Thailand Game Show has never held back when it comes to stage theatrics, with an opening ceremony and a live performance of its theme song – that changes every year – becoming a main highlight staple. This year’s iteration, titled ‘Assemble’, returned to grace Queen Sirikit National Conventional Centre from 20 to 22 October, and there was plenty of the celebratory geek spirit to go around.
In continued tradition, Thailand Game Show 2023 kicked off the hype with an opening act featuring Thai idol group 4EVE and independent artiste Copter. Other stage events across the three days also caught the crowd’s attention, including a cosplay competition and presentation showcases from Bandai Namco and Square Enix.
The latter, in particular, got fans excited with updates on four upcoming titles: Tekken 8, Synduality Echo of Ada, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince, but enthusiasm levels hit the roof when surprise meet-and-greet sessions were announced for 21 October. The one-day event saw fans queuing up at the Bandai Namco and Square Enix booth to meet Tekken series producer Michael Murray, FFVII Rebirth director Naoki Hamaguchi, and Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii, and Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince producer Kento Yokota.
In addition to hands-on demos of upcoming games, the space played host to show matches between Murray, Thai Tekken pro players Nopparut “Book” Hempamorn and Jeerapong “Juiestorm” Mongkolsombutsiri, and fans as well. The multiple close shaves and infectious crowd energy made for an enthralling affair, drawing out many ‘ooh’s and cheers from spectators.
The opposite-facing SEGA, alongside the HoYoverse booth, proved popular among attendees, especially with the exclusive HoYoFest 2023 merchandise that celebrates all of the Chinese developer’s titles. Elsewhere, esports enthusiasts tried their hands at ranking top three or above in a free-for-all Apex Legends tournament, and spectated exhilarating matches at the Intel stage.
It wouldn’t be a geek convention without some cosplay on the show floor, though. Plenty of cosplayers graced the event as characters from various anime, games, movies, and the like, with Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail, and Valorant – albeit on a smaller scale – leading the charge.
Bringing in a 181,000-strong crowd, Thailand Game Show 2023 continues to establish a strong presence in the Southeast Asia region. Despite the absence of other big industry players like Riot Games and Tencent, it still went out with a bang, offering plenty of geeky fun for attendees and pop culture enthusiasts.
Till next year!
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
