While you’d normally expect E3 to be the time period when you get good gaming news, it’s evident that it’s not always the case. This is especially true for those who backed the Kickstarter for Shenmue III, who learned that the game will launch as an Epic Games Store exclusive.
If you’re not up to speed, the Shenmue III Kickstarter was launched by developer Ys Net in 2015. The project will then be picked up by publisher Deep Silver, which also publishers Metro: Exodus, another Epic Games Store exclusive. The problem with the entire situation is that in its early days, Shenmue III was listed as a Steam game. The Steam page for the game is, at the time of writing, still live.
🔊Here's our latest Kickstarter update:https://t.co/ByvgPY8i8Y pic.twitter.com/DMilx8x4Kn
— Shenmue 3 (@Shenmue_3) June 11, 2019
To make matters worse, it appears that backers who specifically want the Steam version of the game have had their refund requests denied. This is unlike the previous Kickstarter-backed game, Phoenix Point that became an Epic Games Store exclusive at the last minute. Its developer Snapshot Games offered full refunds to backers who were not happy with the game not being on Steam.
At any rate, Shenmue III is slated to be released on 19 November 2019 on PS4 and PC, the latter being the Epic Games Store. For what it’s worth, the FAQ section on the game’s website states that it will be released on Steam in the future. That said, no exact date was given.
(Source: Ys Net, Kickstarter [1], [2], Steam via Destructoid)
