You need to watch the Japanese version the voice actors for English are horrendous just like the game I hope they just finish the story in season 2 or 3 because we will never see a 4th game :(
20 Reviews
I love this but...
skimmaster50007 March 2022
Loved it!
FlorisV8 March 2024
As a fan of the first 2 Shenmue video games I was delighted to find out SEGA made an animated series of it. It's beautifully animated, with lush backdrops and in bright colors. Biker girl Joy is beautiful as ever and even gets a bit more of a background story. I loved to revisit many things from the game, like the taoist who teaches Ryo a powerful move of which he has to prove his mastery by punching a tree so hard that it's leaves drop.
There are some things in the game not in this anime like the many beautiful little Chinese tunes for each area in Hong Kong, or the ways Ryo has to make money like Lucky Hit or gambling Big or Small. In the game, Ren asks an extravagant amount of money before he helps Ryo, this is one of the things skipped in the anime.
The only things I can hope for is a new season since Shenmue 3, while out as a game has not been adapted (yet?). And after Shenmue 3 at least one more sequel is necessary to wrap up the story. One can hope. I'm sure that yet another Kickstarter funding would be succesful as long as they listen to criticism.
Shenmue 3 has not been received too well despite a succesful Kickstarter. Many fans were as eagerly awaiting it as they were disappointed for it's lack of revelations in the story as well as tedium in it's gameplay compared to the previous chapters. Shenmue game history is a troubled one, with the first two being the most expensive game projects ever at the time and having a hard time to earn back the costs as the SEGA Dreamcast flopped hard.
The main gripe I could find with this anime is that Ryo is too strong and wins most fights. I would have liked to see a bit more struggle. The show makes some giant leaps to cram the epic tale so far into 13 episodes. But it was quite addictive to watch with a lot of tempo, some good jokes among more serious philosophical musings related to martial arts as well as a bit of esoterical mystery.
I can highly recommend this even for people that never heard of the games.
There are some things in the game not in this anime like the many beautiful little Chinese tunes for each area in Hong Kong, or the ways Ryo has to make money like Lucky Hit or gambling Big or Small. In the game, Ren asks an extravagant amount of money before he helps Ryo, this is one of the things skipped in the anime.
The only things I can hope for is a new season since Shenmue 3, while out as a game has not been adapted (yet?). And after Shenmue 3 at least one more sequel is necessary to wrap up the story. One can hope. I'm sure that yet another Kickstarter funding would be succesful as long as they listen to criticism.
Shenmue 3 has not been received too well despite a succesful Kickstarter. Many fans were as eagerly awaiting it as they were disappointed for it's lack of revelations in the story as well as tedium in it's gameplay compared to the previous chapters. Shenmue game history is a troubled one, with the first two being the most expensive game projects ever at the time and having a hard time to earn back the costs as the SEGA Dreamcast flopped hard.
The main gripe I could find with this anime is that Ryo is too strong and wins most fights. I would have liked to see a bit more struggle. The show makes some giant leaps to cram the epic tale so far into 13 episodes. But it was quite addictive to watch with a lot of tempo, some good jokes among more serious philosophical musings related to martial arts as well as a bit of esoterical mystery.
I can highly recommend this even for people that never heard of the games.
Worth the Wait
mgdevereauxward7 February 2022
First episode sign of quality to come
thomasarienloveridge6 February 2022
Shenmue
alaai9919 February 2022
Excellent first 2 episodes. Had a lot of fun watching it and can't wait to see the rest of the episodes... The Shenmue Project team did an incredible job here, they kept old fan excited and yet surprised with some of the modifications. I couldn't be happier with how it turned out, they clearly have a huge amount of respect and passion..
Highly suggest you try the games out after you watch the anime in its entirety.
Very Good
tencontrols14 February 2022
Show has good action sequences and soundtrack. The art work for this really does fans of the video game series justice with accurate depictions of locations fans may have explored. The plot of the show is great and many plot points tie into one another smoothly.
A must see!
elderdavidpedulla14 February 2022
Looks like a compilation of cut-scenes
SubOverDubAnyDay7 April 2022
I watched 4 episodes, and IMDB's top score got me hyped with high expectations. Story is slow and there is not rhythm. Characters come and go, to fill gaps. MC is one dimensional, and fight scenes don't even have special moves or anything like that.
