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These pages will get a bit cluttered especially this one. Konami was my first group to see in the morning on the floor while Lydia had a shot at their press conference. Both... were interesting.

I'll be kicking off the first half of this with basic impressions from the floor, our booking was shifted without notice and we ended up on the floor demo side of things (no that's not a plus) the result was that we had a bit of a shallow display and apparently no floor developers or project members to speak with on the games. As such these are basically the findings we made based on playing through on my own.

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia - The game is obviously the latest in the series, the Ecclesia is a group sworn to fight off Dracula and his forces. The basis of the game is pretty much the same then for the gameplay, you battle through multiple platform levels trying to level up, acquire high level items and eventually defeat Dracula in battle, the changes are pretty well known though, using the glyphs to do things like launch your character into orbit so they can reach the next platform or launcher, this replacing something like the Griffon Wing from Portrait of Ruin. I didn't get entirely in depth with the build on the floor but I did give it a good run, clearing through the map and smashing on enemies in the process. OoE really feels like a title that has a good bit of play to it for new gamers to the series but from our current demonstration the game doesn't entirely seem to sell as a must have title unless you're really into the series enough to repeat the same design decisions from the previous games in the latest chapter. The decision to break out of the classic castle area is a good one, it steps back to the old days of the series where they wanted people to be out and about at times trying to piece the nightmare together, although granted those days were also filled with programming holes and often made advancement near impossible. The game is set to offer about 20 explorable areas and offer side quests and the usual array of items to stat boost with.

Castlevania Judgement - The Wii fighter is already in testing with a current roster of 3 players (1 to be unlocked, we have no idea who it is since the machine was reset) the game itself is pretty simple, you have the basic control system of the Wii-Mote and the Nunchuk as your primary functions. As such Z, C B and A are primary move modifiers, from heavy to light attacks to blocking as well, the game also offers simplified special attack execution with use of the d-pad for heavy damage, some combos in play ended around 90+ hits making sure that the special really was an overkill series of attacks to decimate. I can't say the control is completely groundbreaking though, many who have experienced fighters on the Wii know how the general mechanics go down and this doesn't do a whole lot to break away from that. The game is set to bring in generations of Castlevania characters though which seems to open the window to many series favorites returning to the show. I will say the modeling is a bit unique with almost comic inspired style and odd choices for those like Simon compared to the design handling of the hero team these days. Overall it was a game that could bring some decent fun home, I guess the execution is what hurt for me, the wii has multiple ways to play the game and while the swing around method can do well for some, there's always the ability to just use the controller like a controller and build a more complex battle system from there instead of leaving it to blind chance at times when health is low.

The Dance Dance Revolution titles were in full swing on the floor, making up a good majority of the space at the show this year by them, for me the personal favorite seemed to be Universe 3, the songs were more in tune with easy beats and fun movement to DDR. Plus after hearing Kind Lady I couldn't get it out of my head no matter how hard I tried. I will say that the game still has appeal even after all the UI evolutions and tweaks to make it more immersive and adaptable, giving people the chance to customize their character and use them in the game is a bit of fun especially as you scale into the youth market where personal avatar systems are quite popular since it's a new form of identity. For Wii gamers Hotest Party 2 is coming with decade favorites and Mii support as well, the game seems to have stepped up their interaction levels and apparently it has quite a few unlock features for people to work up for. For the more hardcore DDRX is on the way, packing net play and 70 songs, the game took some new liberties with things like "Street Master Mode" and brought back existing tool choices like the EyeToy into the mix. Overall DDR seems to be doing quite well in the market right now and the latest offerings are a reflection of their commitment to the community at large.

The Konami press conference took place later in the afternoon, and I attended while Gabriel ran off to knit sweaters with obscure industry bigwigs.  Konami’s lineup was modest, as far as quantity goes, but the presentation worked to clarify some grey matter regarding some of their more popular franchises.

The Konami name is practically synonymous with Metal Gear, especially after the recent success of the fourth Metal Gear Solid.  This must have been the mentality behind opening the press conference with Metal Gear related news.

Vice president of marketing Anthony Kraus started things off by announcing the Gene Expansion, available July 17 for 11.99 USD.  The expansion will have three new maps, two new special characters, Survival Mode, the option to play as a female character (hooray for gender equality), and reward points that can be used to unlock various armor and gear.

For $14.99, gamers can download the Gene Expansion Plus, which includes an extra character slot in addition to the content from the normal expansion.

In an effort to continue popularizing this spin-off MMO (can we even call it that?) Konami is holding a world tournament at the Tokyo Game Show in October, for which top MGO teams will be flown to Japan from around the globe to compete against one another.  If October seems too far away, this year’s Comic-Con in San Diego will be having a smaller-scale MGO competition of its own.  Good luck with that.

