Status Sadaharu_TR Jun 26, 2021
Slightly better than the first installment.
But still aged anad boring.
Shenmue II (2001)
Dreamcast · PlayStation 4 · Xbox · Xbox One
4.16 from 279 ratings
746 members have it in their collection · 14 playing now · 276 backlogged · 224 wish listed
How long? Main story 35h · with extras 18h (from 5 logged playthroughs)
Yu Suzuki's cinematic masterpiece returns with more spellbinding adventure and an even more immersive world. The epic continues as Ryo Hazuki arrives in Hong Kong on his quest to avenge his father's murder by the warlord Lan Di and unravel the mystery of the Phoenix mirror. Set in Hong Kong, Kowloon, and Guilin, you'll travel through breathtaking scenery, rich with …
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Yu Suzuki's cinematic masterpiece returns with more spellbinding adventure and an even more immersive world. The epic continues as Ryo Hazuki arrives in Hong Kong on his quest to avenge his father's murder by the warlord Lan Di and unravel the mystery of the Phoenix mirror. Set in Hong Kong, Kowloon, and Guilin, you'll travel through breathtaking scenery, rich with mountainous wilderness, traditional Taoist temples, and stunning tropical landscapes. As you move through massive, highly-detailed 3D worlds, you'll interact with almost every facet of your environment as well as a whole new cast of characters.
Originally released on Dreamcast in Europe and Japan, this Xbox edition marks the sequel's debut in the US and includes the Shenmue Movie chronicling the first episode in the series.
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Details
- Developers
- Sega AM2
- Publishers
- Microsoft Game Studios, Sega
- Genres
- Adventure, Role-playing (RPG)
- Themes
- Action, Fantasy, Historical, Sandbox
- Franchises
- Shenmue
- Series
- Shenmue
Release dates
- Aug 06, 2001 (Full Release) (Japan) Dreamcast
- Nov 23, 2001 (Full Release) (Europe) Dreamcast
- Oct 28, 2002 (Full Release) (North_America) Xbox
- Mar 21, 2003 (Full Release) (Europe) Xbox
- Aug 21, 2018 (Full Release) (Worldwide) PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Related
Bundled in
- Shenmue I & II (Aug 2018) · PC, PS4, XONE
Featured in lists
Rating distribution
5 stars
127
4 stars
95
3 stars
39
2 stars
11
1 star
7
Community All Reviews Statuses
Status timebias Nov 15, 2019
In anticipation of the imminent release of the third game, I began replaying Shenmue II on PC last night (and early this morning). My first impression was that the HD port of the second game is much more compatible with modern systems than that of the first; I can only assume this is a consequence of d3t having access to …
In anticipation of the imminent release of the third game, I began replaying Shenmue II on PC last night (and early this morning). My first impression was that the HD port of the second game is much more compatible with modern systems than that of the first; I can only assume this is a consequence of d3t having access to the source code for the Xbox port. Whereas setting the resolution any higher than 1366×768 would cause playability-killing slowdown in Shenmue I on my modest laptop, Shenmue II runs silky smooth in full HD, and looks great.
I definitely replayed the first game on the Dreamcast, but I think I must've only played Shenmue II once through before, as the environments and events feel less familiar—much of it I wouldn't have remembered without prompting, such as the (kind of awful) QTE-based crate-lifting job, and some of the less-frequented quarters of the city. I'm immediately impressed by the scale and polish of the sequel, finding myself getting more 'lost' in its sprawling world—with its broader opportunities for exploration and freer, less goal-orientated play—than was possible in the provincial districts of the first game. I remember Shenmue I having a more personal, affecting storyline, but I think there's more fun to be had in Shenmue II.
I've chosen to play the game with the (restored) English dubbing, because I didn't get to 'experience' this on the Dreamcast. (I had an Xbox but never got round to playing the port.) I used ner0's widescreen fix to remove pillarboxing and camera icons from cutscenes (which helps, apart from the occasional glitch when character models suddenly appear at the side, late into a shot). I didn't remove letterboxing because I think compositions look less carefully framed for doing so, judging by some YouTube videos.
Status Thoughtnaut Sep 12, 2018
Others have written more thorough reviews, but I can add that Kowloon in the game is actually a part of Kowloon called the Kowloon Walled City. This unique location was demolished in 1993, and so Shenmue II is quite possibly the best way to experience a place and time that are gone forever.