Tokyo Game Show 2008 - Day 1

14:21.11 - Thursday 9th October 2008   (Link to This Entry)

Up with the lark, we showered and dresses earlier than usual to catch the train to Tokyo and then on to Kaihin Makuhari on the Keiyo Line and Makuhari Messe - home of the Tokyo Game Show 2008, or TGS for short. The convention hall itself was well signposted, but it was really just a case of following the crowds since everyone was heading in our direction. Once we rounded a corner and were greeted by an inflated VG character we knew we were on the right track.

Today is the first day of TGS, which means it is open to entertainment-related businesses only. I was pushing it with my Web Design job but I'd recently had some business cards printed up where my title was given as Design/Consulting so I used those, and I'd recently given K tips on games and stuff so that's consulting, right?. I presented my completed application form with the requisite two business cards, paid my entrance fee and away we went - we were in!

All of the big names were there, from Nintendo with the Wii to the likes of Sega, Sony, Konami and more. Microsoft didn't have a booth specifically but there were plenty of XBox 360 kiosks to play on. Level 5 had an enormous stand incorporating a closed theatre showcasing some excellent-looking titles on a huge high-definition screen. Sega's stand seemed dwarfed in comparison, but was still one of the better looking ones, decked out in blues.

Many of the booths featured the obligatory Booth Babes who on the whole were pretty to look at and didn't mind posing for photos in between handing out all manner of freebies. We scored a few fans, pens and badges, DVDs and countless product brochures, so much in fact that our bags were beginning to weigh us down towards the end of the day.

Gaming machines were numerous as you would expect but there was also a huge presence from KDDI and NTT Docomo with their mobile gaming offerings including Tetris League and a 3rd Person 'Monster Spree' thing that saw you running around a city killing spiders and possibly the other online players. The Japanese market is massive for this kind of stuff, since the subways are packed with commuters doing something on their mobile phones or handhelds.

Big-Box gaming was well represented as well, with Gran Tourismo Prologue, Silent Hill Homecoming and Metal Gear Online all being showcased by their publishers. Anyone could play these on the hardware provided and we made sure to give it a go. Versions at the show are special 'TGS' versions which can be reset to a default state with a few clicks of the controller, and only have certain levels/features available.

The Nintendo DS seemed to be everywhere, but three quarters of the games (to us at least) were the click... click... click... RPGs that the Japanese love so much. We can only stomach so much of these, not least because there were no English versions, and the low point of the show was having to persevere with a space-based version (click... click... click...) because a camera crew had set up just behind us and we were in the shot. Still, the NDS is a hotbed of development right now, with everyone piling on. Phantasy Star Zero looks to be one of the titles to wait for.

Oh, and Taiko Drum Master is coming to the motherlovin' Wii! I've already kinda decided to buy it based on my terrible performance at the show, and I can only apologise in advance to the distress I am going to cause my neighbour.

One of the last things we did was try out an Earthquake Simulator - a small mockup of a dining room atop a hydraulic lift that shakes, rattles and rolls everything around you, simulating a quake of 7 on the Richter scale. We spotted a couple of Japanese TV celebs (no idea who they were, sorry!) filming a segment in the machine and decided to have a go as well. Talk about laugh.

After spending at least six hours wandering around, snaffling freebies and taking photos, we decided to call it a day and make a run for the train before rush hour combined with Tokyo Disney (which is on the same route) to bring everything to a crawl. We'll be going back on Day 3 which is the first day open to the general public to see how different things are.