13th Entertainment Division Critiques

KAWAZU Akitoshi

One of the features of this year's Entertainment Division entries was that many were entertaining and amusing. Although the experimental pieces that make use of the latest technologies are valuable, it is necessary to utilize general technology in bold ways to satisfy people through entertainment. From such a point of view, this year's award-winning works indicate that we live in an age in which YouTube has become easily accessible to everyone. Now that we can watch interesting movies casually through YouTube, it means we want more fun in an easier way. The Grand Prize winner, Hibi No Neiro (Tone of everyday), which was also very well received on YouTube, is excellent, as it is YouTube-like, but also a work of artistry and skill. There was some discussion over the decisions for the other prizes, but as a result, the winners were chosen from various areas. Except for scoreLight, which was valued for its high technology precision, the game, web, and visual image works selected for the Excellence Prize were evaluated for their excellence of perfection. The visual images are now HD, and the Internet network has become broadband; the diffusion of these new technologies seems to be fulfilled for now. It is predicted that entries with a high level of perfection may become the award winners for the next few years, but I still hope to see unprecedented works that are not prepossessed by form.

Profile
KAWAZU Akitoshi
Game Designer
Born in Kumamoto, 1962. Started working at Square (as it was named at that time) in 1987. After contributing to the development of Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II (for the NES), he directed The Final Fantasy Legend (for the Game Boy). He also worked on all the titles in the 'Saga series.' He presented FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES in 2003, which received the Grand Prize in the Entertainment Division at the Japan Media Arts Festival.