-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Giant Bomb are bringing back the Endurance Run... and it's Shenmue.
- Thread starter MassiveNights
- Start date
I just looked up a video walkthrough and apparently there is a way to trigger dialogue from the lady outside Linda to talk about Heartbeats but the fact that it's so rigid in how in hands out information is still a problem.
EDIT: Also scanning through the video and can't seem to see the graffiti.
_StreetSonic_
Member
I love this walkthrough! So far it is the worst playthrough I have watched and I didn't think that was possible.
I'm not sure how one thinks of (bar may be in bar district) + (bar may be in a secret alley) = (search for secret alley not in bar district). I thought I was about to be amazed that they figured it out! This part of the game can be difficult for some.
This is the first playthrough I have watched where the players have not truly interacted with the environment yet. It is fascinating and frustrating. I thought for sure they would have figured out that they could zoom in on objects and possibly interact with them at the Tomato Store. I'm also surprise that they figured out that they can go into places that aren't part of their current mission, but they are still not taking advantage of that. I am happy that they are no longer trying to go home before night time.
It is amazing how one limits him or herself with this game. Game Informers' Shenmue Super Replay also shows limits especially at a big part of the game, but at least they played better than this playthough so far.
For folks who haven't played yet. If you see people walking or running from a certain location, go there. There may not be an invisible wall. I'm not sure why with some of these playthroughs that people see stairs, trees, etc, and think not to try to go beyond them especially when NPCs are able to.
I'm not sure how one thinks of (bar may be in bar district) + (bar may be in a secret alley) = (search for secret alley not in bar district). I thought I was about to be amazed that they figured it out! This part of the game can be difficult for some.
This is the first playthrough I have watched where the players have not truly interacted with the environment yet. It is fascinating and frustrating. I thought for sure they would have figured out that they could zoom in on objects and possibly interact with them at the Tomato Store. I'm also surprise that they figured out that they can go into places that aren't part of their current mission, but they are still not taking advantage of that. I am happy that they are no longer trying to go home before night time.
It is amazing how one limits him or herself with this game. Game Informers' Shenmue Super Replay also shows limits especially at a big part of the game, but at least they played better than this playthough so far.
For folks who haven't played yet. If you see people walking or running from a certain location, go there. There may not be an invisible wall. I'm not sure why with some of these playthroughs that people see stairs, trees, etc, and think not to try to go beyond them especially when NPCs are able to.
I can totally imagine - hence my surprise I haven't seen any yet!
... So you haven't played it?
Watching a game isnt the same as playing a game.
If you'd said "did we play the same game? It's awful" I'd be totally cool with your comment. Opinions and all. But you haven't really experienced it.
What you mean here is "that would be plot not dialogue".
Both plot and dialogue can be aspects of writing a videogame narrative.
I love Shenmue but let's not defend the lack of sign-posting for Heartbeats. Overall the game does a good job of givng you enough hints about where to go, but almost everyone struggles to find Heartbeats their first time through. Dismissing this as a lack of concentration is just pure fanboyism. Yes, it's a game that requires concentration, but it isn't perfect.
The graffiti tag is in the alleyway that leads to Heartbeats, so I don't think you'd actually see it under normal circumstances. You'd have to look down the turn off at a angle I think.
I played the game on launch so I can't even remember how I found it at this stage. xD
Edit: Actually, on looking at videos, I think I actually just found them through a clue talking about them hanging around the motor cycle shop. (It's across the street from that).
The district isn't "littered with dead-end alleyways"; the only dead end alleyway is the one they should be going down. They just keep looking for a bar outside of the bar district for some bizarre reason. They were overthinking it.
Although they were on the right track looking at the map and realising it wasn't listed on there by name, but they looked directly at the alleyway and just ignored it. It's not small on the map, either. They were too engaged looking at the words rather than the shape of the map itself.
I booted up the game for myself to take a look at the lighting, and the alley is pretty easily signposted with the light. It's not ambient from another sign, and pretty directly points players down the stairs by drawing their eyes to the side of the screen with the light. It's subtle, but it's not obtuse.
