Shenmue 3 Will Be Open-World if Kickstarter Hits $10 Million

Shenmue creator Yu Suzuki has revealed that Shenmue 3 will be open-world if it hits $10 million funding on Kickstarter. Speaking during a reddit AMA, Suzuki spoke about a series of stretch goals should the latest sequel to the legendary Shenmue games, hinting that a secret feature that Suzuki himself has developed will be incorporated into the game:

“I will say this: if we reach the $5 mil mark, one of the things I really want to do with Shenmue 3 will become a reality.”

“At $10 million, it will truly have the features of an open world.”

The game seems likely to reach $10 million on Kickstarter, if not surpass it, having already raised $3,478,264 (at time of writing) in just under five days.

The AMA also gave some information regarding the game’s creation, with Suzuki divulging that Shenmue 3 will be powered by Unreal Engine 4 and will re-use assets from Shenmue and Shenmue 2:

“The assets from 1 & 2 will get a lot of use.”

Later, humility reared its head, with Suzuki conceding that if Shenmue 3 turns out to be a failure, that he will draw a line under the franchise for good:

“If the fans are not happy with 3 there will not be a 4. So I please hope we can together make this game the best it can be.”

Shenmue 3 is set for release on PlayStation 4 and PC some time in 2017.

Thank you Dark Side of Gaming for providing us with this information.