8 Video Games That Could Have Just Been An Email
2. Shenmue III
Fans were overjoyed when Shenmue III was finally confirmed at E3 2015, but when the long-awaited sequel released in 2019 - almost a full 20 years after the second game - it was tough to mask the disappointment.
Sure, there were those die-hards simply happy to return to the series in any form, but if we're honest with ourselves, Shenmue III is one of the most audacious squanderings of a belated sequel in gaming history.
Rather than appreciate that Shenmue III's existence was basically miraculous and press on with progressing Ryo Hazuki's quest to avenge his murdered father, creator Yu Suzuki decided to make the threequel a glorified filler entry where almost nothing of consequence actually happened.
One could forgive, perhaps even embrace the stiff combat and clunky controls if Shenmue III had any story momentum whatsoever.
However, villain Lan Di doesn't appear until the final minutes of the game, before he effortlessly beats Ryo in a brief boss fight and the two once again go their separate ways.
Shenmue III ends on another agonising cliffhanger that's made all the more infuriating by the distinct possibility that Shenmue IV won't ever happen, especially considering all the fan goodwill Suzuki burned with this utter nothingburger of a sequel.