Capcom 2010 TGS liveblog

By some miracle, we made it to the Capcom event clear across Tokyo. No biggie. They're not letting press in yet – our casual entrance and brief observation of the rehearsal was met with several hurried PR handlers – but we thought we'd share this snap of the flower arrangement outside the venue: Capcom TGS 2010 and Epic Games Japan. With the news that Capcom is looking to western devs to handle its franchises, we're wondering if it somehow snagged one of gaming's highest profile developers. Or maybe it's just an Unreal Engine licensing thing. The press conference kicks off in about an hour, so check back!

9:09PM "Thanks again for coming." The event is wrapping up. The rest of the evening is a party. Hopefully, we can find some drunk producers and get some As to our Qs.

9:04PM "We're essentially co-directing the game," Itsuno explains. The two companies have a lot of meetings, in spite of the distance between the two. He explains that neither developer has really backed down from their vision -- continuing the theme of the evening, the game is supposed to combine "the best of east and west." No release date was offered.

9:00PM "We have a special guest tonight, someone that knows Devil May Cry very, very well." Hideaki Itsuno takes the stage.

8:59PM "We're hoping to make a game that even Capcom can be proud of."

8:58PM Ninja Theory director Tameem Antoniades takes the stage. "We're taking a younger Dante" that incorporates the youth culture of today, from fashion to music to street art, etc.

8:57PM "This is a rebirth of Devil May Cry." The combat certainly looks familiar, and the fresh attitude matches what we expect from the series (it's more DMC3 than DMC2, thankfully). But, there's a psychological slant to the game as well, it seems. There's a questioning of reality in the trailer, as a character trapped in chains (in a mental institute, perhaps?) is intercut throughout the video.

8:54PM And yes, it's developed by Ninja Theory.

8:54PM "My name is Dante," the teenager says as the "DMC" logo appears on screen.

8:54PM Subject 644... "What is your name??" Demons appear on the screen as a leather cladded teenager jumps around, dual-wielding guns, fighting enemies with a spear.

8:52PM Producer Alex Jones takes the stage. A year and a half process of combining east and west. "Without further ado, we're proud to show..."

8:51PM "We have one more title to announce tonight. Perhaps the most surprising." Could this be the long-rumored Ninja Theory-developed DMC game? The game that would be the least surprising announcement tonight? Let's find out!

8:49PM We didn't hear a release date. We did hear the phrase "when it's ready" though.

8:46PM "Initially, we just wanted a standard action game, but we were surprised to see what CyberConnect 2 wanted to do." The two companies butted heads during development, but they're proud of the end result.

8:44PM The director asks the audience, "It's pretty crazy, is it not?" There's more applause and laughter. "To us, the word 'crazy' is a complement."

8:43PM "The Japanese games industry is not dead because Capcom and us are still here." The audience applauds.

8:42PM "What we're bringing to this game is a brand new style that will have you questioning whether or not you're even playing a game ... sometimes even we're confused if what we're making is a game."

8:42PM The director says the key concept revolves around "wrath" and "serialized drama" and "experiencing a game rather than just playing it." What does that mean?

8:40PM "Completely original title coming to PlayStation 360 and Xbox 360."

8:39PM "We're not a subsidiary of Namco Bandai. We are, in fact, an independent developer ... we have made a lot of games for them, and will continue to make games for them." Someone shouts "Naruto" very loudly.

8:38PM It's called Asura's Wrath

8:37PM Directed by Seiji Shimoda, the new game is "Powered by Unreal Engine"

8:36PM Main character appears on screen, art is slightly reminiscent of .hack series, but far darker, far grittier. White-haired main character gets stabbed by dozens of spears, but throws them off his body with no problem. Grabbing a giant sword, he rips through enemies with no problem.

8:34PM Our new partner is CyberConnect 2 (developers of .hack, Naruto Ultimate series for Namco Bandai).

8:34PM "Everyday at Capcom, Inafune tells us to challenge ourselves ... We think it's important for ourselves to try new things." Although Capcom has been working with a lot of Western developers recently, "we can't forget that there are a lot of great developers in Japan." "We're pretty confident in our ability to make games," but they wanted to partner up with a developer "as good as us."

8:32PM Here's a brand new original title, "something Capcom hasn't done in a while." Kazuhiro Tsuchiya, producer, takes stage.

8:29PM "We take this responsibility very seriously. Capcom games have a certain flavor ... we don't just want to make amazing games, we want to make amazing Capcom games."

8:28PM Rob Barret, president/CEO of Blue Castle Games takes the stage. Hope this wasn't a surprise for him!

8:26PM "We will purchase Blue Castle Games." Guess they're really proud of Dead Rising 2!

8:26PM "As you may know, Dead Rising 2 was developed by Blue Castle Games in Canada ... [but] it doesn't feel like a typical Western game." It feels like a Capcom game, Inafune explains. The future of Capcom will involve working with other developers on games that feel like they're made in Japan, but with Western flourishes.

8:24PM "I can't give you too many details, but it will involve Frank and Chuck working together" and will take place after the events of Dead Rising 2. "Apologies to PS3 fans, but this too will be an Xbox 360 exclusive."

8:22PM The Xbox 360 logo appears at the end of the trailer. "Of course, the West means Frank West." Frank makes his return to the Dead Rising franchise. Apparently, this was a response to the press reaction to Dead Rising 2. "Where's Frank? Why the new character? We want Frank!"

8:21PM "As you know, Case Zero is a prologue." But now, they're talking about an epilogue: "Case West"

8:19PM "Almost 500,000" purchases of Dead Rising: Case Zero sold so far.

8:17PM "I don't think we're going to disappoint tonight," he teases. "Last year, I made a rather controversial comment about how the Japanese game industry is dying," he continues. "If you look at the sales charts, there are not many Japanese games there." He hopes that Capcom will be able to change that. "As long as Capcom is around, the Japanese games industry is NOT dead."

8:14PM Wearing the Dead Rising 2 jacket, he promises to reveal "a few new things" tonight. We hear there's going to be at least three new game announcements tonight.

8:13PM Taking the stage is Keiji Inafune, Managing Corporate Officer, Global Head of R&D. "Looks like there are some drunks in the crowd," Inafune notes in his opening speech. The crowd cheers back.

8:11PM The techno-retro chiptune music definitely got the crowd abuzz. People are all standing up, trying to take pictures of the eclectic video.

8:09PM "It's showtime!" A retro-themed video plays, filled with some of Capcom's earliest classics, like Street Fighter.

8:00PM They tell us things should get going in about 10 minutes, so hang tight. Here, in the meantime, why don't you know check out this floor map!

7:46PM We're finally inside the venue, a location that apparently inspired the bloody fight scene in Kill Bill. On our way in, we spotted Ninja Theory creative director Tameem Antoniades. Guess they're working on a Capcom game. DMC, perhaps?