Since we don't get to go to the Tokyo Game Show every year it can be a distressing experience watching the Japanese video games industry literally shrink before your eyes, year by year. A decade ago there used to be two Tokyo Game Shows a year, one in the spring and one in the autumn, now there's just one poorly attended event that has been overtaken by not just E3 but also Europe's Gamescom.
By poorly attended we refer specifically to the publishers and developers themselves. Japanese fans have as much passion and enthusiasm for gaming as ever, and this year's show saw the highest ever attendance figures despite the blistering autumn heat.
Traditionally Nintendo have never attended the show (although you might have thought they'd make the effort this year given their troubles) but although the big publishers did their part many of the smaller ones just didn't bother turning up. There was no Atlus, no Level-5, no Nippon Ichi, no SNK Playmore, no D3Publisher, and none of the dozens of other even smaller local firms.
For reasons we still don't fully understand American indie developer The Behemoth were there though, so it can hardly have been because exhibiting was too expensive.
As has often been commented upon the Japanese games industry lacks cohesion and the same sense of community enjoyed and encouraged by Western developers. Japanese companies remain secretive and suspicious of each other, and there's very little sharing of information or technology.
And it all seems like such a terrible waste because visiting Japan, still the spiritual home of gaming, is such a joy. And seemingly the last place left on earth where video games are not synonymous solely with violent first person shooters. Japan has always done things differently and that's often reflected positively in its games, but something does need to change if it is to avoid declining away into irrelevance.
Everyone actually bothering to turn up for the same yearly trade show would be some sort of start at least. Especially as it might instil some sense of pride and confidence back into Japanese companies, the lack of which has always seemed like their biggest problem this generation.
We hope you've found our previews and interviews over the last few days interesting and since we don't wish to end on our sour note we'll take this opportunity to mop up the other games of note we've so far missed. If you've any questions just send them to the usual email address and we'll answer them in the Inbox.