Shenmue III Reviews

Shenmue III is ranked in the 34th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
Andy Kelly
Top Critic
83 / 100
Nov 26, 2019

A seamless continuation of the series that makes up for its limitations with pure heart. It's like Ryo never left us.

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Kyle Hilliard
Top Critic
5.9 / 10.0
Nov 22, 2019

Rejoining Ryo Hazuki's quest to avenge his father is exciting, but Shenmue 3 feels like a game that has ignored the innovation and progress of the last 20 years of video game development.

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Recommended
Nov 20, 2019

A bewitching time capsule that transports us to late 80s China, and to turn-of-the-century video games.

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7 / 10.0
Dec 9, 2019
Shenmue 3 - Easy Allies Review video thumbnail
Nov 22, 2019

A magnificent, authentic, totally uncompromised sequel that crucially ignores virtually every gaming trend of the past 18 years.

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Metro GameCentral
Top Critic
6 / 10
Nov 21, 2019

A literal dream come true for fans and while most others will struggle to understand the appeal it's impossible not to admire Yu Suzuki's vision and tenacity in not only making the game but making it his way.

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6 / 10.0
Nov 26, 2019

Exploring small towns is still fun and rewarding until you have to engage in battle and dialogue. Then it falls apart

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GameSpot
Top Critic
5 / 10
Dec 3, 2019

Shenmue III hasn't changed much from its Dreamcast-era roots--and it can't reach its full potential as a result.

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Unscored
Nov 20, 2019

It’s not the lack of elegant dialogue or the glitches that make this game so disappointing, but the idea that a series that was so obsessed with what would be possible from gaming in the future has turned into a way for people to attempt to revisit the past.

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Kotaku
Top Critic
Unscored
Dec 3, 2019

Its charm ultimately wins out in the end, but the finale is bittersweet. The pieces are set up for something grand but there’s a sense that most of our time was spent putting them into place for a climax that may never come. If it took this long for Shenmue III, why get our hopes up for Shenmue IV?

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USgamer
Top Critic
Nov 25, 2019

Shenmue 3 suffers from hamfisted exposition, tedious repetition, monotonous grinding, and a heap of other fundamental flaws that are inexcusable in 2019. However, its environments are so confident in their sense of place that exploration is a capable redeemer, and the game is at times, on that ground alone, worth playing.

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Nov 25, 2019

Picking up exactly where the Shenmue franchise left off in 2001, Shenmue 3 is a marvel of persistence and vision.

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7 / 10.0
Nov 22, 2019

I was torn writing this review as I went back and forth multiple times on whether or not Shenmue III's adherence to the past was worth the squeeze. In spurts, it's not. But as I walked back to Shenhua's cottage to turn in for the night after a hard day's work, earning back the money I had gambled away, it hit me: people just aren't making many games like this anymore. We may never even get something like this again if Shenmue IV isn't greenlit, which would be a shame.

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80 / 100
Nov 20, 2019

Shenmue III has some issues and it is not a game for everyone, but, if you enjoyed the two first games and you know what kind of game this is, it will satisfy you, as far as gameplay, setting and plot are quite good and remain loyal to Dreamcast era. It was worth waiting eighteen years. Now the question is: when will we be able to play Shenmue IV?

Review in Spanish | Read full review

7 / 10.0
Nov 22, 2019

Speaking of a video game of such importance, it is difficult to separate the nostalgia effect from the actual quality. While Shenmue III proposes itself exactly as it wanted to be, on the other hand it stumbles into a series of smears that go far beyond anachronism. The desire to appear in everything as the ideal sequel to a series frozen for eighteen years proves to be a double-edged sword. As much as Shenmue III manages to find internal coherence in its compact rhythm, one cannot overlook the obvious conceptual limits that undermine its overall quality. Yu Suzuki's title does not go beyond the "miracle" of his own existence, and as satisfied as it may be, even for the most dedicated fans it will be impossible not to admit an unpleasant aftertaste of lost opportunity.

Review in Italian | Read full review

IGN Spain
Top Critic
7 / 10.0
Nov 21, 2019

The story we never thought would come is already here, outdated in many aspects and mechanics, but maintaining all the necessary charm to not disappoint the fans.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

Kirk McKeand
Top Critic
Nov 19, 2019

Despite these annoyances, despite the fact that it’s a game designed with decades-old sensibilities, I enjoyed my time with it. It doesn’t have the conclusion we’ve been waiting two decades for and it barely drives the story forward at all, but the climactic battle is as satisfying as that 70-man tussle in the first game’s harbour.

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3.5 / 5.0
Nov 27, 2019

Some players may want to mainline Shenmue III in order to see all the story has it has to offer as quickly as possible.

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5 / 10.0
Dec 6, 2019

Shenmue III could've been made 18 years ago as it feels very similar to the previous two entries, with no real improvements, making it feel rather outdated.

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8 / 10
Nov 28, 2019

With Shenmue III, we are offered a glimpse into a gifted mind, constantly turning the everyday into play.

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