Shenmue (Greatest Game Ever)

[Guest Groove_Ghost]

*stands up nervously* My name is Jessica and I have been a Shenmue fangirl for around 7 years now..........

SHENMUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just saying that name makes me giggle with excitement and feel all happy

I wondered if anyone here was a fan, if not please, please buy it and threaten SEGA with violence until they GIVE US 3!!!

It was one of the first games I played where I cared, felt an emotional attatchment to the char, hoped for them, wished they would reach some kind of happiness in life. I felt like I was invisible and merely watching their lives play out day to day, needless to say for a few weeks I was basically a zombie and expecting any kind of a reaction from me was futile at best

Oh and I did once ask somebody on the street if they knew were I could meet some sailors............... Not good when wearing high heels and having multi coloured nails, but they were pretty though

[Guest tiffany_marie]

Loved the first Shenmue, ashamed to say this.. still haven't played the second one, although it's on my must play list.

The game I'm actually going crazy for and wish they would decide to release, is Skies of Arcadia 2

[Guest Risu]

Skies 2!!?? Its about time!!! Sorry... I am not familiar with Shenmue. I will have to look it up.

[Guest Groove_Ghost]

Skies 2!!?? Its about time!!! Sorry... I am not familiar with Shenmue. I will have to look it up.

.............Your life is not complete until you do

But you girls have got good taste though I love Skies of Arcadia, I am ashamed to say that I had it on the Dreamcast and being a silly young girl traded it for a copy of Digimon World 3...I still cry about it to this day

Bought the Gamecube re-relase and it broke, someone does not want me to play it

Shenmue 2 to me is better than the first one in some respects, awesome char and a much bigger gameplay area, as much as you should play it, it doesn't seem like 3 will be out anytime soon, so you have plenty of time sadly.

I wanna go to SEGA with my high heels on and kick em' until its made

[Guest ametur_poet]

Ah, Shenmue. The Dreamcast was such a fun system, with so much untapped potential. I think this game came pretty close to using all the resources the system had to offer, though. I am a huge Dreamcast fan [the VMU is so cute! ], so I have both this game, and the sequel. Amazing graphics and some of the most innovative gameplay of it's time.

As for Arcadia, I still can't decide whether to play the Dreamcast or Gamecube version. I love both systems, but each version has its advantages. Opinions?

[Guest Groove_Ghost]

Ah, Shenmue. The Dreamcast was such a fun system, with so much untapped potential. I think this game came pretty close to using all the resources the system had to offer, though. I am a huge Dreamcast fan [the VMU is so cute! ], so I have both this game, and the sequel. Amazing graphics and some of the most innovative gameplay of it's time.

As for Arcadia, I still can't decide whether to play the Dreamcast or Gamecube version. I love both systems, but each version has its advantages. Opinions?

You are right the Dreamcast was so underrated, it got an unfair amount of hatred due to how bad the Saturn did, kinda like getting a rep due to what an older sibling did at school which I know a lot about LOL

Despite it being pretty much as powerful as the PS2 no developer would go near as it was Gosh darned near impossible utilizing the Saturn's power thanks to their "great idea" of giving it two porcessors. You would have thought they might have looked in to how the Dreamcast worked rather than assuming it was the same.

In my opinion I would go for the original as I always like to play the original of anything over the remake, I loveeeeeeee Resident Evil, even have a Resi Evil tat As good as the remake of the first one is I always play the original more.

The gamecube version does have a lot of extra features and a multitude of sidequests, but I think for some reason they ramped up the difficulty curve. Maybe due to lower random encounters?

It does have a slight down tune in the quality of the soundtrack as they put it all on to one disc, I for one like having more than one disc, it adds a cute charm to anything. Dunno why i think that

Graphics wise apart from the Gamecube having slightly lower textures, due to the disc thingy their is no difference there.

