Japan PS3 Launch Drama (IGN.com)

- IGN.com -

November 11, 2006 - Finally, the chaos has ended, and after weeks of stress IGN Japan has finally gotten our hands on the retail PlayStation 2 machines. Only we didn't get just one system, but two! The wait was long and tiring, but it was well worth it after we were able to get the systems in our hands. Fellow IGN Japan Correspondent Anoop and I joined other members of the online media at Shibuya's Tsutaya around one in the afternoon, where two people had already started queuing. Initially, we were set on camping out in front of Bic Camera in Yodobashi, but seeing the line in Shibuya, the decision was made to stay closer to home.

Anoop passing the time with his books.

Before settling down, we had a bit of a spat with the Tsutaya staff, who told us we can't line up, but if we do line up, then the line has already been made. What? As one person put it, the Japanese are the masters of anti-logic. So with the line made, we were ready to spend the next 20 hours on the street like a bunch of bums. There was one little problem though. Both security and Tsutaya staff didn't want us lining up in front of the store! So where were we supposed to wait? We couldn't wait in front of the store, and they had no place for us to wait. So we did the only logical thing in this situation; we played the 'stupid, clueless foreigner' card and didn't move. Much to the chagrin of the security of course, who continued to harass us for the next seven hours before finally giving up. While in line, we heard of several reports of other lines forming in various parts of the city, particularly Ikebukuro and Yurakucho, where Ken Kutaragi was planning to make an appearance. Since Sony's head honcho was going to be at those two locations, they had the most units in Tokyo, and so most people went there. Our line in Shibuya consisted of perhaps a dozen people by 6pm, but there were reports of over a hundred people in both Ikebukuro and Yurakucho. Ikebukuro's line was forming well, but in Yurakucho, the staff workers were vehemently denying anyone from forming a line. In fact, they told everyone to come back at midnight, when the line would form proper.

Andrew has his cake and eats it too.

The Shibuya line didn't grow during the daytime, but once night hit the city, people started arriving in droves to claim their spot. The line extended from the entrance of Tsutaya into the underground hallways which lead to the sub-basements of the store. In order to pass the time, a lot of McDonalds was eaten, a lot of Nintendo DS was played (sorry, PSP owners) and there were even some interviews conducted. Actually, the woman in front of us worked for TBS Japan, and was in line to get a PS3 for a giveaway contest they were having on the popular TV show, Akko ni Omakaze (Leave it to Akko). She had a few words with IGN's Anoop while he was playing Mario Kart DS with the others in line, before a security guard stopped her. Most of the day was drama-free, but around midnight, we noticed that several people were gathering in front of the first person in line, although not much attention was paid to them. A lot of people gather in front of Tsutaya to wait for their friends, so it wasn't anything suspicious. However, several people noticed that they were actually forming a line, so an effort was made to tell them to get to the back, but they feigned ignorance and actually claimed they were first in line! There was an argument between one of the original queues (henceforth known as "Tsutaya's Jesus") and the line cutters, who shall be known as Smarmy Guy, with his Smarmy Army.

All of the ruckus lead to the Tsutaya staff starting the official line, and promptly telling the Smarmy Army to head to the back. Justice was served! After midnight, the Tsutaya staff opened the gate to the emergency stairwell, where we were allowed to camp out for the rest of the night. Here is where things get really interesting. The day before the PS3 launch was actually my birthday, so having to camp out for a PS3 wasn't one of the things that was high on my list of things to do, but I still did it. Having spent the past 12 hours awake, I decided to take a nap, but I was violently shaken not half an hour after that by Anoop. It seems that our friends decided to throw me a birthday party in the middle of the line, complete with cake and presents. Not only that, but the TBS crew did a short segment on the whole lot of us, and presented me with a bottle of champagne.

From Software reps handing out Blu-Ray discs

Shortly after four in the morning, Tsutaya staff rolled by, handing out tickets to everyone in queue, with the choice of a 20 gig or a 60 gig model. Obviously both Anoop and I chose the 60 gig model, although the TBS chick chose the 20. So, with only a few more hours left in line, we were moved once more from the stairwell onto the street, where a line started forming from Tsutaya's entrance, and wrapped around the entire building. In all, there were over 300 people in line, and every single person was able to secure a system. In fact, we heard that the last person in line had ticket #273 for the 60 gig, and there were only 23 people who chose the 20 gig model. With daylight quickly approaching, representatives from From Software began handing out Blu-Ray discs of their two games, Enchanted Arms and Armored Core 4. At first it was speculated that these would be playable demos, but they were only videos of the games. Sure, they look pretty, but Armored Core 4 is coming out next month, surely they could've given a playable demo ready, couldn't they? About 30 minutes afterwards, Sony reps came out with catalogs detailing all of the upcoming games for the system, even those without release dates, such as Final Fantasy XIII and Devil May Cry 4. This was at around 6:30, and we had about 30 minutes to wait before the stores opened. When they finally opened, we were escorted into the store, which had been totally rearranged specifically for this event. They had two displays on each side of the stage, showing previously unveiled trailers for Metal Gear Solid 4, White Knight Story and more.

2 minutes before launch.

The first person in line was awarded his PS3 unit on stage, and was asked a few questions. He said that he had started lining up around noon on Friday, which meant he started the line not 2 hours before we had started. When asked about which games he was looking forward to, he simply answered "Final Fantasy". Good job, Sony! None of your launch games actually appealed to anyone. Once the interview was over, the spokesperson started a one minute countdown, which culminated in a few streamers and not a lot of applause. I think everyone was too tired to even care. After the first person bought his PS3 and walked out with it, the rest of us mere mortals were given the right to purchase one. As we were making our purchases, we noticed that Bill Rich was present among those who were taking photographs or were just observing the crowd. Don't know who Bill Rich is? He's the producer of Genji 2 and infamous for the "giant enemy crab" and "massive damage" quotes from E3 2006. Although Anoop seemed to have problems with Tsutaya's credit card machine, we were able to resolve everything in the end, and we walked away with machines in hand. Best birthday every? You bet! Check back for detailed hands-on of the Japanese launch titles soon.

"No, Mr. Gantayat, I can't be bought"