While not the biggest show of its type in the world, it certainly is close, and it has grown in prominence recently since the downsizing of E3. It's that time of year again for the Tokyo Game Show, and this year looks to be the biggest one yet. My name is Paul "Amish" Koehler, and I'll be providing coverage for RPGamer this year. I am an RPGamer alum originally from the Points of View section, but I also worked as Public Relations Manager. I've also done coverage for E3 in 2002 and 2003, as well as this very show in 2005. RPGamer is looking to expand its coverage of TGS, and we hope we can do that just for you.

   Every show starts with a journey, and mine was a bit shorter than most, as I live in Nagoya...slightly between Tokyo and Osaka. However, getting to Tokyo from where I live is a little over 300 kilometers, and it is best done on the Shinkansen, otherwise known as the bullet train. It's not my first time riding the bullet train, but every time I get to ride a train going over 250 kph is a treat. Less than two hours after departure, I was in Tokyo.

   While Nagoya is the fourth biggest city in Japan, it doesn't even compare in size to Tokyo. As the biggest metropolitan area in the world, it's hard to come to grips with the size of the place sometimes, even though this is my sixth visit to the city. The show won't begin until tomorrow, but in addition to my preparation time I was hanging around Shibuya and Shinjuku, on the western end of the central city. For those of you that have seen the movie Lost in Translation, this is where most of the action in the movie took place. It is busy, to say the least.

   Japan is no stranger to foreign fads either, or celebrites. My personal favorites from today were a poster in Shibuya station of Tommy Lee Jones and Japan's only Krispy Kreme store. I might add it's a very popular Krispy Kreme store, with a looping line outside of eager customers. Go figure.

   The show itself will be held on the outskirts of Tokyo in neighboring Chiba Prefecture, at the Makuhari Messe Convention Center. We'll be covering the usual suspects at the show, but we'll promise to tell you about any new finds as the news comes along.

But until then, time to sleep before the show starts. It's nice to work with everyone again!

Paul "Amish" Koehler