You don't get any of the special hints etc from the VMU which to me is annoying, plus you are right it is soooooooo cute You should play the Dreamcast version for that!!!!

If you do get it on the Dreamcast tell me how it feels to own it, its been so long since I had it, and I can't afford to get it right now

[Guest ametur_poet]

The Saturn is one of my favorites, too. I actually have mint copies of Panzer Dragoon Saga and Magic Knight Rayearth, both excellent examples of the Saturn's graphical potential. It was a total 2D powerhouse; some 2D games were actually better on the Saturn than on the PS2 or Dreamcast! Not to mention Saturn Bomberman, which supports 10-player local play and 4-player online play! In 1998!

Going back to the Dreamcast, What are your favorite games for it? Here are my top 10:

1. Crazy Taxi

2. Marvel Vs. Capcom 2

3. Power Stone 2

4. Jet Set Radio

5. Sonic Adventure 2

6. Rez

7. Phantasy Star Online (I can still play this one online!)

8. Unreal Tournament

9. Grandia 2

10. Giga Wing 2

As for Saturn games...

1. Magic Knight Rayearth

2. Bulk Slash

3. NiGHTS into Dreams

4. Daytona USA

5. Saturn Bomberman

6. Panzer Dragoon Saga

7. DoDonPachi

8. Radiant Silvergun

9. Darkstalkers 3

10. Burning Rangers

[Guest Groove_Ghost]

The Saturn is one of my favorites, too. I actually have mint copies of Panzer Dragoon Saga and Magic Knight Rayearth, both excellent examples of the Saturn's graphical potential. It was a total 2D powerhouse; some 2D games were actually better on the Saturn than on the PS2 or Dreamcast! Not to mention Saturn Bomberman, which supports 10-player local play and 4-player online play! In 1998!

Going back to the Dreamcast, What are your favorite games for it? Here are my top 10:

1. Crazy Taxi

2. Marvel Vs. Capcom 2

3. Power Stone 2

4. Jet Set Radio

5. Sonic Adventure 2

6. Rez

7. Phantasy Star Online (I can still play this one online!)

8. Unreal Tournament

9. Grandia 2

10. Giga Wing 2

As for Saturn games...

1. Magic Knight Rayearth

2. Bulk Slash

3. NiGHTS into Dreams

4. Daytona USA

5. Saturn Bomberman

6. Panzer Dragoon Saga

7. DoDonPachi

8. Radiant Silvergun

9. Darkstalkers 3

10. Burning Rangers

Mint copies????????????? Okay, I officially hate you now Nah I love you really! LOL I did see a mint condition copy of Panza Dragoon Saga at this second hand game shop for around £2 50p, but I didn't have any money on me at the time, when I went back the next day the shop had been broken in to

You are right about the graphical potential of the Saturn, it may have been difficult to work with but when done right the work clearly paid off. I don't think any game really showed what it is what capable of, Resident Evil 1 did come close, so much better than on the PSX.

I often think of what could have been had devolpers used its full potential, oh the gaming joys we could have experienced! Rayman 1 looked so good you could watch clips of it on Youtube and be fooled in to thinking you were watching a Disney film, before Disney started to get lame that is

My top ten Dreamcast though are

1. Shenmue 2

2. Nomad Soul (Bowieeeee!!!!!!)

3. Resident Evil 2 (way better than the PSX version, the VMU was used really well on this one)

4. Skies of Arcadia

5. Shadow Man (I am still proud I did this game)

6. Fur Fighters (cutesy, fluffy aniamls with attitude!)

7. Carrier

8. Legacy of Kain Soul Reaver (another example of the Dreamcast showing Sony how its done)

9. Zombie Revenge

10. Blue Stinger

Sadly I haven't played enough of the Saturn to have a top ten But plan to expand my collection in the future, now it has a pretty decent fanbase sellers have ramped up the prices So not fair!

Do you play many current gen games? I have always said I will move on to the new generation when I ave grown tired of the last few, don't see that happening for a good while yet, too many great games!

