Video Game Reviews

Resident Evil 0 Remastered Is Classically Beautiful and Fun

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This is the fourth time I’ve played the game back to back. By now, I recall all the puzzles and the locations of the enemies. I love it so much that I am going to shoot for 100 percent! It might take me the entire year or more, since I don’t want to get burnt out because that will ruin the joy. However, I played the game enough to finally write a proper review. The gameplay is as addictive as Dark Souls to me! The lack of item boxes and the Resident Evil “report card” at the end make me want to become better at the game. It can be quite the sport.

Grading Rank Screen
Rank A on Normal Mode

A lot of people complained about the lack of item boxes. Having to haul your items because each character only has 6 slots to carry. Some items, such as the shotgun and the crossbow, take up two slots! Although I think part of my frustration comes from not knowing whether I should keep the items with me when I move on to the next area. That was me being greedy. On a side note, I do want to point out that the level difficulty determines item’s availability. On hard mode, there wouldn’t be a need to haul items since it’s scarce. However, this is bad if you run out of ammo towards the final boss!

Rebecca standing over all the items
I do feel the pain having to haul these items but it didn’t bother me too much.

Once I memorized the game layout and its sequence, I became more efficient. For instance, right before moving on from the training facility to the lab, I made sure that Rebecca was equipped with the crossbow because I didn’t want to backtrack and face the aggressive monkeys. They do re-spawn once an event has passed. I tried to avoid at all costs to conserve ammo and herbs. More importantly, save time. The longer you take to complete the game, the more it will hurt your rank.

Crossbow taking up two slots
I forget to mention that there is a limit to how many items you can leave.

In normal mode, it takes two shotgun shells to take down each hunter; one acid grenade for each spider; and one standard handgun bullet on each zombie if you aim for the head. Also, it’s not always necessary to shoot enemies if you don’t need to–like the leech man. Just run around it quickly.

The limited herbs also made it difficult to navigate, since Rebecca takes more hits than Billy. So here is where I had to strategize. Let Billy clear the path since he is more of a tank character. Rest assured, Rebecca is not a useless weak character. There will be time for her to shine. Not only is she skilled at mixing herbs, but she didn’t abandon Billy when she had the chance to, despite knowing he is a convict.

Rebecca caring for Billy
Billy rescued Rebecca many times, in the end, it was her turn to save him.
Billy lifting Rebecca for item
Great teamwork.

Lastly, I want to talk about the puzzles. I didn’t have to look up online once on how to solve them. It made the gameplay experience seamless. For me, the most frustrating thing to me in a game are cryptic puzzles like the ones in Goetia and Song of Horror.

Visual and Sound

The cherry on top of this game is the atmosphere and the sound. I feel so relaxed playing the game. As I mentioned in one of my posts, the sound of switching items between two characters is like ASMR to me. The train area is my favorite, and I wish it is longer because I enjoy the sound of the pouring rain, and the scenes are just stunningly beautiful, but you can say the same goes for the rest of the game. The training facility has an ominous, evil presence, but the lighting makes it so calming.

Rebecca and Billy looking up
Marveling at the equipment in the Training Facility.
Billy wearing prisoner outfit
The yellow and blue is so nice. What an artistic lab.
Billy walking towards train
Taking the train from lab to Treatment Plant.
Rebecca looking at the elevator
Factory elevator after defeating Tyrant. Red light =dangerous.
Rebecca walking up the steps
I like the green light reflection on the wall in the Treatment Plant.

All of the area was beautiful to me. I took over 300 screenshots!

Final Thoughts

Whenever I play a good game, I feel happy. It gives me something to look forward to at the end of the day or in the early morning. I love video games that make me feel alive, especially one that is strategic but not overly complex. Resident Evil 0 is my favorite game from the franchise. I guess to some people I have bad taste, but more so, I think I prefer something that has some technical limitations but is methodical. I wouldn’t like Resident Evil 0 as much if it did have an item box. It’ll remove the challenge and make it like any other survival horror game. Resident Evil 0 is unique. To me, it’s a good thing.

