Shenmue 3. Simply saying (or writing) that title seems to set the internet ablaze. Similar to the fervor for Half-Life 3, the fans of the Shenmue franchise want their sequel more than anything else out there. Even the slightest hint of the project’s existence gets members of forums giddy, and these latest photos from acclaimed voice actor Corey Marshall are just the right type of fuel fans have been looking for.
If you don’t know, Marshall is the voice behind series protagonist Ryo Hazuki. This jacket-wearing brawler stole the hearts of millions of Sega believers back in 2000, and while no one has come that close to confirming the existence of a Shenmue 3 on either current or next-gen platforms, the latest Facebook pictures posted by Marshall are a bit of a tease. The first shows the man doing his microphone work in a studio, while the second has him right next to a Sega logo. It also appears to be Ryo’s bike on the cutout Marshall is standing next to.
How much thought should we put into this? Well, Nintendo has seemingly entered into a new partnership with Nintendo after the announcement of Sonic: Lost World for the Wii U. It’s crazy to even think about, but it’s possible that Sega and the Big N are working together to bring Shenmue 3 exclusively to the Wii U. It’s also not out of the question that they needed Marshall to do some voice work for one of the All-Star Racing games. With E3 just around the corner, we should know sooner rather than later.
