Overall 9.8 Graphics 10 Sound 8 Addictive 8 Story 7 Depth 9 Difficulty 4
8.8
Is this the sequel Shenmue deserves? HatecrewCOB
Shenmue 2... the sequel to one of my all time favorite games. A game that is often considered to be superior to its prequel in most every way. A game that's scope has left people wanting more for 14 years. So how do I feel about it? Continue reading to find out.
*As a fair warning to newcomers to the series, there will be minor spoilers of both Shenmue 1 & 2 in the review. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
STORY- The game picks up a few months after the ending of Shenmue 1. Fresh off the boat from his home in Yokosuka, Japan & into the foreign land of Hong Kong, China Ryo Hazuki continues his search for the murderer (Lan Di) of his father (Iwao Hazuki). Without spoiling to much, he meets several new friends & foes along the way, but not much is really resolved in this game's 3 chapters. The whole first chapter is based on trying to find the person who, Master Chen (a major character from the first game) told Ryo to seek out for refuge & help upon arriving in China. The second chapter is largely based upon trying to avoid the giant Dou Niu (which I will touch upon further in a moment). The third chapter is based upon walking through the forest to Ling Shen Hua's home town. The game is weird in the fact that the longer you play it, the worse it gets. The first chapter is not exactly a masterpiece... but it is solid for sure. Its when you get into the 2nd chapter that things start to get a bit iffy... the whole seeing Dou Niu chasing Ryo & watching as he is basically scared to death of him never made a bit of sense to me. He is terrified of a dude who amounts to nothing in the grand scheme of things, but wants to fight the infinitely more dangerous Lan Di. He must realize that if Dou Niu is a man to be feared, then chasing Lan Di is probably not in his best interest. Then all you do in the 3rd chapter is walk (not run) through a forest talking to Shenhua for roughly 3 LONG HOURS (at least it felt like it). Then once you reach your destination, the game abruptly ends on a cliff hanger that went unfulfilled for 14 years (until the recent announcement of Shenmue 3). Sure the first game may have a few "flaws" in its storytelling (such as the often scoffed at search for sailors *which is taken out of context mind you*) but I feel it has a certain form of grace that is missing in this game.
GAMEPLAY- If you played its predecessor then you know what you are in for. The thing about Shenmue is that the gameplay was (& in many ways, still is) unique. At the time, you have got to realize that there was nothing more lifelike than this game. People lived their day to day lives in a vast (mostly) breathing open world. The game featured a true to life weather system where if the the skies were dark & cloudy one day... then the chances were that it was going to rain the next. The shops took advantage of its dynamic real time (in game at least) day to night system by having them have their own unique hours of business. You could get a part time job as a dock worker, gamble & visit pawn shops to earn a few extra bucks. You could even pick up random, useless objects & inspect them, by hand, for no other reason than to simply add to your immersion. All years before Grand Theft Auto III (the game often credited as starting the push towards more realistic game worlds) was released.
As a sequel to the game that first introduced the often lambasted Quick Time Events (or at the very least, gave them their name), it was almost a guarantee that they would make their return in this game. Personally, I never found them all that intrusive & in a lot of ways (within the context of this series) think they add to your overall immersion of certain scenes by making you, as the player, actually play the game.
If I were to have a complaint about the gameplay, it would be that for a series based around martial arts.... there really isn't a whole lot of martial arts action (which, admittedly has been a problem since the first game). Sure there are fights here & there, but not as many as I would have personally liked. I am not asking for Yakuza level encounters here (something that I found tiresome after awhile) but a few more fights here & there would have been appreciated.
SOUND- The music in this game is absolutely beautiful. Be it the background music while just walking around the city, the music during the game's many cutscenes or the unique shop themes (including the infinitely catchy Tomato Mart theme making a reappearance) the musical direction of the game really helps to bring you into the world of Shenmue II. The voice acting on the otherhand... well lets just say it leaves a lot to be desired. The voice direction isn't outright horrible, its more of a case to case basis. Some characters are just plain awful, while others are mediocre & at its very best you might find a voice actor who is just OK. It does somewhat take you out of the fantastic world that Yu Suzuki created to hear somebody who sounds like they are a piece of wood stumbling through lines that they can barely read off the script.
Overall I don't feel this game quite matches up to the first game (this is one man's opinion though... an opinion often counteracted) but if you enjoy the first game & are craving more Shenmue... then this game is still a solid game worth playing. If you are a newcomer to the series, however. I would recommend (if for no other reason than plot) that you start with the original first.
Graphics 10 Sound 8 Addictive 8 Story 7 Depth 9 Difficulty 4
Review Rating: 4.6/5
Submitted: 06-23-15
Updated: 06-27-15
Review Replies: 2
User Notice 
-1.jpg "Shenmue II (English Translation) Title Screen")
-2.jpg "Shenmue II (English Translation) Screenshot 1")
.jpg "Shenmue II (English Translation) Box Art Front")
-3.jpg "Shenmue II (English Translation) Screenthot 2")
