Yakuza Series
Games Like Shenmue 3
Yakuza is the closest you can get to the Shenmue formula, without actually being Shenmue 3. Most of the series revolves around a legendary Yakuza with a heart of gold, Kazuma Kiryu.
Each game gives you one or more contained locations to run around in, with a host of activities to undertake. Yakuza is technically open world, but like Shenmue 3 it has more of a focus on showing how the city of Kamurocho changes, and the people within it.
Like in Shenmue, the Yakuza games feature a ton of different minigames. Running a cabaret club in Yakuza 0, driving a taxi in Yakuza 5, playing pool, bowling, classic Sega arcade games OutRun, and much more.
On top of all that, the cities in Yakuza are lavishly detailed, with a host of restaurants and shops that you can interact with.
The biggest difference between the two games, of course, comes with their tone and story. Shenmue is a relatively relaxed experience with a good amount of puzzle-solving, while Yakuza games are dramatic crime stories mixed with incredibly wacky substories.
Still, if you’re looking for an experience that uses many of the same ideas as Shenmue 3, Yakuza is about as close as you can get.
Judgment
Games Like Shenmue 3
Judgment comes from the same developer as Yakuza, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, and by and large it uses the same formula. Judgment focuses on Takayuki Yagami, a former lawyer who now works as a private investigator in Kamurocho, yes the same city as Yakuza.
Judgment brings a few changes to the Yakuza formula, adding on first-person investigation sequences (like in Shenmue 3), tailing suspects courtroom proceedings, a new drone racing minigame, and more.
What makes Judgment even more of a fit for Shenmue fans, however, is the way the game focuses on the citizens of Kamurocho.
Yagami can make friends around the city, who will help him out in battles or just say hello as you walk by. There’s a real sense of community that the game develops, and it really gives Kamurocho a realistic feeling.
Deadly Premonition
Games Like Shenmue 3
If you’re looking for another game with strange stilted dialogue, and an absolutely weird town to explore, look no further than Deadly Premonition.
The title has become a renowned cult classic for its quirky characters and story. You play as FBI agent Francis York Morgan, investigating a string of murders by the Raincoat Killer in the small town of Greenvale.
Morgan has to roam around Greenvale and talk to the citizens in order to gather clues, sometimes helping them with their own issues.
Cars you use need to be maintained as they’ll take damage and run out of fuel. There’s also a variety of minigames to play like darts, racing, and fishing.
Deadly Premonition does have action and shooting sequences, but like Shenmue it’s an overall slow-burn experience that encourages you to explore at your own pace.
The Friends of Ringo Ishikawa
Games Like Shenmue 3
The Friends of Ringo Ishikawa is basically what you’d get if you translated Shenmue into a 2D beat-em-up. In fact, it clearly wears its Shenmue inspirations on its sleeve by being a mostly unguided experience.
You place as the title character, Ringo, a delinquent highschooler trying to live out his last year before graduation.
The game features a full day0night cycle, NPCs with schedules, school sim elements, and even a bunch of minigames like ping-pong and video poker.
Ringo Ishikawa is a reflective experience that highly encourages exploration, and if you like the non-guided style of Shenmue, it’ll absolutely be a good fit.
Persona 3, 4, and 5
Games Like Shenmue 3
While Persona games don’t necessarily sport the same style of gameplay as Shenmue 3, it’s the simulation elements that’ll appeal to fans.
Each Persona game casts you as a high school student who ends up learning about supernatural elements at play in the world. In addition to dungeon diving you’ll have to attend classes, take midterm tests, raise your personal stats, and more.
Persona does sim better than any other JRPG out there, and you get a lot of freedom in terms of how you want to spend your days. There are some fascinating characters to talk to as well, letting you build Social Links and learn even more about the NPCs.
Each Persona game is an utterly engrossing experience, and one that feels unique to each player with the decisions you make along the way.
About the author