Nothing out of the ordinary.
Nothing out of the ordinary.
Another cheap video game cliff notes anime
residentgrigo13 February 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Gaming anime don´t have a good track record and rushing through an already bland story won´t do anyone favors as 2 games are being adapted. The original barely has a story so that section of the anime could become the definitive version of Shenmue 1. Shenmue 2 is decent on the other hand and has a plot so turning it into cliff notes can't work. No ending will ever come even if the anime gets a sequel as the 3rd game reset all the progress achieved in the 2nd game. It's also all around bad and failed to sell. Again. The animation by TMS is alight so far. The anime original scenes and improved characterizations are the show´s strengths. The game´s strong score also works here. A visual downgrade is already noticeable in ep 2, the pacing becomes near incoherent and clip show bits are already in play. The next ep will easily pass the halfway point of the first game so I think I am good. Barely a 6/10 so far and quickly steering towards a 5/10.
New and nostalgic
jeremycreek6 February 2022
As a fan of the Shenmue franchise for over twenty years, I set the bar high for Shenmue: The Animation. After watching the first episode (twice) I am blown away at the quality that was delivered. It felt both fresh and familiar. It has exceeded my expectations, and I eagerly await the next episode to drop.
Great Retelling of an Amazing Story!
zanarkand-4242314 February 2022
This series is amazing so far! When first announced, I had my doubts as I don't watch anime outside of Studio Ghibli movies, and it was based on my favorite game series of all time. However, the animators have captured what makes the story so special. One of the biggest complaints people had about the games as the slow pacing, but with the TV format, they definitely have picked up the pace while keeping all the important scenes intact. The animation and music have been great! The english voice acting is on par with most English anime dubs and the Japanese voicing is good as well if you chose to watch it that way.
A video game adaptation that expands and gives depth to the franchise
arielcasosvello14 February 2022
The plot is very well thought out and adds new layers to the characters. In video games, due to technical and dubbing issues, the voices are somewhat flat. In this adaptation, in the version with Japanese audio, they are the same voice actors but adding all the expressiveness that was not possible in the games.
The animation of the series is correct, it is not dazzling and the low budget is noticeable in some scenes where the saving of frames is very evident. But instead of subtracting it seems to complement very well with the story whose development is more leisurely. So maybe it's a creative decision.
The animation of the series is correct, it is not dazzling and the low budget is noticeable in some scenes where the saving of frames is very evident. But instead of subtracting it seems to complement very well with the story whose development is more leisurely. So maybe it's a creative decision.
A must see for fans and newcomers alike!
toboe-262916 February 2022
Wow! I'm so impressed with the Shenmue The Animation . It captures the key moments of the game, both big and small, very accurately as well expands upon them with new details. The translation of the game's pacing to work as a show felt right. It showed the moments in the game that moved the plot, while not feeling rushed or skipping over the small things we die hards remember. My hope is that this series will spark new players to try Shenmue and see what a ground breaking game series it was. Here's to the possibility of Shenmue 4 with what the Shenmue The Animation can do for the future of the Shenmue game series!
Found on Crunchyroll and like it!
beachbaddie11 April 2022
I never played the games but I've enjoyed the first 10 episodes enough to call myself a fan. I recognized the voice of Ryo, Masaya Matsukaze from his role as Colt in Attack on Titan. He's a good actor and bring a lot to the main role. The other cast do a good job too. M A O is great as Joy in the second half of the season.
I like the overarching plot and how it's a journey carrying the main character forward to grow and learn in new places. He's headstrong and needs to become wiser if he's going to uncover the truth, which I think is the point of the story. It's nice to see all these eastern locales depicted. I'm going to give the games a try now!
I like the overarching plot and how it's a journey carrying the main character forward to grow and learn in new places. He's headstrong and needs to become wiser if he's going to uncover the truth, which I think is the point of the story. It's nice to see all these eastern locales depicted. I'm going to give the games a try now!
Mediocre writing and pacing, decent animations
alexlomba8724 October 2023
The series mostly respects the original plot, showing occasionally good animations and emotional moments. However, it fails the challenge of adaptog the slow pacing of the game to a short series. It features poor dialogues, missed introspections, missed characterisations, too much screentime to secondary characters. It skims over some fundamental events, dedicating too long to secondary content, it overlooks the Kung Fu learning process of Ryu, it misses to enrich the contextualisation with important characters, and it features some embarrassingly designed scenes that weren't even in the original plot.
