BitSummit, Japan's premier indie game event, is back this year for its 13th offering, and it will be joined by some pretty famous names from the world of gaming.
Dubbed 'BitSummit The 13th: Summer of Yōkai', this year's festival will see the debut of Final Fantasy creator Nobuo Uematsu, who will be performing with his band, conTIKI.
Uematsu said this about the announcement:
"Thank you for inviting me to BitSummit. I have never performed in Kyoto with an orchestra or band before, so this BitSummit will be my debut in Kyoto. ...I wonder what will happen? We look forward to seeing you all at the venue!"
Keeping with the musical theme, Nintendo legend Chip Tanaka – creator of the Game Boy Camera and composer on titles such as Mother, Metroid and the Game Boy version of Tetris – will be performing on the final day of the event.
BitSummit will also be blessed with a performance by OkanP (AKA Harumi Fujita), who is best known for her work on games like Mega Man 3, Final Fight, Pulstar and Tomba. Fujita has become something of a viral sensation on TikTok, with her debut video "Can you make a song like Rockman?" racking up an amazing 2.8 million views.
Boku no Natsuyasumi creator Kaz Ayabe is headlining the speaker's panel at BitSummit, and will talk about his game development story, leading all the way up to the foundation of his Millennium Kitchen studio. Also speaking will be Hideki Kamiya (Okami, Resident Evil 2, Wonderful 101, Bayonetta) and Crystal Noda (Noda Game), who will take part in a special joint session "where they’ll dive into the evolving role of technology and individuality in game development."
Fans of 428: Shibuya Scramble will want to take note that BitSummit will also be hosting an exclusive 'first look' at Jiro Ishii's Shibuya Scramble Stories.
BitSummit The 13th takes place on the 18th (business day), 19th and 20th of July at Miyako Messe, Kyoto. Events from the main stage will be broadcast on the 19th and 20th on YouTube, Twitch, and TikTok in both Japanese and English.