$6 Million Kickstarted Shenmue 3 Wants More Money

The developers of Shenmue 3, the most funded video game on Kickstarter ever after raising over $6 million, have been sending out e-mails prospective backers in an attempt to raise more money to make the game. Yu Suzuki and Ys Net have sent out a batch of e-mails regarding its new “slacker backer” campaign, allowing those interested in funding the development of Shenmue 3, but missed the Kickstarter, to donate money to the game via PayPal.

The “slacker backer e-mail reads:

“Hello Everyone, Thanks to your support, Shenmue III became the most funded video game on Kickstarter with 69,320 people helping to bring back the Shenmue series back to life. However, there are so many people told us they could not pledge on Kickstarter, or could not make the deadline, and have asked for a PayPal page for another opportunity to contribute to Shenmue III. So here we go! The Slacker Backer period will continue through December 31st. While the full game will be completed as promised with the use of the funding collected on Kickstarter, any additional funding collected here will go towards reaching the Stretch Goals to make the game even bigger and deeper.

The three month window was set to allow a long enough time to for everyone who wants to support Shenmue III to do so, but short enough to keep the release date on track. The PayPal page will feature a selection of rewards from the Kickstarter campaign including the Trial Version and the Collector’s Edition. If you missed out on the Kickstarter, you still have a chance to be part of the Shenmue legacy! Surveys, add-ons and upgrades Surveys are not quite ready yet, but they will be going out during this Slacker Backer campaign. Once the survey system is up and running, add-ons and upgrades will be available for existing Kickstarter backers. We will of course keep you posted here on the Updates page with all the developments.” – Ys Net 

While the developers’ drive to raise further funds to make Shenmue 3 is understandable – the game was initially budgeted at $10 million – the method by which they are going about it, being independent of its Kickstarter campaign, offers no consumer protections or guarantees whatsoever, leaving backers adrift if anything were to go wrong. Add to that the undisclosed backing that Sony is giving the game and Suzuki’s previous problems keeping a game’s development in budget, it seems that the project would benefit from a little more transparency regarding its status and progress.

Shenmue 3 is expected on PC and PlayStation 4 in 2017.

Thank you TGG for providing us with this information.

Image courtesy of Polygon.