by Kerrie Hui, Reporter

This year marks the 11^th year anniversary of the Asia Game Show that is held annually at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, located right on Victoria Harbor in Wan Chai, Hong Kong. It will run from the 21^st of December, 2012 to the 24^th of December, 2012. This year also marks the 3^rd time I have been in attendance of the AGS since it began.

It has, however, been quite a few years since I’ve been. I was there for the first ever Asia Game Show and the subsequent year, but haven’t been since, partly because of the crazy amount of crowds and lines. It has been anticipated that over 470,000 gaming enthusiasts will attend over the 4-day 8000sqm event.

Luckily for me, I arrived bright and early on this Friday morning in which most attendees were either at work or in class, which meant crowds were small. This also meant I was able to cover the floor very quickly and efficiently, and trial out many of the games that were available without having to wait. Indeed, I spent over half an hour at the Origin PC game booth playing my beloved Battlefield 3 (and then a round of Medal of Honor: Warfighter) with no hassling from the Origin staff and crowds. Not to mention those Origin Gaming Computers and Associated Gear *low whistles*. When I went back around 1:30pm there were subsequently a longer line of people.

Sony Playstation is one of the event’s biggest sponsors, so I wasn’t surprised that almost half of the exhibition floor space was dominated by games showcased on the PS Vita and PS3.  Sony Computer Entertainment Asia President Hiroyuki Oda also made an appearance.

Here is a list of the games available to demo at the Sony booths:

PS3:

Released –

• FIFA 13
• Papa & Yo
• Tekken TAG Tournament 2
• Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 3
• The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim
• Unfinished Swan
• NBA 2K13
• F1 Race Stars
• Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two
• Rocksmith
• Just Dance 4
• Wonderbook: Book of Spells
• Gran Turismo 5
• Sports Champions 2
• Little Big Planet: Karting
• Everybody’s Golf 6

Not released-

• God of War Ascension (Mar, 2013)
• EVE: DUST 514 (2013)
• Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (Feb, 2013)
• Lost Planet 3  (2013)

PS Vita:

• Street Fighter x Tekken
• Sky Cooper – Thieves in Time
• Little Big Planet 2
• Soul Sacrifice

Some of the noteworthy games include God of War: Ascension and Little Big Planet 2 with Cross-Play.

Another big highlight that Sony showcased was the HMZ Personal 3D Viewer, which is a wearable HDTV. Combine that with 5 minutes of gameplay for Assassin’s Creed III or God of War: Ascension and….MIND ASPLOSION. It may not be for everyone, but the experience definitely made me feel like I was living in the future. It has 5.1 surround sound and is capable of both 2D and 3D imaging!

Playstation also has a Games and Apps Challenge in Asia 2013. SCE is looking forward for ideas and you can get more information at http://asia.playstation.com/PS-GAC/

Because today’s event also landed on the presumptuous end-of-the-Mayan-calendar-hence-the-end-of-the-world date of 21^st of December, 2012, there were some gag awards for citizen-voted favourite Super Hero, which ended up to be…surprise, surprise, Iron Man.

AGS also introduced their ambassador for this year Hong Kong star, Ekin Cheng, whom is currently addicted to Call of Duty: Black Ops II.

Other things that you may want to watch out for (and I will be taking notice the next 3 days):

• Escape Game

As with most big conventions that I have been to this year (example: SDCC 2012), there is a Zombie Escape Game. It is the “first time ever in Hong Kong”

• J-Pop Concerts

Featuring Japanese Stars: May’N, Ito Kanako, Nanri Yuuka and Shuhei Kita.

• Cosplay@AGS

Many Cosplay Talent Shows. Today I saw Iron Man, Captain America, Cat Woman, Wonder Woman and some Japanese Anime cosplayers.

• Classic Game Exhibition

Remember the good old days of Biohazard, Dynasty Warriors, Final Fantasy, the original Gran Turismo, Monster Hunter Street Fighters, Super Mario Bros, Super Robot Wars and The King of Fighters?

+ more!

• Gaming Seminars and Talks

There is certainly a lot to try out and see, including a wide variety of local Hong Kong developed games.

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