It's not a disaster, but I wouldn't recommend it at all.
It's not a disaster, but I wouldn't recommend it at all.
Great anime
colinperry-2403621 February 2022
Very faithful to the game, with a very few changes that are actually bettering the story, so far. The whole thing with Ryo questioning he's fathers past and how much he actually know him is a great addition. It really helps make Ryo " the main character" seem more like a real living person, and gives him so much more life than he ever had in the games. The animation is pretty good too there are few static back grounds and scenes with little to no movement but its not that noticeable, and the animation is definitely cranked up for the moments that count like the fight scene. The pacing is great too, they really did a great job taking the key points from the videogame's quests and stream lining them in to quick litre plot points to keep they story going. Definitely a 10/10 for me!
Great retelling of a game story
emilkieri14 February 2022
Magical
jonodanmatt11 June 2022
Master piece just wow
I am in absolute awe with this animation
Thankyou for doing this
This is exactly what I expected and more!
This series does the game justice I just hope it gets the recognition and money it deserves.
This series does the game justice I just hope it gets the recognition and money it deserves.
A really well made animation
johnnyrode-4211627 January 2023
The story was great. The art great. The voice and sounds great. It was a very well made animation. To sad to hear they canceled season 2. I think that was a mistake as this is an excellent show to promote to introduction of the world of anime.
Smart logical writing. Compelling story with lots of side quests entertainment. It feels like a game, but less so than many other animes.
I don't fully agree with all the philosophies, and a few moments where an opportunity for a lesson was missed.
Why lower your honor to throw trash on someone that clearly have issues, after they told you what you asked for?
I get if fans of games felt it failed. But for someone that never played them, this was a great show that deserved to have the full story told.
Smart logical writing. Compelling story with lots of side quests entertainment. It feels like a game, but less so than many other animes.
I don't fully agree with all the philosophies, and a few moments where an opportunity for a lesson was missed.
Why lower your honor to throw trash on someone that clearly have issues, after they told you what you asked for?
I get if fans of games felt it failed. But for someone that never played them, this was a great show that deserved to have the full story told.
Relieving the masterpiece
CathodeRayTerrors25 November 2022
Yu Suzuki's groundbreaking creation was a huge part of my life. Being in the game industry back then and already familiar with his work I had seen the tech demo titled Project Berkeley that came with Virtua Fighter 3 in Japan and from then on it was a long arduous wait until Shenmue came out.
I played 'What's Shenmue?', a short demo that was released in Japan, as well as both Japanese and American versions of the first game and the UK DV import of Shenmue 2 as well as the Xbox US version which had the Shenmue movie packed in with it.
Shenmue the animated series essentially covers all key moments and characters up to the end of 2nd game. It's like reliving them without investing the hours playing them. Something I don't mind since the story is so cool. Hopefully many will watch the anime and want to play the original games (remastered for PS4) or Shenmue 3 which would continue the story.
Shenmue is one of those intellectual properties that have a loyal fan base but eludes the mainstream...which is part of its allure. But I do hope that enough people find the time to watch this series so that we can keep it going. There is so much more in store for Ryo Hazuki and friends. I don't want it to end here.
Please watch. If you like simple yet engaging stories well told and like anime you will dig Shenmue.
I played 'What's Shenmue?', a short demo that was released in Japan, as well as both Japanese and American versions of the first game and the UK DV import of Shenmue 2 as well as the Xbox US version which had the Shenmue movie packed in with it.
Shenmue the animated series essentially covers all key moments and characters up to the end of 2nd game. It's like reliving them without investing the hours playing them. Something I don't mind since the story is so cool. Hopefully many will watch the anime and want to play the original games (remastered for PS4) or Shenmue 3 which would continue the story.
Shenmue is one of those intellectual properties that have a loyal fan base but eludes the mainstream...which is part of its allure. But I do hope that enough people find the time to watch this series so that we can keep it going. There is so much more in store for Ryo Hazuki and friends. I don't want it to end here.
Please watch. If you like simple yet engaging stories well told and like anime you will dig Shenmue.
See also
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