Moving on, Kraus whet the audience’s appetite a bit with the promise of Silent Hill, before quickly throwing out a few other titles for the sake of getting them out of the way.  For those interested, Elebits: The Adventures of Kai and Zero will be coming to the Nintendo DS, and Lost in Blue: Shipwrecked is being swapped in the other direction to the Wii.

Marvelous news, I’m sure, but now it’s time to bring out the big guns; and by big guns, I mean that crazy man with the awesome hat who’s responsible for bringing us more Castlevania than we could possibly handle, Koji Igarashi.  Most gamers have come to recognize Igarashi by his trademark black cowboy hat and whip (sadly, we only saw the hat today).

After a brief word from Kraus, Igarashi introduced two upcoming Castlevania titles with the help of a translator.  Order of Ecclesia was, of course, a given and an anticipated fan-favorite that looks quite familiar if nothing else.  Igarashi himself barely touched base with this one, offering only in-game footage and a release date hovering sometime in Fall 2008.  Perhaps the game of greater interest for everyone at the time was Castlevania Judgment, Konami’s 3D fighter for the Wii – though Igarashi insists the game should be referred to as a “3D versus action game,” not a fighter.  Riiiiight.  3D versus action game it is, then.

His description of the game reveals nothing new.  There will be 14 playable characters, though only four have been confirmed – Alucard, Dracula, Simon, and Maria – all of which were designed by famed manga artist Takashi Obata.  Characters throughout Castlevania’s long and sordid come together after an evil force (or person, who knows) starts wrecking the story’s timeline.  As always, space-time continuum goes out the window so gamers can have a free for all matches using their favorite Castlevania figures (hopefully, your favorite is one of the fourteen).  Don’t even try to make sense of it, just smile and play.

Igarashi was eager to demonstrate Judgment for us, and did so himself against a stagnant AI.  He certainly did a fine job of showing Alucard who’s boss, and we’ll ignore the fact that the AI was standing perfectly still, just waiting for Igarashi to beat the snot out of it.  Gabriel has already explained the mechanics of the game based on first hand experience with it, so to repeat Igarashi-san’s explanation could be repetitive.  However, it is notable enough to mention that during the live demo at the press conference, Igarashi stressed the use of the Wii Remote as a whip, the trademark weapon of Castlevania (because we love the Belmonts).  The integration of that whipping motion is apparently a direct response to requests from the fans.

The only spectacle greater than Koji Igarashi and his hat waving around a Wiimote (plus peripherals) is finally seeing more of Silent Hill: Homecoming. 

Lead designer Jason Allen presented the much anticipated game to a curious audience, talking us through a pre-recorded demo and explaining certain changes made to this new addition to the Silent Hill franchise.  Running on the Havok engine, Silent Hill: Homecoming still retains minor elements that remind us it’s a Silent Hill game, but overall the game mechanics appear to have been reworked, giving Homecoming a more hands-on feel.  Camera angles are adjustable now depending on what the player wishes to focus on, allowing a shift between first and third person when examining an object or point of interest.  Conversations with characters (there are actually other people caught in the mess) now feature dialogue trees that can directly affect the game’s outcome, and based on the presented footage, quick time events have been introduced to Silent Hill.

But die hard fans know that Silent Hill is more than just gameplay.  Of course, old favorites like the disfigured nurses are back to take a shot at the new protagonist, Alex Shepherd, and we still get thrown between the real and “nightmare” worlds.  Yet something appears amiss, like a subtle discrepancy in a clock’s tick that most would not detect off the bat.  The change in mechanics and Double Helix’s dedication to making this Silent Hill more “seamless” than previous titles give the game an action quality.  Before, players find themselves trapped by the world, severely limited in movement and visual clarity when immersed in the town of melancholy and inner isolation, swimming through a plot that remains vague yet subtlety twisted.  It’s likely too early to be passing judgment, but Silent Hill: Homecoming is, if nothing else, different because its sameness to other video game genres; by borrowing from other fields, it has evolved beyond the Silent Hill we once knew.

After Allen exits the stage, we’re introduced to Lauren Faccidomo who, in turn, introduces Rock Revolution.  Granted, it isn’t groundbreaking stuff, but she puts up an impressive performance after calling Rock Revo the “ultra-realistic” rock game we’ve all been looking for.  She rocks out alongside Ramones cover band The Sheenas, before picking up a guitar controller and demonstrating the actual game with another Konami employee assisting on drums.  What’s so special about Rock Revo other than being “ultra-realistic” and suitable for both true rockers and wannabes?  It focuses on drums.  A lot.  Yes.

Konami probably should have put more thought into their final act, or at least saved Castlevania for last.  All in all, being able to see more of Castlevania: Judgment and Silent Hill: Homecoming was rewarding, even if we walked away with more questions and worries, as the inner fangirl in me was left wondering what would become of one of my favorite franchises of all time.  Let me put it this way: when the conference ended, everyone looked up and around as though waking from a daze, asking in low voices, “That’s it?”