[Guest tiffany_marie]

Risu:

Sorry to get your hopes up, Skies 2 hasn't been announced.. just a game that's rumored on a regular basis, I just hope that one day those rumors will turn into something more.

In regard to The Dreamcast, it was the first console I got right at launch since The NES. Got it at the mall at midnight on 9-9-99 remember it like it were yesterday.

That console should have done a lot better than what it did.

I've owned virtually every console from The Atari 2600 on up at one point, including some rather unpopular ones in The US like the TurboGrafx 16

[JenniferB]

Risu:

Sorry to get your hopes up, Skies 2 hasn't been announced.. just a game that's rumored on a regular basis, I just hope that one day those rumors will turn into something more.

In regard to The Dreamcast, it was the first console I got right at launch since The NES. Got it at the mall at midnight on 9-9-99 remember it like it were yesterday.

That console should have done a lot better than what it did.

I've owned virtually every console from The Atari 2600 on up at one point, including some rather unpopular ones in The US like the TurboGrafx 16

The Dreamcast was one the best consoles. It's too bad it didn't last very long.

Jenny

[Guest Shadi]

Hey, hey listen.

I know where we can meet some sailors. |3

[Guest ametur_poet]

Mint copies????????????? Okay, I officially hate you now Nah I love you really! LOL I did see a mint condition copy of Panza Dragoon Saga at this second hand game shop for around £2 50p, but I didn't have any money on me at the time, when I went back the next day the shop had been broken in to

You are right about the graphical potential of the Saturn, it may have been difficult to work with but when done right the work clearly paid off. I don't think any game really showed what it is what capable of, Resident Evil 1 did come close, so much better than on the PSX.

I often think of what could have been had devolpers used its full potential, oh the gaming joys we could have experienced! Rayman 1 looked so good you could watch clips of it on Youtube and be fooled in to thinking you were watching a Disney film, before Disney started to get lame that is

My top ten Dreamcast though are

1. Shenmue 2

2. Nomad Soul (Bowieeeee!!!!!!)

3. Resident Evil 2 (way better than the PSX version, the VMU was used really well on this one)

4. Skies of Arcadia

5. Shadow Man (I am still proud I did this game)

6. Fur Fighters (cutesy, fluffy aniamls with attitude!)

7. Carrier

8. Legacy of Kain Soul Reaver (another example of the Dreamcast showing Sony how its done)

9. Zombie Revenge

10. Blue Stinger

Sadly I haven't played enough of the Saturn to have a top ten But plan to expand my collection in the future, now it has a pretty decent fanbase sellers have ramped up the prices So not fair!

Do you play many current gen games? I have always said I will move on to the new generation when I ave grown tired of the last few, don't see that happening for a good while yet, too many great games!

You really ought to give Magic Knight Rayearth a chance sometime; I love the game; I think it is definitely one of the best on the system, and oddly enough, it was the last Saturn game ever released in the US. If you like series like Legend of Zelda, or Oasis, then I am sure you will love Rayearth. Gorgeous 2D graphics, great soundtrack, and addictive gameplay.

Oh, I forgot to talk about the Saturn's lovely controller! I just love that D-Pad, it's so smooth and responsive. The controller just feels great in your hands, and is still very lightweight. The PS1 wishes it had it this good! The Saturn's 3D controller is great, too; I can't believe no other controller ever thought to use an analog pad as opposed to a stick! The Dreamcast's controller is also stellar for 3D games, it is aesthetically appealing and once again, I cannot get over how great of an idea the VMU was; why haven't other companies at least put a screen in their controller? Sega was way ahead of their time!

Have you ever tried online play or web browsing on the Dreamcast? I was lucky enough to find both the Dreamcast Broadband adapter and the Saturn Netlink, and have both hooked up to the Internet. Sure, very few sites are compatible anymore, but it is cool for retro appeal, if nothing else. (Hmm... I should be able to visit Laura's Playground on my Saturn!) Be right back, I'm going to do that right now!

