Endurance Run: Shenmue - Part 12

Oh god, wax doesn't stop candles from burning. Wax is the fuel that burns in a candle.

When the wax melts it's drawn upwards by the wick (via capillary action), when it reaches the top of the wick the wax is vaporised by the heat, and then the wax vapour is what is burned in the flame.

The wick isn't actually the part of the candle that burns, the wick usually slowly burns away over time anyway, but the wick is really only there to 'wick' the liquid wax upwards to fuel the flame.

Every day I remain convinced that Shenmue is a bad game

They did find most of the items in the house. It seems like knowing how the game works a little more would have helped them.

Exactly, The game's manual and help button, which you can press when observing objects, would have helped them.

@shingro: No need for self-flagellation but a little humility would be nice. The whole series has already been recorded so the point is moot but I would think that if you want to try and enjoy the game rather than constantly bang your head against it you should have the self-awareness to admit your mistake and adjust your play style. I guess we'll see if they choose to do so in the upcoming episodes.

People actually like this game, huh? Like... unironically?

I am pretty bad at a lot of multiplayer games, first person shooters, mobas, etc. But watching Vinny play this game at least confirms to me that I am an excellent Shenmue player, like apparently world class.

This game looks so, so bad.

Haha, yeah its Vinny's fault that he doesn't understand that the game is meant to be boring.

@vicious17: I first played it soon after Shenmue 3 was announced, and I love it. Unironically.

@vicious17: Love it AND left frustrated by how Shenmue 2 left me hanging. People with Half-life 3 blue balls have nothing on Shenmue.

I have to assume some folks are being just being silly in here. You can see from the footage in the ER that the game didn't lock onto that box while I was zoomed in so pressing "A" was doing nothing the first time. The second time, when I wasn't zoomed in and there was a lock and I pushed "A" and it worked. Also, nothing happened when I pushed "A" on the letter. Just... I don't know, don't be so aggressive give the benefit of the doubt?

Shenmue is a really great idea, and I think I like the idea of what Shenmue is more then what the actual game ends up being.

I agree 100% with this. The game will always have a special place for me, but I am well aware of its shortcomings. I don't blame someone looking back on it to be disappointed in it.

I could've sworn they picked up that key in Episode 3 or something, and I was waiting for them to discover it in their inventory. Did I imagine that? Or was that event lost in the great Shenmue crash?

Given that shtinky's last 10 to 20 posts have all been to call Vinny an idiot for 'not playing the right way', maybe we don't give a damn what he thinks?

Maybe it's okay that it's not working for him. Maybe it's not the hill to die on because somebody else isn't feeling it. This series has been pretty entertaining in equal parts due to and in spite of Shenmue itself. If you're in here just because you want them to play it THE WAY GOD INTENDED or whatever the fuck, then maybe you're not doing yourself any favors.

I really need to stop checking the comment sections for this ER. There's like two or three folks that complain about the way Vinny is playing the game in the most snobbish way they can on every single video.

Look, we get it. You like the game. You explored every single thing about it. Good for you. Time to move on. There's no need to be so aggressive about it. This whole Endurance Run is already recorded and they finished the game anyway.

I like when they keep missing, get frustrated, get happy, do it on the first try, do it on the 99th try. I like when they do it the way they want it, because that's what makes this series so good.

Hey! Sharks are actually pretty smart. Word is still out on exactly HOW smart, but they're definetly smarter than your average sea creature.

Look, Shenmue is one of my favourite games ever but I can't understand why anyone would complain about how someone else plays a game. This is not supposed to be "the best way" to play Shenmue, this is just supposed to be their playthrough of the game. JohnyMyko's comment underneath sums it all up:

I like when they keep missing, get frustrated, get happy, do it on the first try, do it on the 99th try. I like when they do it the way they want it, because that's what makes this series so good.

JohnyMyko

Here's the thing about endurance runs, every single one of you that complain doesn't realize that you play video games in a way that someone else is going to be frustrated by.

This is for entertainment purposes it's not a fucking game guide.

That's awesome.

I don't know man, I just... don't get it. I love "walking sim" games, which is what makes thsi even weirder. I loved Life is Strange, Gone Home, Firewatch, Stanley parable, etc. So, in theory Shenmue should be right up my alley. But... it isn't. There's just something about it that puts me off.

