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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A lot of the games at TGS will never be seen by you or me on American store shelves. The Sega booth alone is quite ample evidence that the tastes of American/European gamers and Japanese gamers are quite different in a lot of aspects. A visit to a Sega only arcade in a shopping mall near Makuhari Messe (the site of TGS) would later confirm this suspicion. Japanese still love the cute and colorful game, even after technology has allowed for the existence of the gritty and photorealistic, and these games still form the basis for the mobile and arcade scene in Japan.

My first impression was correct. I was completely stressed out by the scene at TGS, and had to make an early retreat to the Narita International Airport after quickly photographing what I needed to photograph, and talking to whom I needed to talk to on Sunday afternoon. The Japanese, esepecially the Tokyo residents, had no problem wading through the waves and waves of people present. With TGS being unique in that they open the show to the public the last two days, there was definitely a big difference between attendance on Thursday and Friday compared with Saturday and Sunday. It becomes almost impossible to work during the public days.

If you miss the booth babes at E3, go to the Tokyo Game Show. Not only are they much more numerous, but they are of much higher quality (especially if you like Japanese girls). All were in perfect shape and wearing wonderful outfits that you would never see anyone (even an American cosplayer) wear in the States.

Halo 3 is going to dominate my life for many many months.

Metal Gear Solid has a lot of fanboys, even though many (including myself) are still wondering what the big deal is. The rushing waves of fans that I mentioned in my first impressions, they were all going to the Konami booth. Konami was completely packed the entire day at the show.

Kudos to Microsoft for having such a great booth at a convention that they may not be completely welcome at. The TGS Guidebook itself says that their major goal is to promote JAPANESE industry. Personally, I think that if we open E3 to so many Japanese companies, it is only fair for TGS to return the favor. Well they did, and Microsoft definitely had a small crowd around it.

After experiencing Japan and the Tokyo Game Show, you can pretty much stick a fork in me. I'm completely exhausted! The culture shock and the hectic pace of TGS was completely overwhelming, but I'm glad I was there to experience it first hand.