My Honest Thoughts on Silent Hill F

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I don’t know where to start. The game’s content is quite heavy. I’m not even sure if I like it personally. I am not even sure if I want to replay the game. There are multiple endings. The themes (i.e. gender discrimination and child abuse, bullying etc.) can draw out uncomfortable emotions from some of its audiences. Like the themes from Silent Hill: The Message, the game is far from entertaining. The game provided a Content Warning disclaimer, which is nice. However, making a profit out of someone’s misfortune is hardly a form of entertainment to me. So if you are looking to play something fun, you won’t find it in this game. Instead, you’d find a well-made psychological horror game about a struggling cute, schoolgirl in a man’s world. No one really gets her. It’s so sad that she can’t even talk to her doll.

Please don’t kill your femininity because you hate your dad. Not all guys are bad...

As for me personally, I would rather laugh than cry. So I am going to put this game aside for now…until I am ready to go underwater again. I am so curious about the other endings.

What a pretty sad flower

P.S.

I am sorry for being vague. It’s a good game. I am speechless about the game for the most part. Maybe I’ll come back with a longer post. It will make SEO happy. 😀

Song of Horror (Review): A Rock n ‘ Roll Horror Experience

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I remember reading somewhere before the release of Song of Horror that Protocol Games wanted to make a true survival horror. My initial thought at the time was let’s see if they can genuinely make a good one. Personally, I haven’t come across that many horror games I considered great by indie developers (maybe I need to play more). The ones I liked were Detention and Soma, but even then, they didn’t leave an everlasting impression on me. And so, I was pleasantly surprised with this game. Not only did the developers achieve in building a suspenseful, tense horror game, but they also weave a good story into the gameplay without making it convoluted. The gameplay is also highly addictive.

Synopsis

On one Friday evening, as soon as Daniel Noyer comes home after a long day at work, his boss from Wake Publishing phoned him on the whereabouts of Sebastian Husher who happens to be an acclaimed, historical fiction author, and the shiny star of the publishing firm. Not only is the author missing but his manuscript has passed the deadline!  Daniel, annoyed being as the errand boy, has no choice but to pay a visit to the Husher’s residency. From there, he finds the place abandoned with an eerie music box playing in the background. This mysterious tune will determine his fate. Will he find the missing author and the manuscript? Will he get his promotion that he so deserved?

Daniel is driving up to the Husher’s Mansion to retrieve the manuscript.

Gameplay

There are four difficulty settings: E.T.A. Hoffmann, M.R. James, Edgar Allan Poe, and H.P. Lovecraft. Even though the game recommends players to start on Edgar Allan Poe, I switched over to the easiest so I could learn how to play the game. Once I become comfortable with QTEs (also referred to mini games) and the puzzles, I move up a level. The reason is because on Edgar Allen Poe, the player will experience more permadeaths and encounter more QTEs than M.R. James mode. It can get annoying fast when you are trying to progress the storyline. With the easiest setting (E.T.A. Hoffmann), you could restart at a checkpoint without losing a character permanently.  However, if you pick Daniel, you will have to restart the episode regardless of the difficulty settings because he is the main character. So, be mindful on which characters you choose to play on the harder settings. Not all characters are created equal, but they balance each other out.

If you look at his serenity attribute, he is not good at staying quiet when facing The Silence in episode II, but his strength is strong for blocking the doors.
blocking door from the fearful presence from getting in.
Daniel has an overall balanced attribute, but even playing as him, I struggled blocking the door from the menacing entity.

As mentioned earlier, I take baby steps first until I familiarize myself with the structure of the game. The game will punish impatient players. Making loud, stomping sound will trigger QTE, which means potentially dying and losing game progress. As for the puzzles, some of them are difficult. For instance, the description to break the code in episode V is vague. All it has are some doodle drawings and a sentence that reads: “From highest to lowest, the seven numbers in the photo.” At first in my mind, I tried to match 7 numbers to 5 drawings. Now that I think about it, I can see the thought process. There are 7 people total, 6 in white suits, 4 standing up, 3 sitting down, 3 wearing glasses, 3 with mustache, and 1 in black suit. The code is 7643331.

