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Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2009 3:55 am
by Jeff
So out of interest I looked on the internet the setting for Shenmue II when Ryo is in Kowloon. The place Ryo explored in the later half of the game actually no longer exists. The Chinese government tore the whole place down in the early 90's because it was not only disgusting, but it was an eyesore filled with crime and black market dentistry, medical, and anything illegal under the sun really. It was known as the Kowloon Walled City. There was no easy way to get into it other than some dark tunnels. Jackie Chan actually shot a scene for Crime Story in Kowloon and the explosions were real because the government had no problem in destroying the buildings. Shenmue actually made it look better than it actually was.
Here is the video from Crime Story at Kowloon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5H9tjc_EAfo
Here is an 80's movie talking about Kowloon and going through the tunnels.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEo6ogAnoZ8
Here is an undercover video of Kowloon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSnvqBhWUOc
And here are some pics.
Of course, here is how Kowloon is depicted in Shenmue II
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffd8nNqNz2A
And Lastly, here is the Wikipedia article on this place.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kowloon_Walled_City
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2009 6:55 pm
by silverson
kowloon was a very interesting place. sucks that they had to go and destroy it, yes it was crime ridden and the whole nine but at the end of the day many people still called it home.
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 2:54 pm
by Sterling
Yeah, yeah people called it home but it was so unsafe! I mean just check out the building Zhu Yuanda was living in. He could have slipped and fell off one of those planks bridging the floors before Ryo ever saw him and then what would have happened?
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 3:27 pm
by Brotherman
Avon Barksdale wrote:Yeah, yeah people called it home but it was so unsafe! I mean just check out the building Zhu Yuanda was living in. He could have slipped and fell off one of those planks bridging the floors before Ryo ever saw him and then what would have happened?
He used the elevator, remember?
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 5:05 pm
by Yukupo
Ryo's face after Ren showed up from the elevator was priceless.
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Sun Jun 28, 2009 5:22 pm
by Riku
I remember that took me so long.
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 9:45 pm
by silverson
Yukupo wrote:Ryo's face after Ren showed up from the elevator was priceless.
lol thought i was the only one who found it hysterical
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6yo2Zac6kA
2:09 - 2:27
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 9:58 pm
by Yukupo
Fantastic.
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Sat Jul 04, 2009 2:25 pm
by Vyse Hazuky
Kowloon is a dream place for me.
It is certainly one of the things that made Shenmue so special to me as when I was a kid I often dreamed of getting lost on a big building maze, with elevators that went nowhere, and secret passages and complicated routes.
That such a place existed was incredible and I regret that I never had the possibility to witness it in person.
Once I even attempted to translate (from an english translation of course) the journal of the expedition that a group of Tokyoites had undertaken just before the city was demolished. I believe they were in fact the last foreigners to enter the city.
For me it was certainly one of the wonders of the World, so extravagant that it just didn't fit.
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 9:35 pm
by Ryo Hazuki ™
Definitely Vyse, It was a dream place roaming around it in Shenmue 2, and to see real pics of it makes it more amazing.
Re: Kowloon, the Walled City
Posted: Sat Jul 25, 2009 10:08 am
by Vyse Hazuky
Here is the expedition story I mentioned. It's linked from Wikipedia's "resource" section.
http://web.archive.org/web/200202082257 ... dex_e.html
It's a great read, even if the English is a little weird, hehe... I wonder if there aren't some video tapes of it back in Japan.... damn!