Shenmue The Animation will premiere first of 13 episodes on February 5th Rock Paper Shotgun Support us Join our newsletter Visit our store Sign in / Create account If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Shenmue The Animation will premiere first of 13 episodes on February 5th But where's the forklift racing? News by Graham Smith Contributor Published on Jan. 20, 2022 7 comments I missed the announcement in 2020 that among the many game-to-anime adaptations coming our way was Shenmue. Now there's a proper trailer for what's creatively titled Shenmue The Animation, which just like the original game sets Ryo on his path to avenging his father's death. Watch on YouTube Shenmue The Animation is a co-production of Cartoon Network's adult-oriented spin-off Adult Swim and anime streaming service Crunchyroll. It'll begin airing on February 5th with 13 episodes produced. I have regrettably been RPS's resident anime guy for a long time, but I'm not so excited about this. The animation looks pretty rough to me, at least when compared to Netflix's increasingly swish productions. Plus, a lot of what made Shenmue weird and interesting was its unusual commitment to simulating the world. Stripped of its interactivity, I worry it's a fairly straightforward martial arts revenge story - not exactly new ground for anime. For example, Shenmue 3's "laid back rhythm" enraptured Matthew for chunks of its running time by lulling him into a state of "extreme zen/boredom". If the anime doesn't aim for that same state, can it really call itself Shenmue? Maybe I'm wrong and several episodes will be dedicated to Ryo playing arcade games and racing really slow forklift trucks. I'm also unsure whether its 13 episodes will tell a complete story or be the beginning of a 20+ year saga. Shenmue 3 was finally released in 2020, 21 years after the first game, but it still didn't bring Ryo's journey to a close. If you do want to hop into the game series now, Shenmue 3 is currently 75% off on Steam, making it £6.24/€7.49. More News Jack King-Spooner's next handcrafted game has a teaser demo out Judero brings chat and action in the Scottish Borders Alice O'Connor 17 hours ago 1 If you were hoping for any Overwatch 2 balance changes then you'll have to wait until season two The next season begins in December CJ Wheeler 18 hours ago 3 The Dead Space remake will chuck random Necromorphs at you as you wander the Ishimura In space, no one can hear you proper bricking it CJ Wheeler 18 hours ago 8 Valve register mysterious new Neon Prime trademark in the US It doesn’t seem to be for a particularly colourful Steam Deck CJ Wheeler 20 hours ago 11 Latest Articles What are we all playing this weekend? Well? Alice O'Connor an hour ago 22 Past Wordle answers Here's an archive of previous Wordle words Ollie Toms 2 hours ago 1 Wordle answer today (Saturday 15 October) Hints and the answer to today's Wordle word Rebecca Jones 9 hours ago Overwatch 2 hero tier list Which are the best heroes in Overwatch 2? Ollie Toms 16 hours ago Supporters Only You're probably better than me at One Many Nobody You go on without… uh, you? Sin Vega 17 hours ago Supporter podcast - The Nate Files episode 13: dry bones Bad science is also FUN science! Alice Bell 18 hours ago Japanese dating show Love Wagon has surprising parallels with Yakuza and Persona My new obsession Ed Thorn 2 days ago If you're hankering after Bayonetta 3, Valkyrie Elysium might be a good substitute It's not out on PC until next month, but the console demo has been a surprise charmer Katharine Castle 1 week ago 4 We've been talking, and we think that you should wear clothes Total coincidence, but we sell some clothes Buy RPS stuff here