Tokyo Game Show attendance up in 2004
The presence of the PlayStation Portable at the Tokyo Game Show last weekend has been credited with giving the event a major boost in attendance, with visitor numbers reaching over 160,000 over the three days of the event.
The presence of the PlayStation Portable at the Tokyo Game Show last weekend has been credited with giving the event a major boost in attendance, with visitor numbers reaching over 160,000 over the three days of the event.
Official figures released today by Japan's Computer Entertainment Suppliers' Association (CESA), which runs the annual event, show that attendance at the show rose by almost exactly 10,000 over last year's figure.
The 160,000 figure - which constitutes around 64,000 visitors on the two consumer days (Saturday and Sunday) and 32,000 on the business day (Friday) - is close to the all-time record for the show, which was set at just shy of 164,000 in 1999, just a few months ahead of the launch of the PlayStation 2.
At the time, it was obvious why most visitors had come - hoping to get a first glance at Sony's second-generation console - and the same was true this year, as attendees were drawn in by the promise of a chance to play the PSP hands-on.
The forthcoming Nintendo DS was undoubtedly a draw as well; although Nintendo chose not to exhibit at the show, several third-party publishers had Nintendo DS titles on display.