[Guest Shadi]

I had the dreamcast during my middle school years, and I never owned more than shameful of games. My top five would have to be...

1. Phantasy Star Online (1 + 2) - I have a funny story about buying this one if anyone cares to hear it.

2. Sonic Adventure.

3. Blue Stinger

4. Gundam Side Story

5. Jet Grind Radio

[Guest ametur_poet]

I think the most technically impressive 3D game on the Saturn, all things considered, is Shining Force III. They squeezed every bit of power they could out of the system's processors, GPU, and they even used the Saturn's sound processor to help with the graphics! Now THAT is impressive! The Saturn's most impressive 2D game, on the other hand, I think is Street Fighter Alpha 3, which, as I said, is actually superior to the PS2 and Dreamcast versions! Not many games can claim that.

[Guest Groove_Ghost]

You really ought to give Magic Knight Rayearth a chance sometime; I love the game; I think it is definitely one of the best on the system, and oddly enough, it was the last Saturn game ever released in the US. If you like series like Legend of Zelda, or Oasis, then I am sure you will love Rayearth. Gorgeous 2D graphics, great soundtrack, and addictive gameplay.

Oh, I forgot to talk about the Saturn's lovely controller! I just love that D-Pad, it's so smooth and responsive. The controller just feels great in your hands, and is still very lightweight. The PS1 wishes it had it this good! The Saturn's 3D controller is great, too; I can't believe no other controller ever thought to use an analog pad as opposed to a stick! The Dreamcast's controller is also stellar for 3D games, it is aesthetically appealing and once again, I cannot get over how great of an idea the VMU was; why haven't other companies at least put a screen in their controller? Sega was way ahead of their time!

Have you ever tried online play or web browsing on the Dreamcast? I was lucky enough to find both the Dreamcast Broadband adapter and the Saturn Netlink, and have both hooked up to the Internet. Sure, very few sites are compatible anymore, but it is cool for retro appeal, if nothing else. (Hmm... I should be able to visit Laura's Playground on my Saturn!) Be right back, I'm going to do that right now!

I have heard of Rayearth but never been lucky enough to find a copy Not many game shops where I live ever really stocked Saturn games, even when games were still being made for it all I can remember seeing in Gamestation were second hand copies of Duke Nukem 3D and Sonic Jam, both good games but still...........

The Saturn did have a lovely controller, very responsive and comfortable, much better than the PSX one which hurts my hand after long gaming sessions. I think due to the popularity of the system most companies try to copy it, just because we put up with it doesn't mean its a good! Robbie William's career should prove that theory right!

When I was a child I absolutely adored my little VMU, so cute and pretty as well as having so many uses, playing Resi Evil 2 seemed so much cooler with the little heart moniter health bar beeping away on the screen, as well as ammo, it added a lot more depth to the game as well as making it easier to play. Even when it didn't have an ingame purpose you got a picture or game logo on there, so cool! Why anyone else never did anything similar is beyond me, you could put your stats on there so it didn't clutter up the screen! C'mon people think!

Dreamcast and Saturn internet, are you trying to make jealous??????

Unfortuantely I never had my Dreamcast hooked up to the net, I would go on Shenmue passport and dream endlessly about the goodies that I would find All those Gosh darned winning cans!!!!!

I did get to play Phantasy Star Online on my Laptop for a short time on a fan server, many fond memories there, but it got shut down and I hear now that virtually no one plays anymore so I never bothered looking for any others.

SEGA was and is way ahead of their time, I cannot believe with the games they put out now they are the same company that basically paved the way for so many lackluster imitaters. Changing the heads of SEGA to the people who messed up SEGA of America was a really bad idea, Yu Suzuki needs to make Shenmue 3 and prove to people they can still be a major contender, don't see it happening...........

