After the excitement of last week's Gamescom, the gaming industry's next big showcase is Tokyo Game Show Online 2021. The Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA) and Nikkei Business Publications have just revealed the schedule of the event, givings players an idea of what studios and games will be in attendence.
Back in March the CESA first announced the dates for TGS Online 2021, running from September 30th to October 3rd. This is a special year for TGS, as the event is celebrating its 25th anniversary, starting way back in 1996. Keeping to custom, TGS has been held yearly in September at Makuhari Messe, but with the COVID-19 pandemic, Tokyo Game Show 2020 was the first fully digital outing in the event's history. For TGS Online 2021, the CESA appears to be taking what it learned from last year's event while also reconnecting with its more usual appearance.
The CESA has finally released the official program for TGS Online 2021, and it packed to the brim with shows for fans to tune in for. Several high profile studios will be in attendence including Xbox, Konami, and Capcom on September 30, with Square Enix and Bandai Namco on October 1st. On the final day of the showcase, October 3, Arc System Works, Ubisoft and Genshin Impact will have presentations. In between the developer conferences are other activities like the Japan Game Awards of which Breath of the Wild took home top prize in 2017.
Despite the knowledge of which studios will be attending, and excluding the games which have their own dedicated shows—Genshin Impact—there is limited information on what games will actually be at TGS Online 2021. While studios like Square Enix provide a description of its show, noting that it will cover its previously announced games in addition to some new reveals, many of the other exhibitors' have pending descriptions, "Undecided" blurbs, or are still entirely blank. As TGS grows closer, these companies will likely start speaking more about its plans for the show, and even what games may be there. For instance, this time last year, Microsoft outright stated there would be no Xbox Series X news at Tokyo Game Show, so if Halo Infinite were to appear at the event, fans may end up knowing in advance.
There are some sizeable absent companies from those attending TGS Online 2021, namely Sony PlayStation, and Nintendo. The last time the former company was at TGS was in 2019, but even then, it did not have a formal presentation but just a variety of its games playable on the show floor with limited showcases. More recently, Nintendo appeared at last year's digital TGS event with an extended presentation about Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, but like Sony, are nowhere to be found in this year's schedule. Both studios have massive games in Horizon Forbidden West and the sequel to Breath of the Wild that fans are clamoring to see again, so it is unfortunate that Tokyo Game Show Online 2021 will not be where they are seen next.
Source: CESA