While the long-awaited release ofShenmue 3has been coupled with multiple delays and changes in its development plans, developer Ys Net is committed to completing the promise it made to fans when it announced the gamefour years ago at E3. While theKickstarter campaign broke recordswith the promise of a proper ending to theShenmuestory, long-time fans who supported the game with their own money may not receive all the benefits they were expecting.
One backer in particular has commented on the Kickstater forums forShenmue 3that they received an email stating backers won’t be entitled to either the game’s Season Pass DLC or Digital Deluxe Edition rewards. While the reported email also makes mention of backer-exclusive content, the aforementioned exclusives can only be purchased separately. The game received over $7 million when the Kickstarter funding for the game closed last year.
It’s worth noting the “ability” to purchase the Digital Deluxe content separately is a nice way of saying backers would need to pay full price for the better version of the game, on top of the respective amounts they’ve already pledged. When looking at the fine print, the game’s Kickstarter support webpage makes no mention of any Season Pass or deluxe content being offered, as well as any pre-order bonuses.
There will surely be backlash directed at Ys Net considering the company had to endure negative reception when it was announcedShenmue 3would be an Epic Games Store Exclusive on PC. Community feedbackforced Epic Games to change its refund policywhen it comes to crowdfunded titles, and will be footing the bill for anyone who wishes.
Disappointment seems to be a common theme in the leadup toShenmue 3, but given a majority of those who helped fund the game pledged at or below $60 in total, Ys Net has a viable reason to not offer players extra content apart from its backer-exclusive deals. Between the Epic Games Store exclusivity, yetanother delay from August to November, and Ys Net bringing on new publishers to help further fund development,Shenmue 3is getting all the help it can to launch as a quality product this Fall.
Shenmue 3releases on November 19th for PC and PlayStation 4.