Still they recently did get a patent for a home console so who knows????

I do love Zelda!!! Ocarina was my first game for my N64, I always wished I looked just look Zleda, so pretty, I hated her LOL

[Guest ametur_poet]

I TOTALLY agree with you about Zelda! Her dress is just gorgeous on her; I wish I had one in my size! Another game girl I usually find myself being jealous of was Tear Grants from Tales of the Abyss. Her outfit is simple, yet so elegant and flowing. She also has a great voice:

On another note, what is your favorite handheld system? (This is fun; I never thought I would find another hardcore gamer on this forum!)

[Guest Groove_Ghost]

I TOTALLY agree with you about Zelda! Her dress is just gorgeous on her; I wish I had one in my size! Another game girl I usually find myself being jealous of was Tear Grants from Tales of the Abyss. Her outfit is simple, yet so elegant and flowing. She also has a great voice:

On another note, what is your favorite handheld system? (This is fun; I never thought I would find another hardcore gamer on this forum!)

She is so beautiful *sighs* I LOVE the tasteful yet elegant look, especially if they have an awesome, fiesty side and can be useful in a party LOL I would say the Mithras' in Final Fantasy XI were like that but their outfits.................Yeah, not so tasteful LOL

I always loved Claire from Resident Evil, she was everything I want to be

My favorite handheld console has got to be the Gameboy Advance, it had the already amazing back catalogue of Gameboy games; Pokemon (of course LOL,) Dragon Quest, Metal Gear Solid-Ghost Babel, Legend of Zelda as well some other amazing RPGs and platformers which I won't name because I will be sat here till morning and I am sure you don't want to read through a list that would reach triple digits LOL

But it was released around the time when companies were doing amazing things with handheld games, they were more than something to do on long car rides or fiddle with on the beach, they were treated as a genuine platform to release good, solid, story based games on. It was a very groovy time. Pokemon Gold and Silver really brought the series to what I feel was its logical conclusion, the changes were really so dramatic that I doubt you could replicate that feeling with any title, maybe nostalgia has tainted it somewhat?

The new generation just does not feel as exciting to me, companies seem more intent on trying to stick a PS3 in your pocket as opposed to making "handheld" games, not sure I expressed that right?

Other than that I do have a very soft spot in my heart for the SEGA Game Gear, sure it may have been oversized and drained batteries like it was scared it would never be turned on again but it had charm all its own SEGA went all out, with the console and advertising LOL to make something amazing and in many ways they succeded. Full colour screen, fast gameplay, classic titles etc I love my Game Gear and do play on it outside hoping someone will see so I can spread the word they are not as bad as their rep makes them out to be!

[Guest ametur_poet]

She is so beautiful *sighs* I LOVE the tasteful yet elegant look, especially if they have an awesome, fiesty side and can be useful in a party LOL I would say the Mithras' in Final Fantasy XI were like that but their outfits.................Yeah, not so tasteful LOL

I always loved Claire from Resident Evil, she was everything I want to be

I haven't played too many survival horror games (too scary!), I have played enough Resident Evil to know that she is a fantastically-made character.

My favorite handheld console has got to be the Gameboy Advance, it had the already amazing back catalogue of Gameboy games; Pokemon (of course LOL,) Dragon Quest, Metal Gear Solid-Ghost Babel, Legend of Zelda as well some other amazing RPGs and platformers which I won't name because I will be sat here till morning and I am sure you don't want to read through a list that would reach triple digits LOL

But it was released around the time when companies were doing amazing things with handheld games, they were more than something to do on long car rides or fiddle with on the beach, they were treated as a genuine platform to release good, solid, story based games on. It was a very groovy time. Pokemon Gold and Silver really brought the series to what I feel was its logical conclusion, the changes were really so dramatic that I doubt you could replicate that feeling with any title, maybe nostalgia has tainted it somewhat?

