Shenmue Passport: Hidden F355 Challenge Feature

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Shenmue and  F355 Challenge, another game created by Yu Suzuki, have several elements in common as we looked at in the previous post.

• Related post: Shenmue's Ties to F355 Challenge

One of these is an hidden menu item that can be accessed only in the Japanese version of the Shenmue Passport (with a VMU holding F355 Challenge driving data) that allows players to graphically review their driving performance.

In this post, we'll translate the manual that accompanies the Japanese Shenmue Passport disc to outline these driving analysis functions.

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Shenmue's Ties to F355 Challenge

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Shenmue was released for the Dreamcast in Japan at the end of 1999, the same year in which Yu Suzuki's racing simulation game F355 Challenge was brought out in the arcades.

As its name suggests, this game features the Ferrari F355 Challenge sports car, with the goal being to race against other drivers across a number of circuits. All cars in the game are the F355 Challenge model.

F355 Challenge (Twin)

In addition to the arcade version (which came in Twin and 3-screen "DX" configurations), a version for the Dreamcast console followed in August 2000.

With Yu Suzuki at the helm of both, it is perhaps not surprising that F355 Challenge has a close relationship with Shenmue. A number of connections can be found between the two games, which we will look at in this post.

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