Apologies for the double post, but having now started the Remaster, here are my thoughts based on the first few hours:
First the bad - Excite QTE 2 glitched on me once. Prompts became invisible.
Audio (Japanese or English) unfortunately is lower quality than what I'm used to. But I understand why this is the case.
That's really the only "bad" issues. And then, only the first one was mildly annoying. But it only happened once so I just hope it doesn't make a habit of happening, I rather like that mini game!
Now for the good:
16:9, while not used everywhere (again, I understand why) is a really nice addition
Load times, or lack there of. A real game changer.
Graphically - while some parts of the game have obviously aged, certain other parts (main character faces especially) still look really good/detailed especially considering this was a DC game.
The soundtrack is still amazing. Perhaps the best I've ever heard in a game.
And best of all: Its bloody addictive. I've played the DC version through loads, both in English and Japanese so I basically know the game back to front. But I've not been glued to a game quite like this in a while (even RDR2 didn't grip me quite like this!). I love the setting so much, and going back to play it shows the insane amount of visual and audio detail in the game - from the hum of the Hazuki residence refrigerator, to the detailed way Ryo turns on his Saturn to play a game, to the cocktail arcade cabs in Game You showing off Fantasy Zone... so many little things I either missed or am just appreciating all over again. The ambient/mood music while exploring the areas is great, as is the little scene transitions at 7pm as dusk turns to night.
Snow is still very special, I love how the weather gradually gets worse throughout the day to the point where the snow has set on the ground the following day and can take several days to fully melt, depending on the weather.
Combat wise I always liked the QTEs and I still feel no different. Its a nice way to do flashy stuff. The Heartbeats QTE is still up there with my favourite QTEs in any game (right alongside RE4's knife fight). Free battles... only done two of them so far but they still feel pretty much how I remember. A less difficulty Virtua Fighter. That aspect has aged a bit, but I still appreciate it for giving me what is essentially VF in an RPG.
Also, I still love the sheer amount of dialogue and personalities that each NPC has. Shenmue 1 really makes you feel like your home with a bunch of people young and old that are friends with Ryo and help him out in his journey where they can. Mario might still be my favourite NPC after Tom, the amount of hilarious (pointless) dialogue he gets is hefty.
Oh, and getting the Japanese dub, while not earth shattering is still way better than the bad delivery of the English dub for sure.
