All Systems Go for Tokyo Game Show

CESA has just issued a press release with final details for this TGS 2008. The total number of exhibitors this year will be 209, including 89 exhibitors from overseas. The number of booths has marked a new record of 1768. As of August 18, they received entries of a total of 613 titles by 64 corporations and organizations. A list of the participating companies is provided on the official English website. We’re looking forward to another Great Tokyo Game Show! Meanwhile, here’s our video from 2007.

The organizers’ exhibits this year will include Game Science Museum that is spread over four diverse zones and the TGS Movie Square where visitors can experience the latest games and videos in a dynamic 5.1-channel surround-sound environment. A specially designed booth to sell official Tokyo Games Show 2008 original goods will also be set up. In addition, the SENSE OF WONDER NIGHT event, which provides a place for the presentation of games with unique ideas that have been selected from those submitted by game developers, will be held in cooperation with the International Game Developers Association, Japan Chapter.

CESA will host the Japan Game Awards 2008, one of the official events of the Japan International Contents Festival 2008, popularly referred to as CoFesta. The Creators’ Talk Show is another CoFesta official event that will be held at the Tokyo Game Show 2008. In addition, CESA will set up two CoFesta booths: the CoFesta Main Booth to introduce little-known game technology, and the CoFesta Parent & Child Game Booth to introduce the attraction of games as entertainment that can be enjoyed by parents and children together.

A new speech has been added to the keynote speeches for the TGS Forum 2008 on the first Business Day (Thursday, October 9). John Schappert, the Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Corporation, will give a speech entitled “A Canvas for the World”. On the second Business Day (Friday, October 10) Jim Crowley, the President and CEO of the US company Turbine, will talk about “The Collision of Virtual Worlds, Online Games, and Social Networking” at the Special Session event (participation free of charge).

CESA has decided to implement an environmentally-friendly electric power system at the Tokyo Game Show 2008. The amount of power that will be required for illumination and so forth in common areas will be equivalent to 280,000 kilowatt-hours. As a global warming prevention measure, power will be supplied through biomass power generation (with the cooperation of South Kyushu Biomass). The use of this environmentally-friendly power will contribute to a reduction of 105 tons of CO2 (emission source unit: 0.375 kg/kWh).