Creepy doctors!

I was surprised that I didn’t need to complete the game on the reccomended difficulty setting. Once I completed the game on M.R. James mode, the H.P. Lovecraft mode becomes available. It’s there for those who want a challenge. Indeed, it’s challenging. Pressing the button to control your breath, heart rhythm and block the door will leave you panting.  If you are hardcore, go for it, but it’s going to require a lot of patience.  

SOUND

Speaking of sound, a horror game wouldn’t be horrific without the special sound effects. There will be times when I have to press the character’s head against the door to listen if there is something behind it. Failing to listen will kill the character. I died many times because I had the volume on low.  So, I recommend playing the volume on high or with a headset.

Erica is listening to what’s behind the door.

I could hear the rumbling, whispering and the slithering sound coming from the mysterious evil entity also known as the Presence with the headset on. The funniest part is the jump scare moments. I found it quite funny when Daniel screams. Apart from the haunting sound effects, there are moments where I could relax and breathe normally.  Occasionally, you’d hear the characters exhaling and making disagreement noises when something doesn’t work out such as trying to open a blocked door or failing to combine two items. It’s comforting. I also appreciate Dr. Berenice Prestegard’s calm and intelligent voice. Exploring the mental asylum is frightening, but she makes everything feels okay.

Dr. Berenice is terrified of the dark, but she is brave enough to sleep alone. What an oxymoron.

Visual

All the stages (episodes) are well designed and nailed the horror atmosphere to an extreme. Can someone please explain to me on what is the obsession with mannequins in horror games? Is it the secret ingredient to a good horror? I find that it’s becoming a cliché more than a tribute to classic horror games.

René Artigas in apartment b standing next to mannequin
You can’t see it in the picture, but behind René Artigas there is a door chained up. One of the easter eggs. It’s a reference Silent Hill 4.

Anyway, there is the Husher’s mansion, the antique shop, the archive, the abbey, and the mental asylum, which have straight forward objectives if you know what you are doing.  My favorite part of the game happens to be the antique shop in episode II. Whenever I feel threatened, I want to rush outside of the building into the rain. The sight and sound of the rain is soothing and it gives me the impression of fresh air. I like how balanced episode II is compared to other episodes.

Erica standing in the rain
The light shining on the rain is very pretty.

Conclusion

Do I recommend this game? Yes! Is this game perfect? No! They could have toned down the jump scares on Edgar Allan Poe, and H.P. Lovecraft mode. Secondly, some of the puzzles are difficult and don’t make any sense. Hard for hard sake is not my cup of tea. Thirdly, the H.P. Lovecraft mode is insane at times. There are moments I literally tiptoe in the game to minimize random QTEs. Lastly, the game freezes quite frequently on H.P. Lovecraft mode. It starts to feel like obtaining the platinum is more of a gamble than based on effort. Despite the flaws, I still enjoyed the game. What I love most is the thought process behind the gameplay, atmosphere, sound, story, and characters. All the playable characters have diverse, interesting backgrounds. I enjoyed the game so much that I shoot for the platinum trophy! That should say a lot about the game whether it is worth your time.

Reflecting on Resident Evil Franchise As a Survival Horror Genre

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Wow, I wrote this in 2017! Since then, I have attempted to play Resident Evil 7, but never completed it because I never got used to the first-person view. My brother told me it was pretty good. Totally skipped Resident Evil 8. From what I have heard, the developer has turned back to its horror roots. Will I play Resident Evil Requiem? Maybe since there is a third-person option.  I have played Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3 Remakes. The only remake I haven’t played is Resident Evil 4. Maybe I should play that for this upcoming Halloween. I was debating between Song of Horror and Dead Space Remake. Anyway, enough rambling. Here is the original post published on January 12, 2017.

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I don’t know what happened, but gradually over the few years, I begin to lose interest in the Resident Evil franchise despite the fact, I enjoy playing all of the RE games, but I think I’m getting tired of playing them and I’m losing faith that it will ever return to its roots as a survival horror genre.

