Tokyo Game Show: Day One

TOKYO - When we arrived at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan, this morning, we expected the opening day of the Tokyo Game Show to be crowded. But it was more crowded than we had anticipated, as even the mainstream press decided to check out the first public showing of the PlayStation2 and its games. There weren't any real surprises, except for what wasn't there. No-shows included NiGHTS 2, Phantasy Star Online, a playable Shenmue (it's just about a month away from its Japanese release), Alundra 2 and SNK Vs. Capcom (DC).

Aside from the disappointment of the no-shows, there were a lot of good games making first appearances at this year's show. Our list of top titles from TGS so far includes:

Dragon Quest VII (PS)Valkyrie Profile (PS)Biohazard Code: Veronica (DC)Tekken Tag Tournament (PS2)Dragon Valor (PS)

As for companies with the strongest lineups at the show, Sony certainly dominated with its PlayStation2. The Sony booth – specifically the PlayStation2 area – became extremely crowded as the day progressed. Not to let Sony completely steal the show, Sega also had an impressive booth, with an assortment of top- notch titles. However, the only area that ever seemed to get a sizeable crowd in Sega's booth was the Biohazard: Code Veronica section (the game was also playable at Capcom's booth). It was strange to see new Dreamcast titles like Crazy Taxi or Zombie Revenge completely left alone by Japanese gamers. Other companies with hot booths included Enix with titles like Dragon Quest VII and Valkyrie Profile, and Square with Chrono Cross, Parasite Eve II, and Vagrant Story.

So stay tuned throughout the tomorrow for the many impressions of the titles we've gotten our hands on so far. And of course we'll be back at the show playing more games tomorrow, when the public is unleashed into the halls of TGS. Undoubtedly, this is going to be the busiest TGS ever, if the amount of people at today's business-only day serves as any indication. It's going to be crazy.

Check back throughout the weekend for our continuing coverage from the Tokyo Game Show in Japan!