, along with level design, are key elements of the game.
- Martial arts training focus (weight 0.09): The game includes repeated martial arts and kung fu training sessions.
- Beautiful game elements (weight 0.09): The game is praised for its beautiful scenery, atmosphere, and detailed elements.
- Quick Time Events (weight 0.09): Quick Time Events (QTEs) are a part of the gameplay, including collectibles and instant death scenarios.
- Fully voiced dialogue (weight 0.09): The game features full voice acting and detailed dialogue/localization.
- NPC interaction for progression (weight 0.06): Talking to NPCs and investigating through questioning are important for game progression.
- Daily routines and activities (weight 0.06): The game includes daily routines and activities that players can engage in.
- Final boss fight (weight 0.06): The game features a finale boss fight, which is a significant event in the gameplay.

Performance notes:
- Optimization issues (weight 0.12): The game is reported to be badly optimized, leading to performance issues and stuttering despite adequate technical performance.
- Poor voice acting and subtitles (weight 0.09): The voice acting is criticized for being bad or rough, and the subtitles are considered terrible.
- Frustrating controls and menus (weight 0.09): Players find the controls frustrating and the menu system inadequate, leading to poor operability.
- Mixed graphics feedback (weight 0.09): While some players praise the graphics as a huge jump, others criticize them as technically limited and lacking customization options.
- Technical glitches (weight 0.09): There are reports of reflections disappearing with external tools, cut scenes blacking out, and music cutting off.
- Letterboxing and resolution issues (weight 0.06): The game has letterboxing and lacks support for ultrawide resolutions, affecting the visual experience.
- Art direction and locations (weight 0.06): Players have mixed feelings about the art direction and locations in the game.
- Platform-specific graphics (weight 0.04): Graphics are noted to be better on PC compared to other platforms.

Recommendations:
- Recommended for franchise fans (weight 0.38): The game is highly recommended for long-time fans and those emotionally invested in the Shenmue series. It may not be as appealing to casual fans or new players, especially at full price.
- Recommended for specific player interests (weight 0.2): The game is suggested for players with specific interests such as slow-paced narrative-driven games, retro games, beautiful scenery, mini-games, and those looking for a relaxing experience.
- Buy on sale or at lower price (weight 0.14): Many reviews suggest purchasing the game only when it is on sale or priced at a certain lower threshold, such as 10,000 won or less, to get the best value.
- Play previous games first (weight 0.11): To fully understand and appreciate the game, it is recommended to play the previous games in the series or at least watch gameplay of them.
- Install mods for better experience (weight 0.06): Certain mods, like the Kiwami mod, are recommended to enhance the gameplay experience.
- Play on easiest difficulty (weight 0.04): Some players recommend setting the game to the easiest difficulty for a more enjoyable experience.
- Consider buying Shenmue I & II instead (weight 0.03): Some reviews suggest that players might find more value in purchasing Shenmue I & II on Steam rather than this game.
- Not recommended due to poor quality (weight 0.03): A few reviews mention that the game is not recommended due to its poor quality and lack of a compelling story.

Other player notes:
- No Steam Cloud support (weight 0.04): The game lacks Steam Cloud support, which is a notable drawback for players who use multiple devices or want to back up their progress.
- High-quality Korean patch (weight 0.04): The game includes a well-received Korean language patch, which enhances accessibility for Korean-speaking players.
- Large data capacity (weight 0.04): The game is noted for its substantial data capacity, which may indicate a large amount of content or high-quality assets.
- Tolerable with trainer (weight 0.04): The game experience is considered tolerable when played at 2x speed with the aid of a trainer, suggesting some players find the normal pace unsatisfactory.
- Backed on Kickstarter (weight 0.04): Several players pledged support for the game from day one on Kickstarter, showing early commitment and interest.
- Long playtime for achievements (weight 0.04): Players have spent significant time, around 65 hours, to achieve all the game's accomplishments, indicating a potentially lengthy or grindy experience.
- Game received as a gift (weight 0.03): Some players received the game as a gift, which could influence their perception and reviews of the game.
- Name in credits (weight 0.03): Players appreciate having their names listed in the game's credits, likely as backers or contributors.

Emotions:
- Disappointment (weight 0.29): Players feel disappointed due to the game's slow pacing, lack of story progression, and changes in combat mechanics compared to previous entries. Additionally, the game's outdated graphics, poor design choices, and the need for an internet connection to play contribute to this sentiment.
- Nostalgia (weight 0.16): Players experience nostalgia due to the game's faithfulness to the original Shenmue design philosophy and its continuation of the story from previous games. The familiar gameplay, classic elements, and personal memories associated with the series evoke a strong sense of nostalgia.
- Frustration (weight 0.16): Frustration stems from the game's grindy mechanics, clunky combat system, and tedious pace. Players are also frustrated by the slow story progression, repetitive tasks, and various control issues.
- Joy (weight 0.1): Joy is derived from the game's unique activities, NPC interactions, and the enjoyment of its mechanics and familiarity. The beautiful scenery, atmosphere, and nostalgic elements also contribute to this positive emotion.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.05): Players feel satisfied with the solid fighting mechanics, good music, and the game's addictive nature. The game's details, touching moments, and certain improvements also contribute to this sense of satisfaction.
- Anger (weight 0.04): Anger is caused by the game's poor quality, lack of story, and excessive grinding. The use of third-party DRM and the game's poor mechanics also contribute to this emotion.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.03): Enjoyment comes from the fun combat, unique atmosphere, and detailed world. Players also enjoy the immersive gameplay experience and the emotional connection to the game world.
- Appreciation (weight 0.03): Appreciation is felt for the game's atmosphere, sincerity, and beautiful representation of Chinese culture. Players also appreciate the effort put into the game given the financial constraints.
- Excitement (weight 0.02): Excitement is generated by the continuation of the Shenmue story and character developments. The high recommendation and the game being a masterpiece from a specific character's perspective also contribute to this feeling.
- Surprise (weight 0.01): Surprise comes from finding a completely consistent and authentic Shenmue 3 experience. The removal of certain animations and the game's faithfulness to the original series also contribute to this emotion.
- Happiness (weight 0.01): Happiness is derived from playing the game and feeling connected to it. Despite its flaws, players enjoy the overall experience and feel happy.
- Hope (weight 0.01): Hope is felt for a future Shenmue IV. Players look forward to the continuation of the story and the possibility of a sequel.
- Anticipation (weight 0.01): Anticipation is caused by the cliffhanger ending and the possibility of a sequel. Players are eager for the continuation of the story.}