It all started with RE4, RE5, and RE6 on how the games are broken into chapters/campaigns. At the end of each chapter, I was given a “report card” on how well I did:  hit ratio, the number of times killed, enemies routed, etc. Because I am forced to acknowledge my performance, I spent more time focusing on how well I played and not so much on the survival aspect of the game.  This report card sort of destroyed the survival horror experience, I had with RE1, RE2, and RE3.

I remember the earlier Resident Evil games were more story-driven and suspenseful. For example, in RE1, the characters are chased into the mansion. The mansion seems like a haven in the middle of the woods. They thought they are safe, but they are wrong. As they venture deeper into the mansion, they uncover its secret. Then with the realization that they might end up as zombies, they attempt to escape, knowing what they uncover is an epidemic. To escape from something horrific is survival horror.

I didn’t feel this way about RE4, RE5, and RE6.  There is too much action going on in these games which makes it difficult for me to follow Resident Evil’s timeline. Both RE4 and RE5 are very similar, in terms of structure. The environment did not feel claustrophobic. It didn’t make me feel as if I need to escape since I am already out in the open. In RE4, the appearance of the Merchant acknowledges that this is a shooting game. It allows me to tune up my weapons right before when there is a serious zombie action event.  RE5 is even worse, in terms of survival horror, Chris and Sheva are given handguns right after they walk past the villagers.  The way how the handgun is given to RE5 is not subtle compared to RE1 when Chris finds a handgun on the floor in the lobby and wonders where Jill and Wesker disappear to. Lastly, RE6 starts dramatically with an explosion. This is just a pure action-based game.

My argument is that the way how RE4, RE5, and RE6 were introduced and narrated, made it less suspenseful, which in turn, made it less about survival horror. So, I can’t say whether I am too excited about RE7. RE games have always been cinematic but how well it is executed will determine whether it falls into the survival horror category or not. I wish I could enjoy the demo, but sadly the first person-view made me sick. I think I am going to wait for this one to go on sale instead of playing it on launch day.

The BookWalker Game Review (PC)

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I finished the Bookwalker, developed by Do My Best, and published by tinybuild. It’s a narrative, point-and-click game. I would only recommend it to those who want to play something light. Play it for the art, the sound, or for the puns. That was the only thing that kept me going because there was nothing mind-boggling about the plot. It tells the story of a writer experiencing some severe form of writer’s block. Having to write what the publisher wants you to write is imprisonment.

Etienne Quist, the protagonist, is arrested by the Writer Police Department. To remove his writer’s block, he has to undergo a job where he dives into books, stealing unique items to write off his sentences. There are 6 books (chapters) in total minus the epilogue. They don’t take very long to complete. My favorite books were the last two: Timeless Mansion and The Heart of Sand.

Regarding gameplay, it reminds me of mini-quests where the player completes tasks in each book. That part I like. I didn’t like the random battle occurrence. For instance, in the first book, a spider crawled out of nowhere and I had to fight it. Like the character in the game…I wonder what was the purpose of the spider.

It’s an ink eater…[you shudder] they’re found in books, but they’re not part of the plot.

First battle encounter scene

I suppose gamers are used to killing things that if there’s no battle then it’s not a real game. Now that I think of JRPGs, I often kill cute animals without any real reason. At least, this game tried to put things into context, but like many players, I did find the battle system out of place. So, I wonder what the developer’s intentions were when developing the game.  I feel like the game was more about self-expression against the business practice of publishing works that have been done over and over.

Nowadays every jackass with some cash wants to recreate something.

I can sense the frustration…

This is just one quote. There were several more. If you are an elitist indie gamer, or an elitist game developer, then you might find yourself nodding with the game’s message: Yeah, the new generation of writers lacks originality, and the audiences who choose to escape into fantasy books stopped living in reality. I just wanted to argue: What’s the purpose of entertainment if you cannot offer an escape? The game would have been decent if it removed those writer’s inner monologues. It makes the writer of the game sounds like an arrogant, pompous. Why should we play games that insult the audience?

a desk with and opened notebook and crumbled paper.
Writing for an audience is challenging…

For my final thoughts, as an artistic form of expression, it’s a pretty atmospheric game with a great soundtrack, but it is too short. As I mentioned earlier, one of my favorite books in the game was The Heart of Sand because I thought the stage level was interesting. I was expecting the game to pick up after going through several bland stage levels, listening to the characters bashing booksellers, fantasy readers, writers, and the entire entertainment industry for robbing creativity out of creative individuals. Overall, The Bookwalker could have meant more to me if only it was a good game. I suppose Do My Best gets a cookie for trying to be clever with the book metaphor.

