On the Sega Dreamcast, there was one particular series that stood out among the rest and became a fan favorite, Shenmue. The game series only saw two installments as the games could not recoup the developmental costs, making the series a commercial failure despite the following both video games received. Now with the third installment in the works, fans are wondering if the first two installments will see an HD remaster and according to Sega, they are actively working out the ports.
During E3 2015, after years have passed, the creator of the Shenmue series surprised everyone with the announcement of Shenmue III. Although, there was one task set before fans if they wish to see the game go into development and that was a Kickstarter campaign. Fans were ecstatic and managed to raise the $2 million USD goal in just under eight hours of the first campaign day. In total, the Shenmue III Kickstarter campaign raised an astonishing $6 million.
Now with the third installment currently in the works for the PlayStation 4 and PC, fans have been chiming in on if Sega will release HD remaster ports of the first Shenmue video games before Shenmue III’s release of December 2017.
Sega’s Europe community manager Dan Sheridan answered that question in the video posted above. According to Dan, the Sega team is current investigating the possibility of releasing HD ports of the first two video games within the Shenmue series. There are some obstacles that are in the way which comes in the form of licensing products.
Within the first two Shenmue video games, Sega had various licensed products featured which include brands such as Coca-Cola and Timex. For now, we’ll have to wait and see what comes of the two first Shenmue titles as this would be a great opportunity to release both before Shenmue III, in order to give potential fans the ability to enjoy the game if they never owned the Sega Dreamcast.