Ultimately, it's moot point right now because the run is pre-recorded and already complete, so we know they find the bar eventually. I just think it's dumb to blame them going in circles completely on the game because it doesn't hold their hand the way modern games do.
At least if they do Shenmue II we won't have this problem. Adding maps to the HUD and being able to follow NPCs if you ask for directions really helps getting around the much larger map until you learn it yourself.
As a suffix, I'd just like to say I don't care if they get lost in the context of the endurance run. Vinny fills dead air like a champ, and I'm a veteran of Metal Gear Scanlon, so I've learned to cope with things like this.
I just think it's bullshit to blame it on the game when it gives you enough to figure out where the bar is, without spelling it out.
I just think it's bullshit to blame it on the game when it gives you enough to figure out where the bar is, without spelling it out.
Yup, totally. I still defend the walking around exploration of no minimaps or quest markers and hope Shenmue 3 keeps that, but Heartbeats should have just been on a standard street.
Nah, it can be on a little side street, I mean I think that kind of adds to the idea of it being a bit of a shady premise. It just needed something more to tell you it was there.
I mean one of the biggest problems seemed to be that, when you go into the bar Yokosuka and the bartender tells you about Heartbeats and MJQ Jazz Bar, Ryo doesn't then start asking about those specific bars. I think if they'd have made it so Ryo's questions updated like they normally did, and more of the NPCs told you their locations it wouldn't have been so bad.
Either way, these kinds of problems were solved in Shenmue 2 by the fact that when you ask someone for directions, they actually show you the way themselves in a lot of cases.
I replayed Shenmue recently, having played it several times previously but nor for maybe a decade beforehand, even I had trouble finding Heartbeats.
It just needed, I dunno, the biker guys at the shop across mentioning it? Or you keep pestering them and one of them pushes you into the alley where you see the graffiti? Or yeah, when you learn about specific bars you should be able to start asking the skeevier people in Dobuita about them.
It's not hard to back seat dev a 15 year old game, but this is definitely a trouble spot.
It just needed, I dunno, the biker guys at the shop across mentioning it? Or you keep pestering them and one of them pushes you into the alley where you see the graffiti? Or yeah, when you learn about specific bars you should be able to start asking the skeevier people in Dobuita about them.
It's not hard to back seat dev a 15 year old game, but this is definitely a trouble spot.
So I was looking up the best/easiest way to play the games myself because of this ER starting, and even a huge post I found by a Shenmue fan giving out tips for the game and extolling its virtues included the line "trying to make it home before your mother worries". Obviously haven't played it myself, but... if they can say that, I'm thinking someone who's not a fan thinking they're his mom isn't too unbelievable.
MassiveNights
Banned
Alex totally looked that up!
My thoughts exactly
Kind of an unfortunately timed episode, waiting around all day, especially when they don't want to get sweaty and train their moves (which is a big help for wasting time) but hey, that's Shenmue 1 for ya. It will happen again too. Thankfully Shenmue 2 let's you fast-forward time.
I don't blame them for not training, though, because the fighting is so few and far between (zero fights so far and they're 4 hours in). Sure, training moves makes them stronger, but it really isn't required unless you want to win a certain fight that you don't have to win. I've beaten the game 4 or 5 times and I think I've paid attention to training maybe one of those play-throughs. Still a pretty cool battle system though.
I'm kind of surprised they tried to find the old woman they left at Sakura Park two days before. They can't expect her to wait for two days. It's the whole point of Shenmue realism. NPC rountines and time schedules.
It may be a pain in the ass, but that's how Shenmue (I) was designed.
So yes, there is plenty of spare time within a day. That's why you can take care of the kitty, train your moves, play at You Arcade or at the Slot House, explore your residence and the Dojo, buy stuff like tapes or winning cans and try your luck in the raffles.
It may be a pain in the ass, but that's how Shenmue (I) was designed.
So yes, there is plenty of spare time within a day. That's why you can take care of the kitty, train your moves, play at You Arcade or at the Slot House, explore your residence and the Dojo, buy stuff like tapes or winning cans and try your luck in the raffles.
Yet in the end they find the biker and cant talk to him till tomorrow..
this game is maddening..
you silly boy, you dont watch a Bruce Lee movie for the writing.