Death Mark 2 Review: “Eww, Eww, Eww!” 

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The monsters are grotesque, and the artwork is enthralling. But the impression I had of this game after obtaining the true ending (happy ending) was eww, eww, eww! I would love this game if I had the brain of an insect. That statement alone should pique your curiosity enough to pick it up because I will not spoil the story for those interested in playing the game. Let’s say the plot is creatively perverted, and I don’t even know if that’s a compliment!

Departed approaching
It’s trying to bite

In terms of gameplay, for a visual novel, it’s kind of out of the ordinary to level up your skills so you can take more damage from your opponent (spirits).  It seems like the developer put the gaming mechanics because it makes it more “gamey”. You can also collect lost souls which come in the form of a decaying tooth.

tooth of the departed
I suppose a tooth tells a story

You use the tooth to trade for charms to level up your spiritual gifts which help you reduce the damage taken during the Suspensive Act which relies heavily on deduction and memorization. However, the logic behind the amount of damage did not make any sense to me as to whether I made the right choice or not.  You see, to survive a confrontation with the spirit, you need to pick the right action based on the evidence you gather during your investigation. Each choice has a percentage success rate. So even if you ignored the story, you can still guess at the expense of your health points.  For example, let’s say selection A has a 77 % success rate, you know it’s likely the right answer compared to selection B which has a percentage rate of 52%. But of course, if you keep guessing wrong, you will die. Another important point distinguishing the gameplay from its predecessors is that it’s a harem game. The unnatural way the underage school girls gave attention to the protagonist made the experience cringey, but it’s not a bad thing because there is a creative logic behind it.

This brings me to the topic of the title itself: Death Mark 2 (2024). The title is misleading and a bit of a false advertisement. 1) Death Mark 2 is not nearly as good as its predecessors and 2) this is the third installment from the franchise.  It’s just my speculation, but I think the publisher thought the first game was more well-received than Spirit Hunter NG (2019), so they decided to bring back the old cast from the first game without giving them any real depth other than saying to the fans, “Do you remember me?” From a creative perspective, bringing back characters from the first game for the sake of making a reentry seems like lazy game design to me. Don’t get me wrong, there is still some real talent in the development of the game (i.e. art direction), but the overall package of the game was missing substance. I suppose this is a type of game you play for the artwork and the bizarre story. The artworks were so grotesque that I could not avert my eyes away from the screen.

Departed and the protagonist
girl with scissors coming from the inside out
Decent game, but you have to have the mind of an insect to truly love it.
So over the top

For my final thoughts, I still recommend this game even though it is my least favorite from the franchise. The political ideology toward women remains the same: when facing adversity, strong female characters such as Ms. Sakamoto, the Chief of Academic Affairs, are proven to be the weaker vessel. I find that quite disappointing.

Tales of Symphonia Review

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“”As long as you have the will, you can study anywhere.” -Raine

What seems like a fun kid’s game is actually more than meets the eye.  Tales of Symphonia asked some big questions. So big that it cannot contain in a classroom. After all, I was warned by the mysterious character Kratos that assisting the Chosen One is no school field trip!

kratos with a smirk on his face
Kratos looking serious

Indeed, the plot was hardly meant for kids. Why do we have to sacrifice ourselves for the sake of society? Don’t all life forms have the right to live? Why do we discriminate those who are different from us? So, when the game indirectly asked me, “Don’t you sometimes think that what we’re doing is meaningless?” The answer is absolutely no.

I felt like I was part of the conversation.

You have to be a bit of a genius to like this sort of game because geniuses like to think outside the box. Simply put, this game was quite clever.