Though, this does get me interested in 3, because Im assuming the mechanics are going to be better.

almost died laughing at the end when he put the thing back in the thing

Or just stop. Because Shenmue is boring.

Why burn candles in a dojo that has what looks like paper walls?

@vicious17: I'm worried that 3 is going to be too different. I was hoping they'd stick with Dreamcast-level graphics so they could keep focusing on insane details, but the screenshots so far have looked really pretty, so I hope that isn't diverting too many resources.

@johnymyko: I waded into the troll den for a while here but they are not logical types.

LMAO so true. They found uhhh the cassettes. And a cockroach. GAMEPLAY FEATURES.

@vinny: I assume you have not been looking at the comment but this guy is a jerk in every comment section for this ER, along with many others. Don't bother.

When it turned out the key was in the box I laughed my ass off. Thanks for another great ER so far.

So, It's a game that dares me to turn it off? I'm not gonna spend time on a game that makes me feel bored. I can do that on my own, I don't need to pay to be bored.

Also, people need to stop saying this game is good because they love it. That is not the same. I played a lot of Viper Racing when I was growing up and it was the game that made me fall in love with racing games. I will always appreciate that game for doing that, but I know that it was not a good game.

I played Shenmue when the second one came out for the Xbox. I didn't want to play the second one before the first one so I asked a friend of mine that had a DC and the game if I could borrow them and he just said "Really? Are you sure?" I just said yes and he said I will have a time to remember playing it.

Then I played it and while it was amazing with all the little things you could do in the game and the attention to detail, the amazement quickly faded. The game was incredably tedious and boring as well as it had horrendous acting and the story was poor. I powered through since "everyone" on the internet was cuming all over the place when talking about the game but I quickly realised that they were all idiots. Shenmue was a bad game.

After i finished it(Yes, I finished it since I was young and didn't have that many games) I promtly went back to my friend and gave back the game and console. He just smirked at me and I called him an asshole.

I'm glad the game holds up in being shit. Having Vinny, Alex and Dan talk over the game makes it 100 times better.

I'm really glad It's been so long since i played this game I'd forgotten where the key was. That would've driven me nuts if I knew they'd found it 17 minutes in.

Ho Meal Bum

lol. I'm dying to see Shenmue 3. I want to know if they've evolved the gameplay in any way or if it's still this.

@the_ruiner: Most people find that key 17 minutes in. Into the game, that is.

I feel bad that they thought the Mysterious Scroll was what they needed. It has no payoff in Shenmue 1, you carry it all through Shenmue 2 and still no payoff, so its meaning is actually STILL to be revealed.

As we can see, Shenmue is clearly not a very good video game, but it owns because it lets you be a degenerate and play Space Harrier all day.

Shenmue 2 is better because it has After Burner. And gambling.

Also, I really do love how much shit there is that serves no purpose at all.

Ha, once they get the key they think they're just going to soar on through to finding the Phoenix Mirror. They're going to haaaaaaate the secret room. You have to do a very specific thing with the look/zoom.

man i came to this endurance run for some pro level e sports shenmue stratz! *burns his gb membership*

@artisanbreads: It seems like you just want to argue with people. Most people have been pretty polite.

whole episode looking for a key.

Shenmue

Dan talking about koi fish reminds me of a discussion I had a few weeks back with my older brother about pigeons, which I think are the stupidest birds in existence. Now, I kinda wanna know Dan's opinion on pigeons because I'm sure that he and I would see eye-to-eye that pigeons are the worst birds in terms of intelligence.

@bathala: This may be hearsay, but due to the game's marketing most people started the game by looking around the house anyway and stumbled upon the key within the first half hour, so they had the key the whole time. No key hunt.

I think this is the worst ED because the game just sucks today. I mean.. I had a lot of fun with the other ED's, and not that Deadly Premonition didn't suck but there was a lot of humor in those video's because of how bad it was.

It's almost tangible how much the crew dislikes this game, except for Dan. But yeah that's Dan :p. It's just a very very boring game. I'm kinda sad they chose this for their ED.

Not saying I don't appreciate the ED because damn I do enjoy new GBE content everyday but yea..

Koi and palm trees are things that are surprisingly expensive. They can cost several thousand dollars a pop. Space issues aside, having a koi pond is a sign of wealth.

@obeast:I'll refer you to this article. Can you tell the difference between a Picasso and a Monet?