We head to Japan’s biggest electronic entertainment event to check out its incredible real-world visuals.
Mr. Sato was feeling proud of himself. Tasked with the solemn duty of heading to Tokyo Game Show on its opening media day, he awoke bright and early, hopping on the train to Chiba Prefecture’s Kaihin Makuhari Station, the closest stop to the show’s venue. It’s about an hour ride from downtown Tokyo to Makuhari…unless you take the route Mr. Sato did, which is to get halfway there, then get off the train and make a U-turn back to your Tokyo office to pick up your pre-registration paperwork which you left at SoraNews24 headquarters.
Finally arriving at his destination, Mr. Sato walked along the pedestrian overpasses that connect the station and convention center, and knew he was in the right place when he saw this gigantic mecha from developer Sega’s Border Break.
After picking up his badge, Mr. Sato made his way to the show floor, stopping for a picture with this massive demon from the newest game by Dark Souls director Hidetaka Miyazaki, Sekiro: Shadow Die Twice.
However, not all of the booths were so gruesome in nature.
Known as Yakuza internationally, Sega’s Ryu ga Gotoku series regularly includes hostess bar minigames, so the company had a pair of models dressed in the fancy dresses worn by hostesses on hand to celebrate Ryu ga Gotoku Online.
Models for Capcom, maker of fighting game and e-sports mainstay Street Fighter, were dressed in ring girl-style outfits.
Bandai Namco’s attire, meanwhile, used the warm-tone image colors of the company’s official logo.
Battle royale pioneer PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds had both a replica of its formal-wear cover boy’s visored helmet…
…and a bit of camouflage, which was ironically rather attention-grabbing.
Earth Defense Force, on the other hand, went with more sci-fi inspired getups for its pseudo-military game.
▼ Opposite ends of the hemline spectrum
Although it’s easy to assume that booth model fashion design is to simply follow the mantra of “Show lots of skin,” there’s actually a lot of creativity if you look closely, like heart-shaped cutouts…
…and this innovative use of an extra-wide necktie as, essentially, a shirt.
At this point, Mr. Sato was feeling a little weak in the knees…from hunger of course, since his en-route U-turn meant he’d had no time to eat breakfast. So he decided to hit the food court.
Tempted by options including rice bowls topped with steak or sashimi, as well as okonomiyaki, he finally settled on a nikumaki onigiri, beef-wrapped rice ball, for 500 yen (US$4.50).
▼ Everything tastes better on a stick.
As he digested, he posed for snapshots with statues for the new Devil May Cry and Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding.
With gamers downloading more and more titles, memory capacity is always a concern, so Samsung is at the show promoting its solid-state drives.
▼ Comfy gaming chairs are another essential for the hardest of hardcore gamers.
Final Fantasy XIV is currently celebrating its fifth anniversary, and the revitalized MMORPG had some high-fantasy high-fashion at its booth.
While the majority of the models at Tokyo Game Show are Japanese, in recent years there’s been an uptick in foreign models as well.
▼ Another sign of internationalism: Ghost of Tsuhima, set in 13th century Japan, is being developed by U.S. developer Sucker Punch Productions.
If you’d like to follow in Mr. Sato’s footsteps, Tokyo Game Show runs until September 23, and is open to the general public on its last two days.
Photos ©SoraNews24
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