Composer Comments from the Shenmue Original Sound Track CD (March 2000)

Released in March 2000, the Shenmue ~Chapter One: Yokosuka~ Original Sound Track was a two-disc album featuring 39 tracks, accompanied by a booklet containing commentary written by the soundtrack's composers and contributors.

Shenmue Chapter One ~Yokosuka~: Original Sound Track

The comments provide a fascinating glimpse into the creation of Shenmue’s music, touching on everything from memories of research trips in China to the atmosphere imagined while writing specific pieces.

The booklet also contains detailed composer credits, providing rare confirmation of which composers created many of Shenmue’s best-known pieces.

In this post, we'll translate the booklet commentary in full, along with composer information and scene screenshots showing where each piece is used in the game. Scene identifications and additional notes have been added separately and do not appear in the original booklet.

Note: English track names in this article follow the official and commonly used localized naming conventions where possible, drawing from the original 2000 soundtrack release, later Shenmue soundtrack albums, and other official Sega materials.

One of the booklet's commentary pages, featuring composer notes for several tracks.

Message from Yu Suzuki

At the very beginning of Shenmue's development, the first thing we created was a single piece of music.

As we began the project, I wanted to express the world of Shenmue freely, without being constrained by the conventional idea of what a game should be.

We had all the staff members involved in planning, design, programming, and other areas listen to it, allowing each person to expand their own image of the world. Through discussing those ideas together, we gradually built Shenmue.

That piece was "Departure on a New Journey".

In Shenmue Chapter One: Yokosuka, it is possible to hear around 200 tracks of music. Among them, this album mainly collects pieces used during events that left a strong impression on those who played the game.

Every track here is one that holds special meaning for me, and they are all pieces I am very fond of.

I hope all of you will come to enjoy them as well.

So then, just like the game itself, please take your time and enjoy the music of Shenmue.

— Shenmue Executive Director

Yu Suzuki

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Shenmue II Pre-Release Interview with the Actors Behind Ryo, Ren and Shenhua | DoriMaga, June 2001

Originally published in the 22 June 2001 issue of the Japanese magazine DoriMaga, this interview features Masaya Matsukaze (Ryo Hazuki), Hazuki Ishigaki (Shenhua), and Takumi Hagiwara (Ren) reflecting on three years of recording, memorable scenes from development, and their expectations just before the release of Shenmue II. The interview also includes recollections from the early Saturn-era development, offering a glimpse into scenes that were ultimately never used.

Shenmue II was released in Japan a few months later on 6 September 2001.

The translation begins below.

Shenmue II finally set for release on Thursday, September 6, 2001!!

From left: Masaya Matsukaze (Ryo Hazuki), Hazuki Ishigaki (Shenhua), and Takumi Hagiwara (Wuying Ren). The three share a variety of stories from recording that spanned two and a half to three years.

With development finally complete, the main cast reunites for this interview!!

At the Sega "Contents Strategy Conference" held on Tuesday, June 5, the release date for Shenmue II was finally announced. It wasn’t only Dreamcast users who had been waiting for this news. The voice actors who brought the characters of Shenmue to life felt the same way.

So to celebrate the confirmed release date, the three lead actors have reunited. They share plenty of memories from over three years of recording, along with highlights to look forward to in Shenmue II. This is a must-read!

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Poll Result: Patrons' Choice Topic for October 2026

Every month Phantom River Stone holds a poll among our patrons to choose a topic for the blog in the coming month. After tallying the votes (including accumulated votes from previous months), the winning topic that has been voted this time is:

"Weekly AM2: Translation of Next Issue (Vol. 17)"

The topic selected this time is a continuation of our translations of the official online magazine published by Sega's AM2 team back in the day, the Weekly AM2. This magazine published content about the Shenmue series from December 1999 through to around the release of Shenmue II in 2001, and a link to issues of the Weekly AM2 thereafter became a regular feature of the Shenmue.com website.

This time we will be translating a further edition of the Weekly AM2: Volume 17, published online on 4th April 2000.

Vol. 17 Preview of Shenmue-related content:

• Takuan's Dobuita Visit Report (Second Part)

• A Guizhang Illustration by Manga Artist Ami Shibata
  

• Tokyo Game Show 2000 Spring Report (Part One)

• Shenmue at the Third CESA Game Awards, where it was nominated in five categories

This edition will be translated in a future post on the blog.

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Yu Suzuki on Virtua Fighter and Taking on New Challenges | September 2026 Sega Feature

Sega recently published a feature looking back over its 30-year relationship with NVIDIA, from the early days of 3D graphics through to the technology being used for the upcoming Virtua Fighter Crossroads.

It includes comments from Yu Suzuki, both in the article and in an accompanying video, in which he recalls Sega’s approach to developing cutting-edge 3D technology in the 1990s, his first meeting with NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, and his impressions on seeing the latest Virtua Fighter in action.

We have translated some of the highlights from Suzuki's comments below.

The Sega × NVIDIA event held in Akihabara in July 2026. Image: SEGA / @sega_official

Bringing Arcade Technology to the Home

During the early 1990s, Sega was at the forefront of the transition from 2D graphics to real-time 3D polygons. Its MODEL 1 arcade hardware powered titles including Virtua Racing in 1992 and Virtua Fighter the following year.

• Related PRS post: Virtua Fighter's Connection to Virtua Racing's Pit Crew

Looking back at Sega’s development approach at the time, Suzuki explains that the arcade business provided an opportunity to experiment with advanced technology before adapting the knowledge gained for home consoles:

“We would take on advanced technology in the arcades, then bring the know-how we gained into the home-console space. To put it in more impressive terms, it was like an F1 team taking technology developed through Formula One and applying it to ordinary road cars.”

