
This artwork for the InuYasha card game got our attention because you
need to look hard to see InuYasha; might it be aimed at mainstream
gamers instead of anime fans?
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There's little doubt that this Chun Li art is intended to sell the
Street Fighter card game to males, a group that passes as "mainstream"
in the gaming world. While anime conventions have seen the number of
female fans grow in recent years, this gaming convention remains mostly
male.
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The Chun Li art is in a convention center concourse leading to the
largest gaming room at the convention, the Upper Deck room where we'll
find a familiar brand.
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Upper Deck uses the convention halls for its VS System tournaments,
which feature DC and Marvel comics characters. But look at the sign
behind Batman and you'll see that anime games are moving onto the
comics' turf.
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Upper Deck needs four 80-foot trucks to haul displays such as the
comics-themed card sales booth we've seen at previous Gen Cons...
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...along with the arena that's used to stage the finals of some VS
System tournaments. That arena got a couple of fresh decorations for
2006...
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