They got a fair amount of time to promote this at Sony's E3 event, so I imagine that the value of the marketing already put into Shenmue III is worth more than those 2 million, which begs the question. If Sony is willing to promote this so much, why aren't they willing to invest?
Or to put it bluntly: it fucking sucks when studios use Kickstarter when they are in no need of crowdfunding.
The title should be updated since Sony is not actually part of this Kickstarter, they simply provided the creator with a platform to promote his project because they are fans of his work.
That isn't to say that they aren't potentially part of the follow-on funding deals though (which we know nothing about), since everyone is pretty sure that this Kickstarter is a "proof of interest" gate for further funding. You could never make Shenmue 3 with only $2 million dollars.
Why does it suck that they use Kickstarter? It's validating the idea, and helps to confirm that the market exists.
Despite Shenmue's critical acclaim, it's not certain that the market exists. For comparison , Yakuza 1 and 2 (Yakuza is basically a spiritual successor to Shenmue in many ways) only sold 30k and 50k in the US market.
> Or to put it bluntly: it fucking sucks when studios use Kickstarter when they are in no need of crowdfunding.
Well, Kick Starter is now mainly a marketing tool anyway. It helps increase "engagement" with Brands. Nothing wrong with that. Other projects aren't going away. And there are still other crowd funding platforms.
Are you suggesting that 15 minutes on the E3 stage is worth $2 million+? I suppose that's possible, but it seems high. Or maybe there are additional promotions you are referring to?
I am beyond excited! I never thought Shenmue 3 would be released. I remember when Shenmue 1 came out, it was billed as Yu Suzuki's opus, and at the time the world's most expensive game at 70 million USD. To leave your opus unfinished must be hard, so I'm glad he's getting to finish it up properly (or, given the success, continue it).
For a certain generation of gamer, Shenmue isn't just a game, it's an event. It's a game I've often thought of over the years, to me it felt like a truly adult gaming experience. And to this day I still feel like it's one of the best examples of using gaming as a storytelling medium. I thought I would have to go my whole life not knowing if Ryo Hazuki would get revenge on Lan Di, and now, finally I'll get some closure.
The kickstarter may very well be Sony's attempt at gauging interest in the game before outright funding it.
It's easy for someone to answer a poll asking if they'd like a game. It's an entirely different story to put up your own hard-earned dollars to fund it's development.
From a simple technology point of view, game development for PC and PS4 using 2015 tools like the Unreal engine is a hell of a lot cheaper and easier than developing for the Dreamcast using 1999 era tools.
Things have changed drastically since then. Shenmue was the first virtual world of this size, nowadays you can leverage engines capable of that out of the box.
But then they simply wouldn't do it because the risk is too large. This gives them hard data on traction before they've even talked to distributors. So it works out well for people. Unlike a traditional pre-sale, these contributors should understand that the game might not ever be released.
What makes you think anyone wants to fund a new Shenmue? It cost Sony a little to put them on the stage since they don't have any first party games to show off. The cost of the time is then made up by 'fan goodwill'
Why do you think they don't need it? There isn't much info available about the company, but from I can tell, this would be the first game they've released. Even if they've done something to this point or have some outside backers, they surely don't have $60M lying around which is what the original Shenmue cost to make.
What excited me most in that article is the line "The press event also saw Sony announce that long-awaited game The Last Guardian would soon be released."
I played one of the original two games and really don't understand the appeal. All I remember is walking around slowly and tediously, talking to shopkeeps and playing pachinko or whatever. Pretty heady stuff.
For those asking "Why was this announced at the Sony event?", note that according to the rewards, Shenmue 3 will be a PlayStation 4 exclusive for consoles: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ysnet/shenmue-3
Could just be a timed exclusive because in the FAQ they said that they haven't decided on plans for other consoles.
I think it should be relatively trivial to port, at least to Xbox One and other PC platforms. The Wii U might take some extra effort to work within the constraints of the hardware, but I'm not sure.
Will there be an Xbox/Wii U/Linux/Mac version for Shenmue 3?
Currently we are planning development only for PC (Windows)
and PS4. Other platforms have not been decided yet.
