Back from TGS

(image above is by TED_TANAKUBO on flickr)

So, a mini delegation from Mm consisting of Siobhan (wonder-exec-producer), Alex (bald man), Luke (AMERICAN) and Mark S (japanese speaking level design guru) visited the Tokyo Game Show in Japan last week. Much drinking and merriment was had, in-between the important business meetings organised with the help of our wonderful SCEI producers (thankyou Kim and Niina!).

Most excitingly for many game fans, we announced the MetalGearSolid 4 and Sephiroth packs for LBP, which will include characters, levels, and lots more STUFF. Wonderful - though I want one of those dolls! The designers here at Mm towers are already sweating over some amazing new content for these packs. And the sackboy costumes look great.

Japan is also getting a rather snazzy new white PS3 bundle with LBP and two (yes two!) sixaxis controllers, for no extra cost.  There’s a funky sixaxis+game mini-bundle, and of course, there is still the previously-announced bundle for us europeans. Huzzah.

What other news? We had a rather lovely traditional japanese dinner with, amongst others, Keiichir? Toyama (director of ‘Siren’, and, I think, ‘Silent Hill’), and Fumito Ueda (ico and shadow of the colossus), as well as Chi, the drummer from the go-team and her lovely husband Jay - so it all got rather starry eyed towards the end of the evening. And much signage for the Mm trophy cabinet:

Sunday brought the biggest surprise - we were awarded one of the prestigious ‘future’ awards at TGS. These are a huge deal, in the japanese territory. Think ‘best-of-tgs audience choice’ type thing. Or in their words, ‘the most anticipated games of the year’. These are, I believe, the top 12 games shown at TGS as voted for by both visitors, fans and developers. There was a special awards ceremony, where each game was shown and a member of its team interviewed - in japanese. I stood, glazed and rather silly looking on stage as Kim-san deftly fielded questions and distracted nay-sayers with his trademark golden shoes.

To be the only western-developed game that achieved one of these awards this year, was incredible - so much so that I can even report that tears were shed all round. It’s a testament to the quality of the localisation that SCEI have done for us. Siobhan, Dave and a whole bunch of us at Mm have always been fans of japanese games so to be recognised there by japanese players and developers left us all rather speechless and a bit… shuffley. It hasn’t really sunk in, in fact.

So, a great reception for LBP in japan. Can’t wait to see the reviews and reaction once it comes out there on the 30th!