Shenmue III's First Teaser Trailer Was Worth The Wait

It's been a long time coming, but Shenmue III's first teaser trailer is finally here. It may seem a little weird to read that, especially considering that Shenmue fans have been waiting an incredible 16 years for this game. Still, we're thinking that wait will contribute plenty to the excitement of finally seeing some movement on the long-anticipated title.

Unfortunately, those of you who were expecting to see something in the way of a story reveal are going to be disappointed. This first teaser trailer serves as more of a vehicle for the game's environments. We do see some glimpses of Ryo and Shenhua – along with a new character in a few different battle scenes – but for the most part, the focus is on the environment.

Not that a focus on the scenery is a bad thing, of course. The environments in Shenmue III seem to be shaping up rather nicely, providing some excellent visuals for this first trailer. When combined with the trailer's instrumental backing, it's enough to get anyone excited.

If there's one shortcoming of the trailer, it's probably the rather stiff characters. The models for Ryo and Shenhua don't seem to totally match the environment in terms of looks, but that could just a be a side effect of the fact that this is early footage. Regardless, everything certainly looks a lot better than what we saw in Shenmue II on the Dreamcast, and that's really all that matters.

After spending more than a decade in development hell, Shenmue III is finally due to the release next year. Hopefully it can live up to 16 years of expectations, but even if it doesn't, there's still some value in seeing the game finished in the first place. Given the quality of the first two, though, we're guessing that Shenmue III will live up to a lot of the hype. Are you excited? Head down to the comments section and let us know!