Saturday, December 15, 2012

The 15th Anniversary Was Also a Pretty Cool Anniversary


Did you enjoy that 20th anniversary retrospective? I'm taking another stab at it, this time looking back at the fun-filled 15th anniversary festivities.



Leading up to the 2002 winter season, Capcom took the blue boy on the road for a mall tour. The events featured kiosks that invited fans of all ages to learn about the franchise's history. A number of knick-knacks were on display, too. Most impressive of all, a diorama of Tron's Servbot torture room.












The mall tour was followed up by a big event at the July World Hobby Fair....




...and then, on December 15 (ten years ago today), the celebration concluded with a large event in Kamifukuoka (a city which would go on to form Fujimino). There were plenty of new games to play, paraphernalia to buy and best of all, Keiji Inafune himself made an appearance.
























And while all of this was going on, Capcom Japan partnered with Toyota for a little anniversary promotion. Roughly 200 Toyota retailers nationwide played host to a special Rockman demo station. Fans could play demos for Rockman & Forte, Rockman EXE 2 and pick up some stickers for the then-upcoming Rockman EXE 3. Here's the only known photo of the station:


So that's pretty much the Japanese side of things. Here in the West, Capcom U.S embarked on a multi-million dollar marketing blitz with Cinemark Theaters, J&J Snacks, Minute Maid foods, Kraft, Kids WB, and a number of other big-name companies. You can check out the original press release detailing these celebrations here.

And that's pretty much it! I've got some 10th anniversary stuff to share, too. I don't know if I'll have the time to round up all of that before Monday. We'll see.

Sources: Hokoroji, Nazoon, Game WATCH,

8 comments:

  1. WHY DONT THEY DO THIS STUFF ANYMORE?

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  2. Is it just me or does one of the guys on one of the BN concept art pieces look like an older Solo?

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  3. YOU JUST SAW THE ARTWORK.

    I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING.

    THAT ROBOT-BUILDING MINIGAME.

    YEAH, YOU LIKED THAT, DIDN'T YOU?

    YOU PLAYED THAT A LOT.

    YOU LIKE CASTLEVANIA, DON'T YOU?

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  4. @Anon: Capcom got lazy, that's why.

    But besides Rockman, did Capcom of Japan do any birthday parties for other series, like Street Fighter and Resident Evil? (Specially in recent years)

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  5. Love ya, Protodude!

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  6. Breaks my fucking heart. Those were better days.

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  7. I like that first piece of art. Back when the number of series was contained. Now it seems like there are way too many ZX-style models in group shots. And I didn't love Ryusei as much as BN.

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  8. "Rockman Cube"? Never heard of that EXE toy before seeing those picture (It's written in one of them).
    What "Rokkin Action" is supposed to be?

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