Shenmue 3: Steam Keys Will Not Be Offered to Backers at Launch, Stretch Goal Cancelled

Shenmue 3 developer Ys Net has announced that it will be unable to provide Steam keys to Kickstarter backers at launch. In addition, in the lead up to Shenmue 3’s launch, it has also been announced that a Stretch Goal that was met by backers has not been included in the game.

In a blog post update on Kickstarter, Ys Net explained that “coordination with the sales policies of the involved companies was untenable”, and as a result the developer is unable to provide Steam keys for PC players on launch day.

While not clearly laid out in the post, this is likely due to Ys Net and publisher Deep Silver partnering with Epic Games Store for PC distribution. Shenmue 3 is currently a limited-time exclusive for the Epic Games Store, and will be for one year. This deal was brokered after the Kickstarter began, and back then supporters had been told that Shenmue 3 would be released on Steam. This change, bolstered by the current discontent with Epic’s exclusive strategy, led to fan backlash against Ys Net.

Backers who opt for the PC version of the game can also request to be sent a Steam key when Shenmue 3 launches on Valve’s store the following year. At launch, they will be provided with an Epic Games Store key. Alternatively, backers can opt to change format to PlayStation 4, although this option will not offer a Steam key one year later.

For any backers who are not satisfied with these arrangements, Ys Net is offering pledge refunds. The refund process will be announced in a future Kickstarter update.

“Along with the significant project changes at the heart of this announcement, there have been many other changes since our original assumptions,” said Ys Net’s head Yu Suzuki in the Kickstarter update. “I believe, however, that the game overall has been strengthened and that Shenmue III has assuredly been transformed and is heading in a positive direction.”

Alongside the PC version issues, the post also addresses the fact that the final version of Shenmue 3 does not include the expanded ‘perspective system’, which was a stretch goal backers met during the crowdfunding campaign. This system would have allowed players to control other characters, such as Ren or Shenhua. No concrete details are offered for why the stretch goal has been cut, aside from a simple “Implementation could not be achieved in this game.”

It’s worth noting that seven stretch goals that were not met during fundraising have been included in the game, adding ten elements to Shenmue 3. This is thanks to an increased development budget due to additional “sales partners”.

We took a closer look at Shenmue 3 at E3 2019 and found it feels more like a video game than the previous two games. Overall, though, it still seems like Shenmue is a one-of-a-kind experience.