A Showcase of Legacy and Strategic Evolution

The Tokyo Game Show 2025 (TGS 2025) is just a few days away, and before our visit, I wanted to give you some quick overview of what to expect at the venue. Apparently the show is breaking new records in terms of booths and exhibitors, so there should be a LOT of things to see there. Most of the big publishers come back with sequels (yawn) but the indie scene should bring a few surprises. Now onto the floor map:

One trend we can already see emerging in this TGS 2025 is the focus on reviving old series. It’s fairly obvious when looking at the line-up: Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, Nioh 3, and the highly anticipated Silent Hill f. And then there’s Riot Games’ first-ever TGS appearance, to promote its new fighting game, 2XKO.

Since COVID19, publishers are leveraging a dual approach of physical show floors with playable demos and pre-show online broadcasts to maximize their reach. You should also expect another TGS Steam sale during the duration of the show. The online presence of the show has done a great deal to expand the reach of the event beyond Japan’s borders.

The AAA World

Here’s what the big Japanese publishers have cooked for this event.

Let’s see in more details what to expect from each of them.

Capcom

Capcom has a Tokyo Game Show 2025 Capcom Online Special Program planned on September 24th just before the event. They plan to talk about the additional content related to Monster Hunter Wilds - and there could be some crossover with Final Fantasy XIV as mentioned at stage event. Onimusha has been out of the spotlight for a very long time. The series was very popular back in the Playstation 1 days, and it will finally resurface on modern platforms with Onimusha: Way of the Sword. This game will use the RE Engine.

But Capcom‘s main focus will be probably on their new IP, Pragmata. It’s not the first time it has been shown. If you haven’t heard of the game yet, it will feature cooperative gameplay and (hopefully) a strong storyline.

There’s the new Resident Evil: requiem, feature two female protagonists in a new storyline, making heavy use of the torchlights!

Capcom will also cater to retro fans with Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection.

Square Enix

Square Enix doesn’t much new in terms of IP, and seems to really like the HD-2D branding. The main new title is Octopath Traveler 0 and will be shown ahead of its December 4, 2025 release. There’s also The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales, developed by Team Asano (the studio behind Octopath Traveler), planned only for the Switch 2 at the moment.

Another bunch of HD-2D titles will be shown with some remakes, such as Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake. I can’t say I am too excited by all of this, but this is where Square Enix is at now. While we are talking about remakes, one of the more high profile ones is Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles. It was originally on Playstation 1 (where I played it first), and later ported to the PSP. Apparently it’s a remake with some new content added. It will be released shortly after the show on September 30, 2025 release.

No news about the next Final Fantasy VII remake part III, but maybe we will get to see a new trailer.

Koei Tecmo

Koei Tecmo’s TGS lineup will be mostly centered around three titles Nioh 3, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, Ninja Gaiden 4. Hyrule Warriors is for the Switch 2 so it does not interest us here. Nioh 3 should be playable with a demo at the show.

And there’s at last a new game in the Ninja Gaiden series with Ninja Gaiden 4, by Team Ninja and Platinum Games (the guys behind Bayonetta).

I’m a big fan of whatever Platinum Games does, so I will certainly be trying this one out.

Bandai Namco Entertainment

Two key titles to check closely here. The latest entry in the Katamari series, with Once Upon a KATAMARI, should be playable at the show.

Code Vein II won’t be playable yet, indicating that the launch may be somewhat far away.

I think that’s mostly it from them.

Konami

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is just out, so Konami will capitalize on its launch to showcase the game again. More importantly, Silent Hill f is the real new game at the show, and the first non-remake episode of Silent Hill for a very long time. Since it will release during the show, the game should be fully playable and final at this stage.

There’s more stuff and minor games showcased at the Konami booth but honestly that’s the main thing we will be interested to see.

Riot Games

Riot Games is making its first-ever physical appearance at TGS. The crown jewel of their booth will be the upcoming 2v2 fighting game 2XKO, based on the League of Legends series.

They will probably try to market this one to the Japanese market to gain a foothold on the competitive scene.

They will also feature their existing games, VALORANT, League of Legends, and Teamfight Tactics with new content, competitions and online events during the show.

Sony

Last but not least, Sony will be featuring Ghost of Yotei, the sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, that is expected to launch on October 3 on PlayStation 5. It should feature dual katana gameplay for close-quarters combat.

Sony will also be presenting the fighting game MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls, which is being co-developed with Arc System Works and PlayStation Studios XDEV. The game is built around 4v4 team battles and will reveal new characters, including Spider-Man and Ghost Rider, at the event.

While a separate pre-TGS event by Kojima Productions will showcase its upcoming projects, including the PlayStation exclusive Physint, Kojima Productions is also a confirmed attendee at the TGS.

The Indie Scene

There should be a lot to see in the Indies hall, with 80 titles highlighted by the organization. For less conventional titles there will be also the Sense of Wonder Night trying to compete for a special prize. Among them I find TopplePOP to look delightful:

Among the indies titles, there’s Broomstick Exorcist using handdrawn art:

Another 2D action adventure that looks exceptional is Vapor World:

And there’s the completely absurd Denshattack, an arcade game where you are in control of a train. The trailer will do a better job than I ever can to describe it:

Good stuff, reminding me of Crazy Taxi in a good way.

Expectations

As you can see, the level of newness at this Tokyo Games Show 2025 seems to be pretty low, while not unusual compared to the past few years. Hopefully the indies should provide some more innovation and experimentation. In terms of hardware, there does not seem to be anything much new either - Valve is not planning to show a Steam Deck 2 right now, while we will see if ASUS has anything special to say about the future of its handhelds.

In other words, we’ll go with cautiously low expectations and be on the lookout for unknown gems.