Shenmue HD Remaster Possibly On The Way From Sega

The world was set ablaze with Shenmue 3 hype last year after a Kickstarter for a new sequel from creator Yu Suzuki set new funding records. Now fans of the RPG series may have something else to look forward to, as developer Sega has said that it's "currently investigating" the possibilities of HD remasters for the Dreamcast classics Shenmue and Shenmue 2. If successful, the titles, first released in 1999 and 2001, respectively, would likely be ported to current-gen consoles.

Now, this whole thing is a big if. The comment came from Sega Europe community manager Dan Sheridan in a YouTube video where he responded to a question about Shenmue HD remasters. While he said that the company "would love to release these tomorrow," Sheridan noted that things aren't as simple as a direct port for current platforms, as there are a number hurdles in the form of licensing.

"We would need to ensure that any HD remaster lived up to the quality of the original titles. And with games as immersive as Shenmue 1 and 2 there are further complications from licensed products that were included in the original games. That said, we'd love to do it and are currently investigating how to make it a reality."

The first two Shenmue games featured a number of promotional tie-ins and licensed products making appearances in both the North American and European releases. While the first game's Coca-Cola vending machines from the Japanese release were removed before shipping overseas, there were still logos and items from companies like Timex, Toho, and Toshiba.

After raising over $6.3 million, Yu Suzuki's Shenmue 3 is tentatively scheduled for a December 2017 release. Let's hope Sega's investigation results in way to release the first two HD remasters by then.

SOURCE Sega/YouTube