Genis’ wisdom

I wish I had the time and energy to give a thorough and detailed review because I enjoyed it that much. I highly recommend this game if you are a JRPG fan who appreciate wholesome humor. I know I laughed a lot. I will leave you folks with one of my favorite scenes in the game. Enjoy!

P.S.

I might make more gaming related videos and short blog posts like this. It’s kind of fun and to the point.

Remothered: Broken Porcelain Review

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If I have to summarize the plot of this game, I probably couldn’t, and it was not as if there wasn’t a story.  There was so much telling and less showing that I started to daydream midway. Just imagine listening to a dry history class lecture. Are you going to retain any information? Probably not unless it affects you in some way.

You see, I don’t know what it’s like to have a bad father. The dad in this game is SUPER EVIL. But I do know what it’s like not to “have” a dad presence around. That doesn’t make him evil. For this reason, I didn’t find the plot mind-boggling. However, I do agree with the story that there’s a monster in every businessman.

Men in suit=evil!

What’s funny is that I didn’t quite grasp the story until playing the second installment. I suppose the developer decided to lay out the story because the first one wasn’t clear. From the beginning, we get a recap of the first game. After that, the evil dad kept divulging his dirty laundry to the protagonist. Is it Jennifer or Celeste?  I don’t know what the real name of the protagonist is anymore. Despite my dissatisfaction with the story, I still enjoyed Remothered: Broken Porcelain. The hide-and-seek portion was fun. I like exploring the hotel and having a female best friend. You know, being a delinquent adolescent, having dreams, and breaking the norm. It’s a euphoric feeling.

Relaxing scene
A rose for you

Unfortunately, I don’t classify myself as being a part of the LGBT community. So, the romantic scene in this game didn’t really mean anything to me. However, I appreciate it because we don’t see a lot of this type of narrative in video games.

Romantic scene

As far as the gameplay, I mentioned briefly that I enjoyed the hiding and exploring part. This was until I unlocked the special “moth” power. This power puts players into first-person view. It reminded me of the game, Amy, where you control things with your mind. I don’t like first-person view games. That’s why I was a little disappointed in the game.

So, if the story and gameplay are okay, what makes this game special? The answer is the artwork. I like the monster and character designs. I like the atmosphere of the game. Lastly,  I like collecting the trading cards.  I have a few more to collect.

Overall, the game was enjoyable, but it would have been great if it was more suspenseful and mysterious. So, if you are a true survival horror fan, you should still check it out.

Shenmue III Is Disappointingly Fun

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Previously on my blog, I mentioned that I am replaying Shenmue III. Now I explain why it is not as good as its predecessors.

One unique trait about me is that I can find entertainment in the most mundane things in life. For example, I enjoy reading equipment operation manuals for work.  Why?  Because I have to amuse myself if I want to retain boring information. The more I understand how things operate, the higher the chance I will do my job well. I can also tackle the unpredictability when I do face a problem. Like Ryo Hazuki, the protagonist in Shenmue III, sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands. It’s necessary whether you like it or not. Of course, I am speaking figuratively. In real life, I can barely handle a screwdriver to unscrew a machine. I am sure that with a little practice, I can become a pro in no time.

Ryo never giving up
I love the determination!

However, being determined and goal-oriented is a double-edged sword. You may fall into the things you despise when you are too fixated on a goal. Ryo is determined to avenge his father’s death. He doesn’t realize he is becoming Lan Di. Lan Di is the main villain in the game.

Lan Di doing martial arts
Is Lan Di really a bad guy?

In Shenmue II, Ryo is greeted with a question. A man asked him where do rivers go. The answer is the ocean, its mother. It means it is better to take the natural course and enjoy the journey. Death will come naturally. No need to speed it up.  That’s just about what you do in Shenmue. You go with the flow. Sometimes, I forget Ryo is an angry teenage boy who is grieving about his father’s murder. The pursuit to hunt down Lan Di becomes an enlightening adventure. Shenmue and Shenmue II illustrate that point clearly in game design, which I will go into detail later. For now, I will mainly talk about Shenmue III.

