TGS 2007: Final Thoughts on the Tokyo Game Show

So I just wanted to give a collection of random TGS thoughts that I had, but I gave myself one week to make sure that only the most memorable would make their way into my rant. Actually, I'm just lazy and my editor kept nagging me to do this.

The food court at TGS is crazy. As a foreigner, I would highly recommend making your way as far as possible away from the hall when you need a meal, as you will not fit in. At all. I walked by and looked at everything available, looked at the numerous "tables" (all packed), and the countless hordes of Japanese waiting around for their food to know that I needed to head out of the facility briefly for my eats. Even the McDonalds that was close to the facility had a line of about 200 waiting there. I opted for some Shabu Shabu (another experience in which I felt completely clueless and I either made a fool of myself or insulted the restaurant or both).

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TGS 2007: Has Sony finally figured it out?

Most readers of this site are aware of the PlayStation 3's lackluster sales so far. As of the end of August in the USA and Japan, Sony has sold 2.9 million of its latest generation console, compared to 6.7 million of its main rival Xbox 360s (which did have a one year head start) and 7.4 million units of the less powerful (and cheaper) Nintendo Wii. Many financial analysts and marketing firms, such as the Japanese company Enterbrain (the source for the preceding figures), believe that a price cut would help solidify the PS3's sales, and somewhat expected that announcement to come at the Tokyo Game Show.

Sadly, no such announcement was made. However, the recently appointed head of Sony's videogame division, Kazuo Hirai, did make another important announcement: Sony is re-committing itself to help third-party developers do whatever is necessary to make GOOD GAMES. We've seen in the past that it is the games that make the most difference in a consoles' sales performance. The previous incarnation of Microsoft's Xbox kept competitive because of a few key exclusive titles, most notably the Halo and Knights of the Old Republic series. The long run for Sony and the PS3 may depend on such titles.

Although the PS3 has been losing some exclusive titles to cross console availability (more often the Xbox 360 than the Wii), they still maintain several key franchises which have yet to cross the console gap on their initial release date, such as the Metal Gear Solid series, Final Fantasy XIII, Unreal Tournament 3, Star Ocean and etc. With Sony publicly re-committing itself to the third party developers, perhaps they will be able to retain the exclusive titles they still have, and perhaps add a franchise or two to the list.

In other business news, The Wall Street Journal recently reported that game review sites have become VERY important to developers. So much in fact that game makers such as Activision, Inc. and Take-Two Entertainment have made reviews part of their staff's bonuses!!! It's great to think that sites just like this one can have an effect in either recognizing great staffers or punishing those who fall short of mediocrity. Having recently played Halo 3 (yeah, I know only mere days before its release), I am recommending Bungie to give EVERYONE raises!

Information from the Wall Street Journal was used in this article.

Stranglehold Impressions

There's this new Jon Woo game whose name I can only seem to remember for a few seconds at a time. Seriously, I think I had to ask my friend the name of this game like 11 times today.

It stars Jackie Chan Jet Li Chun Li Chow Yun Fat as the main character and has all kinds of kick ass action movie type shit that you can do. You can dive and shoot in all kinds of directions, slow the action down with bullet time, and even take a shit on your enemy's chests. Okay, I may have made that last part up, but overall the game is pretty cool.

The only drawback I see is that it pretty much utilizes every single trigger, button, and switch on your controller which is confusing as hell. I like games that use a maximum of three buttons (one of which can be the directional pad). Why? Maybe it's because the last console I owned was a NES. Or maybe it's because I have a learning disability (asshole). Bottom line is the controls take some getting used to.

I think I spent the majority of my time playing this game at the airplane hangar because it was either that or play one of the other two games that were on display. Just funnin' ya, pee wee, it's actually a decent game. You should buy it. In fact, buy two copies and give one to me as payment for this awesome review.

Dear E3: You Fucking Suck

Why did you even bother? Shitty games, no schwag, and no booth whores. Even the creator of the Metal Gear series, Toejammy Kajagoogoo, learned enough English to say "E3 Sucks" at the Konami press conference (which itself was a task to endure).

In conclusion, thanks for nothing. If it's like this next year I'll have more fun staying home and punching myself in the nuts -- which I've been known to do from time to time.

Nintendo Press Conference: Wii Are Gay

Nintendo shocked the world when it announced at its press conference today that they were indeed "coming out." They also stated that they were poised to "penetrate the market [...] deeper." Having already taken a major foothold with female and geriatric consumers, Nintendo hopes to expand their player base to include the gay community. The earliest title that will be released to appeal to this new audience is WWE Smackdown! Vs. Raw 2008 (yes kids, wrestling IS gay). Sources close to the company confirm that Shigeru "Shiggy" Miyamoto will grace the cover of gay publication the Advocate later this month in celebration of their homosexuality.

Hey, Guess What?!

Halo stole their theme music from a little SNES game called Solstice. Check it out. I'm tired and lazy, but I'll post a comparison soon.

Gamers donate one million dollars through Child's Play in 2006

The Child's Play annual fund raising campaign has finished this year with over one million dollars in cash and toys donated. The charity aims to help children's hospital through the gathering of books, toys, video games, and cash that can be used to help the kids who have to visit the facilities. Started in 2003, each year has seen massive growth in the amount of toys and funds raised, with 2006 being the first year to reach the magical million dollar mark.

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