Once I finished the review for Shenmue for the Sega Dreamcast, I started looking at where I would go next. The next game in the Shenmue series (Shenmue 2) was never released in the United States, but was ported to the Xbox in 2002. There is no easy way to play the Dreamcast version of Shenmue 2 with a US console. You can either mod your Dreamcast to play imports, and get your hands on the European version of the game, or find a copy of the game without region protection that will work on your Dreamcast.

In any case, for most people it is much easier to play the Xbox version of Shenmue 2. The Xbox version of the game is basically the same as the Dreamcast one that was available outside the United States. With some very minor graphical updates and english audio. Check out the video below to see a split screen comparison of the two versions.

I have changed my encoding workflow for this video. The old encoding system was introducing red flashes into the video, which was really anoying. This new system also crops the video to a better aspect ratio, so enjoy! Please let me know if you have any problems with the new videos.

Download this video as WMV FLV