Winner
One more game at the arcade

Having spent 30 hours in Bailu, the first section of Shenmue III, I did everything I could.  This was the section I liked most in the entire game. I enjoyed the escape from city life. I felt the developers concentrated on this first area more than the second half. Everything flows well. Side games and side quests didn’t feel unnecessary as they incorporated well with the main plot. I thought the game should have ended here. Ryo’s story ends when he stops pursuing Lan Di. He realizes there is more to life than falling into a cycle of revenge.

Shenhua and Ryo staring at the river
Peaceful

Unfortunately, the saga doesn’t end simply because Ryo found wisdom. Ryo is too young to walk the path of enlightenment.  If I can recall, the ending to this game wasn’t satisfying. I beat the game back in 2019. This left me not caring if there will be a Shenmue IV. The story could have ended with a nice date. You finally have a conversation with the mysterious girl you kept seeing in the first game. And that’s where Shenmue III went wrong. Once Ryo enters the city, the story becomes cliché.

Ryo speaking to shenhua
Hard to follow story with all the mini game distractions

I wouldn’t necessarily call a game bad because of its weak plot. A game can still be good for its gameplay. However, it could be a problem when it disrupts the flow of the story. In this case, the game becomes less cinematic. It turns more into a dumping ground for miniature games. It reminds me a lot of a slot machine. Most of the time, you need a little luck even to win the smallest prize. Completing capsule sets and winning Lucky Hit can be such a pain. Sometimes, hard work gets you nowhere. Winning the grand prize is based on chance. I do feel like a gamer in this game. I’m gambling with my time and that is not a good thing.

Chobu-chan wanted poster
Another mini game where you hunt for this little guy.

You see, in Shenmue II, the concept of slowing down makes a lot of sense. There were many occasions when Ryo had to stop what he was doing. He needed to get a job, gamble, chase someone down, and complete errands. I can see how gamers complained about working inside a video game. It can get mundane. In Shenmue I and II, I didn’t mind so much. But in Shenmue III, it started to bother me. Nothing new was introduced in the second half portion of the game. The only positive addition to the franchise is chopping wood. At least you get the acknowledgment and recognition for your hard work. You receive praise every time you successfully chop wood, and the background music elevates your mood. Who wouldn’t want to go to work feeling like a winner? 

You have to work inside a video game. You also have to learn patience. This relates to the earlier concept I mentioned about following the natural course in life. Without discipline and patience, he cannot master a martial art skill.   In Shenmue II, you see Ryo dusting off books. He also catches leaves at Man Ho Temple. These activities serve as a distraction from pursuing vengeance. Cleaning is a meditation process for emotional healing.  Likewise, in Shenmue III, Ryo must complete Master Feng’s errands. Only then does Master Feng teach a new martial arts skill to Ryo. This skill is needed for the story to progress.

reaching out for steam buns and wine
Steam buns are a form of currency

The first step is to bring him a bottle of wine and steam buns. He only talks if there is wine and a steam bun. Once you complete the task. Then he wants to drink an expensive wine that costs 2000 yuan. Luckily, you don’t have to grind for money by chopping wood, a gaming mechanic introduced early in the game. You can sell the fish, pawn items, gamble, and sell herbs to complete the task. It’s the game’s way of directing players to try out all the mini-games within the game. Earning 2000 yuan is a challenge but not impossible.  Another important aspect of the game is leveling up martial arts skills: Attack, Endurance, and Kung Fu. Ryo needs to be strong. That is why Master Feng made him catch ducks as a training exercise.  He needs to take one step at a time before he can face his opponent.

All of these errands lead to a conclusion about the game. Players must work hard. You need to put in the time if you want to make things happen. You have to be careful because you can end up as a wandering martial artist or, even worse, a murderer. In the second half of the game, I did not find a purpose to all the mini-game distractions. The magic of Shenmue seems to be missing in the third installment.

Shenhua reading
Maybe I am reading way too hard between the lines

It made me wonder whether Shenmue IV is necessary. What will Ryo do once he defeats Lan Di? Have you played this game? Let me know your thoughts.