"No, it's not a First Person Shooter," says Metal Gear mastermind Hideo Kojima. We've just seen the "This is no FPS, This is MGS" trailer that showed at this year's Tokyo Games Show. Kojima-san, rather "Kojima-kantoku" (Director Kojima) as the President of Enterbrain keeps calling him, is sitting on stage. Looks like he's weaseled out of a straight-up presentation in favor of a round-table discussion. Chairs are brought in as Miyamoto and Valve's Robin Walker take their places on stage. Nolan Bushnell sits in the audience, but is given a mic as a consolation prize.

Hamamura-san, the President of Enterbrain (Famitsu's parent company), asks Kojima if playing the Metal Gear Solid 4 will be anything like the trailer. The director replies saying "of course, of course" smiling. I can't help but smile too. Kojima comes off as such as fun-loving guy.

The discussion begins, and Hamamura-san throws a question to Robin Walker, who begins talking about Valve's current plans. Walker seems much more at ease. He's no longer stumbling over his own words like a Junior High School student asking a girl out. No, he's actually coming across rather well. Perhaps, it's because he's sitting down, I wonder. Robin Walker should always give speeches sitting down.

Valve, it turns out, is looking to expand beyond the FPS genre. "We're working on cooperative building games," he says. For example, you build something like a space ship or a machine with people online instead of shooting and killing each other. Any questions fired from the jovial Enterbrain president are translated by the rotund man in a suit that's whispering in Walker's ear.

Miyamoto keeps dropping his receiver, which is connected to an earpiece through which English is translated into Japanese. The perky student that greeted me at the door tells me that they didn't have money for a Japanese-to-English translator, meaning that I have to pay extra attention to what Miyamoto's saying right now. He's talking about the Revolution controller.

"People's idea that video games were American grade school kids with their face pressed up against the TV made us want to design the new controller," Miyamoto says.
Walker nods as the rotund man whispers, while Kojima sits there looking at the floor. Bushnell's holding that mic. "Boring things," Miyamoto says, "will become interesting. But, I can't say any more."

A question is fielded to Bushnell. I don't even remember what it was as the question was asked out of politeness. Bushnell stands up in the audience, towering over everyone. He proceeds to put his foot on the raised stage behind him. As he's doing that, all I can think is "why the hell is he putting his shoe up against the stage?" Somebody should tell him that stuff like that is rude as hell here in Japan. He sits back down, and his translator smiles at him.

"What kind of game would you like to design for the Revolution?" Hamamura-san asks Robin Walker.
"There's a couple I could think of, but I'm not really sure, because I haven't seen the console."

Miyamoto smiles.

"What about you?" Hamamura-san asks, turning to Kojima-kantoku.
"He'd like to design a game that makes him popular with girls," Miyamoto quips.
Cracking up, Kojima says, "I haven't decided."
"That was a joke," Miyamoto says. "What would you really like to design?"
Kojima says something about using analog. "I can't really say," he adds, still laughing.

When the developers returned to their seats, I saw Walker's translator shake the young designer's hand and congratulate him for not bombing again. Good job Robin.

More Details Here [Ritsumeikan University]

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