“Columbus’s egg” A brilliant diversified concept

The Grand Prize for the Entertainment Division was selected from the Game Category. It is no exaggeration to say that game software is the media form that Japan is devoting the most time and money to. However, the Grand Prize winner, MAWARU MADE WARIO WEAR: TWISTED! is not what one might expect. The significance of this lies in the fact that it is a game with a diversified concept and, much like the highly acclaimed "Columbus's egg", it is this that will allow it to overturn the presuppositions that underlie how games are currently played. Although the Excellence Prize winner PICTOCHAT, was first judged as a self- contained game, it quickly became apparent that it was also "a proposal for a new way to play that utilizes new technology". We can thus appreciate the work as a "play system". Many advertise-ments entered into the Visual Image Category every year; one has even won the Excellence Prize this year. It is a great leap forward, made for this form of media, which has long been regarded as being far from "cultural or artistic" in form. Since most advertisements use CG and digital techniques, the boundaries have begun to blur between the visual methods conventionally employed for "advertisements" and "feature programs". In contrast, the WEB Category was not thought lively enough this year. There were quite a few entries that obviously expended enormous amounts of effort and money. However, in the year of the 10th anniversary of the internet, it was a pity that we were not presented with anything that could suggest a new direction for the future. Since WEB contents continue to establish themselves firmly as a media form, we have high hopes for future entries. The Encouragement Prize winner, AKANE- GUMO, is a significant work in that it presents the idea that "if a work can appeal to people's emotion, evoke sympathy, and provide some excitement, it is truly a worthy entertainment". The Entertainment Division is a field where competitors have vast capital resources and backing; however, AKAMNE- GUMO was able to show us the nature of this field, which we should not forget. Personally, I am glad to have seen this work and to know that it was appreciated by the other adjudicators as well.