Erich

From August 26 to 30, Showa American Story held its first-ever public hands-on demo at gamescom in Cologne, and it has now officially come to a close. Over those five days, we welcomed a total of 4,572 players from all around the world. Watching one group of players after another step into the NEO YOKOHAMA booth, wander through its streets, stop here and there, and play the game, seeing them laugh and take photos, it felt like the world we had created in the game was finally becoming part of real life. People from different countries and different cultural backgrounds found things that resonated with them in this strange, somewhat absurd world, often through the smallest details. For me and the team, that was the most precious part of this gamescom. After all these years, we know that what we’re making is something unique—something that has never been easy to put into a simple category. Thank you to every single player who came to play the game in person, and thank you as well to everyone who couldn’t make it to Cologne but has continued to follow and support us online. We’ve seen every message left at the booth, as well as the feedback that has come in from all over the world over the past few days. It has been incredibly encouraging to me personally, and has given me even more confidence in what we need to do next. Of course, there were also things we wish had gone better. Due to customs delays, only a small portion of the gifts we prepared for gamescom arrived in time. We’re very sorry that many players weren’t able to receive one. This was also our first time holding a public hands-on demo on this scale, and we learned a great deal from the experience. We’ll take everything we learned, both what went well and what could have been better, and carry it into the next one. There is one more question that many players back home in China have been asking us over the past few days: “Will there be a hands-on event like this in China?” Yes. We’re already working on it. As soon as the plans are finalized, we’ll let you know. gamescom 2026 may be over, but for Showa American Story, this feels more like the beginning of truly connecting with our players. Now, it’s time for us to get back to work. We’ll keep polishing the game and continue improving, piece by piece, everything that still needs to be made better. Thank you, gamescom. Thank you to all 4,572 of you who came and played Showa American Story, and thank you to everyone who continues to wait for the game. Looking forward to seeing you all again! XY. Luo Creative Director, Showa American Story #昭和米国物語　#Gamescom2026