The new generation just does not feel as exciting to me, companies seem more intent on trying to stick a PS3 in your pocket as opposed to making "handheld" games, not sure I expressed that right?

Other than that I do have a very soft spot in my heart for the SEGA Game Gear, sure it may have been oversized and drained batteries like it was scared it would never be turned on again but it had charm all its own SEGA went all out, with the console and advertising LOL to make something amazing and in many ways they succeded. Full colour screen, fast gameplay, classic titles etc I love my Game Gear and do play on it outside hoping someone will see so I can spread the word they are not as bad as their rep makes them out to be!

I definitely agree with you that the GBA is one of the best handhelds out there (I have a friend who maintains that the Gamecube+Game Boy Player is the most versatile console ever created), but my favorite handheld ever is the Neo Geo Pocket Color, primarily for some of the reasons you said. It is THE handheld for pick up and play gameplay, with a ton of awesome games like Metal Slug, SNK Vs. Capcom, Magical Drop, Cotton, King of Fighters, Biomotor Unitron, Dark Arms. I actually think the portable versions of SNK's fighters were better than the console versions! I just love the little joystick on it, too; it makes the system unique and charming.

[Guest Groove_Ghost]

One of the things that drew me to Resident Evil was Claire, she is the ultimate female hero. She is pretty without being put there to provide fan service or swoon over the hero, she can use a weapon as good as the male char, I prefer her weapons to Leon's. She also has cute outfits without being to revealing, plus her hair is better than Leon's, even in the 90s "curtains" looked lame, only Shaun Ryder could pull it off.

When she went in to town and saw it was overrun with Zombies she didn't cry or run, she locked, loaded, chewed her gum and went to town, all the while looking cute.

I do love the Neo-Geo, had one a few years ago but one of my older brothers friends stole it It was soooo cute and PINK!!!!!! I loved the joystick feature myself, it really helped with the kind of games on it, Metal Slug is one of my fav games by the way. Me and my friend played through all of em' in one sitting, he always looked at me funny cause I played the girl char LOL I chuckled to myself inside

I had a Gameboy convertor for my SNES, it was awe inspiring to see Pokemon on the TV, I squealed when I first played it. But I prefer playing it on the Gameboy, its kinda like going in to your own little world, the TV kinda reminds more its a game for some reason

I did complete Metal Gear Solid Ghost Babel on the Gamecube one though, was fun, stealthy, stealthy.

[Guest ametur_poet]

One of the things that drew me to Resident Evil was Claire, she is the ultimate female hero. She is pretty without being put there to provide fan service or swoon over the hero, she can use a weapon as good as the male char, I prefer her weapons to Leon's. She also has cute outfits without being to revealing, plus her hair is better than Leon's, even in the 90s "curtains" looked lame, only Shaun Ryder could pull it off.

When she went in to town and saw it was overrun with Zombies she didn't cry or run, she locked, loaded, chewed her gum and went to town, all the while looking cute.

I really ought to pick up the Nintendo 64 or Dreamcast version of Resident Evil 2 soon; now I'm interested as well. One female character I really admire and look up to in video games is Chie Satonaka from Persona 4. She is one of the few characters in any game I have played that is not fake or overacted, nor does she act in any way that makes her anything less than a believable, normal high school girl. And in that way, she is a shining example of a good game character; I really feel a strong admiration and connection to her. Actually, ALL of the characters in Persona 4 were amazing. Not only for the aforementioned reasons, but because they had what is likely the best voice acting in any game, ever. I say that with absolutely no hyperbole; it really is stellar. Naoto Shirogane was another great character from the game, and on a side note, is likely the only time in gaming where a transgendered main character and the accompanying issues have been presented and addressed in a meaningful, tasteful manner. She is also what gave me enough courage to start talking to a counselor about my own transgenderism, which is why I have chosen her as my forum avatar. Seriously, if you haven't played Persona 4, you really should. You won't regret it.