News roundup: Motochika confirmed for Sengoku Basara 4 at Machi★Asobi event

There isn't much to report since it's the weekend, but I think quite a few people have been waiting for news on Aniki following this event so I've gathered everything I've seen into one place.

The Machi★Asobi event has been taking place this weekend in Tokushima, Shikoku. Since it falls right in the middle of the Sengoku Basara 4 promotional period, a large number of Capcom staff went along and set up a variety of attractions to help spread the word about the new game.

There were also two stage presentations hosted by Sengoku Basara series producer Kobayashi Hiroyuki. The first of these took place yesterday and was about the Sengoku Basara 4 x Geist Crusher collaboration so I didn't cover it (I think we all heard more than enough about Geist Crusher in the Tokyo Game Show 2013 streams!). Today's more interesting presentation was themed around Sengoku Basara 4 and included an appearance by Ishino Ryuuzou, the voice actor who plays Chousokabe Motochika in the series.

The reason that Motochika was chosen was because he's associated with the Shikoku area (it helps that his voice actor is a friendly guy who works well on stage). Anyway, here are the key points from the event according to reports from attendees and press articles.

• Chousokabe Motochika will appear in Sengoku Basara 4.
• The announcement strongly indicated he would be playable, of course.
• Motochika has his eye on sailing to foreign lands this time.
• Thursday's Weekly Famitsu magazine should include his CG artwork and information on some other characters with a relationship to Motochika.
• At the start of the presentation, Ishino called out to the crowd with "Yarou-domo!" and they responded with "Aniki!", the same way they do at a dedicated Sengoku Basara event.
• Up until now Ishino had been in a difficult position whenever he was asked whether Motochika would appear in the game. He was relieved now that the need for secrecy was over.
• Ishino loves playing Motochika. He feels happy whenever he's playing the role, even when he's shouting in a deep voice.
• Fans should pay close attention to the way Motochika is involved with a large number of characters now that he's setting his sights on sailing overseas.
• One attendee commented that Motochika had some worries.
• Ishino described Motochika in Sengoku Basara 4 as having matured to become more like an adult. He's a little different this time around. (Note: the event attendees all seemed overwhelmingly happy so I'm guessing this change isn't a negative thing!)
• One question KobaP asked Ishino was to name places Motochika liked and disliked. Ishino bluntly said that he personally hated riding on ships, then admitted with a grin that when it came to Motochika there was no alternative but to take a boat.
• On the new Sengoku Basara 4 characters, Ishino jokingly asked why so many were slender, handsome guys.
• There was apparently a comical moment where the discussion turned to animals in the game and Oyassan's 'deer language', which Ishino responded to by imitating Aniki's parrot squawking "Motochika!".

As for the 'related characters' in the next magazine reveal, Motonari is practically guaranteed to be one of them. If there will be more than one (the Japanese language is vague in this respect), it will probably be either Tsuruhime and Magoichi or the Xavists. The two ladies have strong ties to Aniki in Sengoku Basara 3 whereas the latter might conceivably have something to do with this storyline about foreign lands.

So far I've seen two reports from the stage presentation online; a short one from Famitsu and a longer one from Dengeki. Famitsu have promised to post a longer one soon. Twitter users @Jon_Jon_Joooon and @_kozu have been tweeting from the event to give decent coverage of the stage show.

An earlier Famitsu report covers the relatively uneventful Saturday presentation, showing off the Masamune statue in its new temporary location and a few other highlights. The version of the game people are playing in the demonstration area is the same cut-down build Capcom used at Tokyo Game Show last month so it's unlikely anyone noticed anything new.

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Update 14/10/2013: the Famitsu website has now posted its full report and added a few things.

• At the start of Motochika's story he has some worries about his future objectives. His subordinates are depicted as scared in a different way.
• Of the characters announced so far, Motochika has a lot of connections to Ieyasu. As Ieyasu parts from the Toyotomi forces worrying "What am I going to do now?", look out for the kind of conversation Motochika will have with him.
• Ishino remarked that a guy like Motochika would have a hard time if he had Naotora as a girlfriend.
• Ishino isn't so good at putting on a deep voice, but he's done his best since the beginning with Motochika under Capcom's instructions. He's continuing the same way in Sengoku Basara 4.
• In the series there's a big difference between the characters who shout a lot and those who don't. Yukimura is a typical 'shouty' character and when Ishino looks at seiyuu Hoshi Souichirou he wonders if he's really ok. The staff have to schedule the recordings to give the seiyuu time to rest after performing in Sengoku Basara.
• Ishino prefers to be by himself but thinks Motochika enjoys lively places bustling with people (this was the answer to the question about Motochika's favourite places mentioned before).