With Sega looking toward increasingly sophisticated 3D graphics, the company began exploring the development of dedicated graphics hardware with a number of companies. One of these was NVIDIA, which at the time was still a young start-up.

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Poll Result: Patrons' Choice Topic for September 2026

Every month Phantom River Stone holds a poll among our patrons to choose a topic for the blog in the coming month. After tallying the votes (including accumulated votes from previous months), the winning topic that has been voted this time is:

"Translation of an early Muecas edition" 

Before the eccentric Muecas Dan became a regular feature on the official Shenmue website, it began life in February 2001 as Shenmuecast FAN, part of Sega AM2’s online magazine. The name “Muecas” (ムーキャス) was formed by combining abbreviated versions of “Shenmue” and “cast,” reflecting the feature’s focus on the actors behind the game’s characters.

The first installment, Vol. 01, saw Masaya Matsukaze, the Japanese voice and motion actor for Ryo Hazuki, respond to readers seeking advice on their problems. It also showcased some of the unusual ways in which Japanese fans expressed their love for Shenmue.

The Weekly AM2 staff also joined in with their own contributions, including a series of romantic scenes inspired by Nozomi and Ryo... staged by two male staff members.

Two Weekly AM2 staff members recreate a tender moment between Nozomi and Ryo.

Other highlights included a mysterious package sent in by a reader containing a pair of handcuffs bearing Ryo and Ren’s names.

Takumi Hagiwara and Masaya Matsukaze try on a reader’s Ryo-and-Ren handcuffs,

In this upcoming article, we will present an English translation of Shenmuecast FAN Vol. 01, originally published on February 6, 2001, offering a lively glimpse of the Shenmue cast and Japanese fan community in the months leading up to the release of Shenmue II.

Coming soon to the blog!

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World Guidance Guidebook: Shenmue Developers Survey (May 2000) - Part Two

In Part One, we began our translation of an extensive survey of 57 Shenmue developers published in the World Guidance guidebook in May 2000, shortly after the game’s original release. Having heard from members of the Sound & Music and Graphics Design teams, we now continue with responses from the Game Development and Planning teams.

Keiji Okayasu

Role: Game Director

Keiji Okayasu with Yu Suzuki in 2000

Q. What do you like about Shenmue?
A. The variety and depth of the mini-games.

Q. Who is your favorite character, and why?
A. The Santa who appears at Christmas. His lines are simply funny, and he’s a limited-time character on top of that.

Santa Maeno

Q. What scene left the deepest impression on you?
A. The Jimmy chase scene. During the QTE, there’s a moment where Ryo spins around someone to dodge them. The first time I saw that, I thought, “Whoa, that’s cool!”

QTE: chasing Jimmy through Dobuita

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World Guidance Guidebook: Shenmue Developers Survey (May 2000) - Part One

Shenmue Chapter One Yokosuka: World Guidance

Published shortly after Shenmue I’s original release in Japan, the World Guidance guidebook contains some of the most detailed and comprehensive information about the first game found in any of the guidebooks released at the time.

At the end of the book is an exclusive survey of 57 developers who worked on Shenmue.

The survey is introduced in the guidebook as follows:

Survey of 57 Shenmue Project Members!

The massive development team poured their collective effort into creating Shenmue: Chapter One ~ Yokosuka . To close out this book, we present the real, unfiltered comments from the staff themselves. Of course, this is only a portion of their voices, but it gives you a glimpse into both the hardships and joys of game development. Please read through with anticipation for what’s to come in the next installment. 

Survey Questions

1. What do you like about Shenmue?

2. Who is your favorite character, and why?

3. What scene left the deepest impression on you during the game?

4. Are there any hidden “tricks” you secretly included in the game?

5. Do you have any interesting episodes you can share from development?

6. Shout out one thing you'd like to say!

7. Please give a short message for the players.

During development, the Shenmue project was divided into a number of teams, including the Sound Team, Planning Team and Events Team. The survey responses are grouped according to these teams.

Our translation of the survey responses begins below! Note: images and additional notes have been added for extra context. Based on the initials provided, we have also attempted to identify each respondent where possible.

In this first part, we present the responses from the Sound & Music and Graphics Design teams, with the remaining teams to follow in Part Two.

★ Sound & Music Team

S.H. [Sound Effects Supervisor Seiichi Hamada]

Role: Sound Effects

Seiichi Hamada [screengrab from the Making of Shenmue NHK Special]

1. What do you like about Shenmue?

The battles, and the variety of different events.

2. Who is your favorite character, and why?

Ryo: the way he calmly carries on without showing his emotions.

3. What scene left the deepest impression on you during the game?

The scene with Chai at the arcade.

Seiichi Hamada's most memorable scene

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Poll Result: Patrons' Choice Topic for August 2026

Every month, Phantom River Stone holds a poll among our patrons to choose a topic for the blog in the coming month. After tallying the votes (including those carried over from previous months), the winning topic this time is:

“The real-life inspiration for the warehouse crane at the harbor”

The large iron structure that extends into the waters of the New Yokosuka Harbor in front of the Alpha Trading Company is a readily recognizable harbor landmark in Shenmue. It also later serves as the setting for a scene in which Eri convinces Ryo to have his photo taken together with Nozomi to remember each other by. 

Ryo and Nozomi stand under the gantry crane

And like many of the locations and details found throughout the game, it has a counterpart in the real world, one that is even noted on the Shenmue Sacred Spot Map produced by Yokosuka City.

In this Patrons' Choice article, we'll take a closer look at the crane that inspired its in-game appearance, and explore a little of its history and connection with the harbor seen in Shenmue.

Coming soon to the blog!

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