This is one of those things where if you're unfamiliar with it the cost seems outrageous - but if you want to do it properly you need to pay good money.
1. stretch goals are just sales goals, there's no reason they have to correspond to actual costs.
2. that's gross, not net. Subtract 5% for kickstarter, 3% for the credit cards, royalties for game shipments and reward costs, and you're probably looking at less than $50K
3. good professional translation costs ~$30K per man-month if you use an agency. I wouldn't be surprised if Shenmue contains more than a novel's worth of text.
Seems like a lot, but if you consider cost of translation, studio time, voice actors, etc, I can see it being 100k, especially if you want to pay the translators and actors fairly.
[+] [-] wodenokoto|10 years ago|reply
Or to put it bluntly: it fucking sucks when studios use Kickstarter when they are in no need of crowdfunding.
[+] [-] sbarre|10 years ago|reply
That isn't to say that they aren't potentially part of the follow-on funding deals though (which we know nothing about), since everyone is pretty sure that this Kickstarter is a "proof of interest" gate for further funding. You could never make Shenmue 3 with only $2 million dollars.
[+] [-] rtpg|10 years ago|reply
Despite Shenmue's critical acclaim, it's not certain that the market exists. For comparison , Yakuza 1 and 2 (Yakuza is basically a spiritual successor to Shenmue in many ways) only sold 30k and 50k in the US market.
[+] [-] interactiv|10 years ago|reply
Well, Kick Starter is now mainly a marketing tool anyway. It helps increase "engagement" with Brands. Nothing wrong with that. Other projects aren't going away. And there are still other crowd funding platforms.
[+] [-] ianstallings|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] passive|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] roneesh|10 years ago|reply
For a certain generation of gamer, Shenmue isn't just a game, it's an event. It's a game I've often thought of over the years, to me it felt like a truly adult gaming experience. And to this day I still feel like it's one of the best examples of using gaming as a storytelling medium. I thought I would have to go my whole life not knowing if Ryo Hazuki would get revenge on Lan Di, and now, finally I'll get some closure.
[+] [-] drzaiusapelord|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jraedisch|10 years ago|reply
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ysnet/shenmue-3
I didn't see the link in the article.
[+] [-] AdmiralAsshat|10 years ago|reply
Realistically, how is $2 million going to be enough to fund a PS4-era sequel, presumably with completely new technology (based on the trailer)?
[+] [-] tw04|10 years ago|reply
It's easy for someone to answer a poll asking if they'd like a game. It's an entirely different story to put up your own hard-earned dollars to fund it's development.
[+] [-] PostOnce|10 years ago|reply
Sony is paying something for the exclusivity, I imagine. They might also be matching 2:1 or something. Who knows?
The kickstarter is only a day old, this amount of press will grow that $2M.
Plus they're using UE4, saving a lot vs the custom engine of Shenmue I.
We only have one piece of the financial puzzle, here.
[+] [-] minimaxir|10 years ago|reply
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[+] [-] bovermyer|10 years ago|reply
As a devops guy, I was more entertained by the effect of Shenmue 3's announcement on the Kickstarter servers. Props to them for the quick recovery!
[+] [-] DaFranker|10 years ago|reply
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[+] [-] minimaxir|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] joshuapants|10 years ago|reply
I think it should be relatively trivial to port, at least to Xbox One and other PC platforms. The Wii U might take some extra effort to work within the constraints of the hardware, but I'm not sure.
[+] [-] daxelrod|10 years ago|reply
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[+] [-] Lancey|10 years ago|reply
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[+] [-] drKarl|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jackvalentine|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bryanlarsen|10 years ago|reply
2. that's gross, not net. Subtract 5% for kickstarter, 3% for the credit cards, royalties for game shipments and reward costs, and you're probably looking at less than $50K
3. good professional translation costs ~$30K per man-month if you use an agency. I wouldn't be surprised if Shenmue contains more than a novel's worth of text.
[+] [-] roneesh|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] astrodust|10 years ago|reply
Translating a movie is one thing, it's only a few hours of dialog. Games often have way, way more.
[+] [-] bussiere|10 years ago|reply