8 Ways Video Games Blew Your Mind (Without You Realising)

Shenmue is, without question, a bizarre beast indeed.

Upon first glance, you might think that the original Dreamcast title was little more than a martial arts action romp with graphics way ahead of it's time, as that's what pretty much every trailer and hype package for the title placed at the forefront, however, it's only when you sit down to play Shenmue that you realize it's so very much more than this.

True the action is still very present, but there's an equal focus on the sheer mundanity of real life, in that you're constantly tasked with exploring and gathering clues as you would in real life, through asking people questions, taking note of their routines, and even taking part-time jobs so you don't starve to death.

In fact, there's so much attention placed on these smaller, quieter moments that many get lost in these aspects of the game, which seems doubly true of the developers who, for some reason only they will truly understand, programmed the weather on each in-game day to reflect the actual climate of that region of Japan in 1986.

It's a small, almost insignificant detail, but it smacks of a dev team that made this game a slice of life in the most immediate sense, and once you know this facet helps you appreciate Shenmue's dedication to immersion.