Sega Comments On Cancelled ‘Shenmue’ Remake Projects

Although we got Shenmue I & II in a compilation a little while back, there was a point in time in which Sega was planning on something more -- full blown remakes of those Dreamcast classics. And we pointed out as such in a news story yesterday, with footage that emerged on Eurogamer showing off what the developer had in mind before the projects were cancelled.

But now Sega has decided to sound off on the matter, surprisingly confirming that they were in the works and providing a little more background regarding their cancellation.

First off, the company confirmed that D3T was the developer behind the remakes, and that they were painstakingly rebuilding the games from the ground up to take advantage of the HD formats. But then it noted that some disappointment came from the development, leading to their cancellation.

Said the publisher, "Sega and D3T indeed had started exploring the feasibility of a full HD remaster for Shenmue I & II. That being said, we soon realized that this was a project with its own set of challenges. Working with original animations and characters but meshing them with enhanced HD visuals gave us a game that we felt would not meet the standards that Shenmue fans expect and deserve. Rather than going ahead with a release that may disappoint fans, we chose to focus on bringing the classic game to PC and modern consoles, so that new players could experience Shenmue's original charm."

This isn't the first time that Sega has cancelled a remake in their storied history. In the past, it attempted to bring back Altered Beast for the PlayStation 2 with a blood-filled 3D adventure. And while that game did release in Japan to a somewhat reasonable audience, Sega canned the U.S. release before it could happen.

The company also planned to reboot its Genesis series Vectorman with an all-new 3D adventure, with an interesting approach to its concept. However, before the project could get off the ground, it was canned due to lack of interest.

But, sigh. There's something about not seeing the new Shenmue remakes see the light of day, because we have a feeling people would've really appreciated them. Guess we'll have to see what comes next from the publisher on its "road to 2020" roadmap.

For now, Shenmue I & II is available now for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.