Shenmue 3 has reportedly begun shipping to backers of the game’s Kickstarter campaign.
The long-awaited RPG isn’t officially due to release until November 19, although many backers of the game’s crowd-funding campaign have reported their physical copies being dispatched.
[UPDATE:TheShenmue 3 review embargowill now lift on the game’s launch day, November 19.]
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Some stores have even broken the game’s street date, according to images posted on Twitter.
Set for release on PS4 and PC,Shenmue IIIis the highest funded video game in Kickstarter history, having raised over $6.3 million from 69,320 backers to help bring the project to life. It is published byDeep Silver.
The game’s release marks the end of a near-20-year wait for the third instalment in the series, following the release of Shenmue 2 for Dreamcast andXboxin 2001.
https://twitter.com/SwedishLincoln/status/1194328496610430977
I went to buy#DeathStraindingfrom my local supermarket, since they had -15% from games etc. It seemed they had made a slight mistake while putting games in shelf, so I had to buy other game besides it.#Shenmue3early, and with mentioned -15% price.pic.twitter.com/VLIS5FAoE4
It’s real.#Shenmue3pic.twitter.com/o4nlWfCef7
Shenmue 3 was first announced duringSony‘s E3 2015 press conference, during which it was stated the game would release in December 2017.
The game suffered numerous delays since then, with the proposed release date moving back to the end of 2018, then early 2019, then August 2019.
While Shenmue was originally planned to span a series of game releases, the third entry was essentially scrapped after Shenmue II sold poorly, leaving fans in limbo until Shenmue 3’s surprise announcement in 2015.
In aninterview published in August, Ys Net’s Yu Suzuki told VGChe hopes to one day complete the Shenmue saga, which by the end of the third game will be less than halfway through its epic revenge story.
However, the designer also said the future of the series will be more dependent on which partners he can secure.
“If Shenmue 3 sells well it will make things easier [with Shenmue 4],” he said. “But I think it will rely more on what kind of partners we will be able to secure.”
In the same interview, the veteranSegadesigner suggested he could bein discussions to return to his classic series Virtua Fighter and Out Run.
