Shenmue 3's backer trial kicks off this weekend

Shenmue 3 launches in two months, but some backers will be able to hang out in one of the game's early areas very soon. This weekend, in fact. The trial version will let you experience a day in Bailu Village, which you'll be able to replay as much as you want.

If your pledge tier included the trial reward, keep an eye out for an email this weekend. Follow the link and instructions and you'll get your Epic Games Store download code. You might want to pick up the guide, too, as there's no in-game tutorial.

It's brief—Ys Net previously estimated it would contain an hour of diversions—but manages to squeeze in a bit of story, fights and minigames. Once the clock hits 9pm, your day in Bailu Village will sadly be over. You might reach the end earlier, too, if you complete the story and win a key battle.

You won't be able to save or load games, so that means you won't carry any progress over to the main game, either. You'll need 20GB of free space and you should check the Shenmue 3 system requirements to make sure your PC is up to snuff.

The free trial is only on PC, specifically the Epic Games Store, no matter what version of the full game you've selected. If you are getting the PC version at launch, you can still change your order, request a Steam key at a later date (Ys Net says it might not be able to honour this, however) or get a refund.

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