They really are playing the game horribly, even if it's incredibly amusing and I'm enjoying it though I do wonder what people would think of any platformer game if they've never seen it before and are experiencing it for the first time in a let's play where the player only presses left or right on the D-Pad and never presses the A(jump) button? Surely they would think that the game is bad if the player doesn't properly utilize the mechanics of the game.
Except the biker IS NOT Charlie.
The game isn't maddening, probably more linear in the main story that it could appear at first but it's really a matter of exploring the right places at the right time by following clues, paying attention to the conversations and reading the notebook.
Grizzlyjin
Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
I thought frustration about where to go next was part of the Shenmue experience. It sure as hell was for me 14 year old me was playing it. Loved it all the same.
Dangansona
Member
Excited about the idea of an endurance run I can try to watch as it happens, and I've been interested in Shenmue despite never playing it. Some of the negative comments though scare me a bit. Are things mostly going well so far?
adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
PROGRESS !
and they found out mom is not mom. They're moving up in the world. The QTE punching mini game was the best part of this episode
Vinny is a comedic goldmine.
and they found out mom is not mom. They're moving up in the world. The QTE punching mini game was the best part of this episode
Vinny is a comedic goldmine.
As someone who never played Shenmue, the Endurance Run is a lot of fun. The frustration seems like it's coming from fans who know the game well and are upset they're missing things and not playing well, but that's part of the fun.
Holy shit! Orient? I remember you (I think) from the Shenmue forums on ign like ten plus years ago! I dont even remember what my ign handle was. Good to see you are still around. You must have died when S3 was announced.
All in all, it's a good endurance run but a.) not the best way Shenmue should be enjoyed, and b.) frustrating for fans to watch sometimes.
I'd argue it's much less maddening than Metal Gear Scanlon at least and worth a watch, but if the game is your primary interest you'd be better off playing it yourself then revisiting the endurance run.
This is the game that coined that phrase.
A+ post.
shiftplusone
Member
I fucking hate Shenmue(and the sequel) but like giant bomb and i'm enjoying the ER so far. I dunno if the entire thing will hold up because its a bad video game but so far so good
| Praxis |
Banned
I didn't like the games at all, but like you have found them interesting from afar and I'm enjoying the endurance run.
Dangansona
Member
Good to know guys, thanks. How do yall watch this? Put it on in the background? Watch 15 minutes whole eating? I'm honestly not used to watching extended let's plays like this.
| Praxis |
Banned
I watch it whilst furiously masturbating and thinking of sailors.
Dangansona
Member
Hot Coldman
Banned
I watch it whilst screaming at people on the road outside to kiss off.
Wuthering_Heights
Banned
Do these go up on YouTube eventually?
RiccochetJ
Gold Member
They're already there. Part 5 was up on on their Youtube channel 8 hours ago. They even have a playlist for it.
Amazing they couldn't say piss off in a T rated game in 2000.
SO, YOU THINK YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO FIGHT ME.
IrishNinja
Member
yeah, even without jeff on board for this, should've know this thread would be clownshoes, last page or so is embarrassing
Circle Jerk
Member
Just started part 3, please let me know so I don't go insane: do they ever figure out that all the references to 1986 might mean the game takes place in 1986 and not 2000? It's on like every loading screen but they haven't figured that out yet it seems.
I've always wanted to play Shenmue to see for myself why this game is so divisive and when i saw that the GB crew were going to do an ER i finally decided to play it.
Holy crap, there's a whole lot of searching for people and waiting for shit to happen in this game, i still want to finish it because to me it's really interesting how ambitious this game was for its time and because i have heard that the sequel is much better. At least the writing and the robotic VO is HILARIOUS.
PS: I also couldn't find the bar and had to look it up.
PPPS: This ER is absolutely fantastic.
Holy crap, there's a whole lot of searching for people and waiting for shit to happen in this game, i still want to finish it because to me it's really interesting how ambitious this game was for its time and because i have heard that the sequel is much better. At least the writing and the robotic VO is HILARIOUS.
PS: I also couldn't find the bar and had to look it up.
PPPS: This ER is absolutely fantastic.
Hot Coldman
Banned
Um...
Similar threads
- Locked