Anime Fan Impressions of E3

My first hand run-down of E3 will be forthcoming over the next few days. I’ll begin with my subjective analysis of some of the games on display that most impressed me as an avid anime fan.

Bandai had playable versions of the PS2 M.S.Gundam: Journey to Jaburo action game on display. While the re-drawn and re-animated animation footage from the original TV series looked gorgeous and the English dubbing was tollerable, the game itself looks like little more than a superior PSOne release. IGN.PS2 has posted a handful of screenshots of the game.

Infogrames promoted their Dragonball license heavily by having a costumed Super Saiyajin Goku pose for photos with booth visitors. The actual game footage on display, though, was very brief and gave the distinct impression of being hastily produced demonstration footage rather than actual clips from a work in progress based on the primitive, blocky look of the character model for Goku. Worth noting is the fact that the very brief few seconds of CG footage displayed featured adult Goku in non-saiyajin form riding the Kinton cloud around Kame House, establishing a time setting of very early Dragonball Z, before even the introduction of Vegeta.

Fox Interactive had on display a very early work in progress version of The Simpsons: Road Rage, a cel-shaded Simpsons themed version of Crazy Taxi for the Xbox. Perhaps the most interesting update to the Crazy Taxi formula was the fact that the vehicles are distinct to the drivers. For example, while Homer drive a taxi, Groundskeeper Willy drives a tractor.

Capcom surprised everyone by debuting work in progress playable versions of the PS2 action game Maximo: Ghosts to Glory, a 3D sequel to the classic Ghosts & Goblins franchise. Control is simple and easy to pick up, and the game itself features a 3D version of the basic fun characteristic of a good 2D side scrolling platform game. GameSpot has posted two video clips of the game.

The biggest and best surprise of the show was Squaresoft’s movie presentation of Kingdom Hearts. While the idea of a Square RPG featuring Disney characters and settings may seem silly, seeing it in action is totally different! Tetsuya Nomura has shrunk Shion of The Bouncer down to a child, given him Mickey Mouse’s shorts and shoes and the trademark giant sword of Cloud Strife (albeit now a giant key instead of a sword) and created Sora, the human protagonist who must team up with Donald Duck and Goofy to protect his female friend and battle against his silver haired former friend turned enemy, who has sided with the forces of darkness called “the Heartless.” The Final Fantasy style RPG features all of the characteristics one would expect from a Final Fantasy game including a love relationship, a world shattering threat, the necessity for self actualization and understanding, turn based combat and magic, a suave villain in the lineage of Sepiroth and Kuja, and a tone of hope amid despair. Contrary to what one may expect from the Disney license, the movie footage on display at E3 contained no slapstick comedy or humor and no bright, happy, talking animals. The game’s locations, which include Tarzan’s jungle and Peter Pan’s London, and the trademark Disney characters are presented as though they were new creations and characters original to Kingdom Hearts, no different than other Squaresoft creations including Chocobos and Red XIII. The game is scheduled for release on the PS2 in Japan this winter and in the US next year. GameSspot has posted several screenshots from the demo.