Licensing 2004 International came to New York City; the Empire State during June 8th through the 10th, to show off the many different products that they had lined up for future release in the toy industry. Of the many companies that attended Licensing 2004 International, License representatives of Pokemon, Capcom, and Sega's Sonic were there. Each company had the latest toys renditions of their popular characters or series. There were all types of new products lined up for future release including clothes, trinkets, and other accessories. Licensing 2004 International displayed all forms of media to cover each product and what they were about, from 4 kids; (Konami's: Yu-gi-oh), to Fox box; (Nintnedo's: Kirby). Many of the videogame characters that were at Licensing 2004 International had cartoons shows for them. Most of the videogame characters were displayed through toys, clothing, and or cartoons /comic books. Which is why Licensing 2004 International was so exciting and large. Of all the companies that were there, once again Sega's Sonic, Nintendo/Pokemon, and Most managements/Capcom were there to show what they had, here is the break down of each representative license.

Sega's Sonic X (Sonic the Hedgehog) is a cartoon that is on network T.V. that has a tie in with Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 for the Dream Cast and the Nintendo Game Cube. The cartoon follows the artwork of the new age sonic and gives a small hint of the old school Sonic the hedgehog that use to air on channel 7 here in New York several years ago. The action of the cartoon is still on par that of its predecessor several years ago and is far much worth to keep an eye on. It has characters like Shadow and Knuckles in it, and with the way that the cartoon is drawn it is top of the line. Sonic had toys of each sonic character as well. They were well crafted and mirrored the cartoon and game versions of them. Sonic X also had a assortment of other videogame like products, from clothes to key chains, plush, cards, figurines and much more. With the new Sonic X logo, it would be great if it came to America. Sonic Underground was not as good as it could have been and Sonic X is welcome to replace it. They also need to re-air the original Sonic the Hedgehog as a compliment to Sonic X should it come to the states.

Nintendo's Pokemon was on deck showing off their latest products of pokemon. There were plush, shoes, clothes, trinkets, card games, toys and other items. There was a Pokemon model holding about 50 plush pokemon toys in it. They were free to take. As usual Pokemon/Nintendo displayed their best selling toy which was the GameBoy Advance. Representatives were there to give information about the products that Pokemon looks forward to put out on the market in the future. They even had information about the Pokemon Center and where it was located in New York. 10 Rockefeller Plaza (Between 5th and 6th Ave) 212-307-0900 ext: 101. Pokemon also showed their cartoons for the current season that it is in. Finally the brand update for the second quarter of 2004 was in the brochures that they had available for people to take.

Most Management represented licenses for Capcom at Licensing 2004 International hosting the most character library at Licensing 2004 International. From Megaman, to Dante's Devil may cry, Resident evil, Ghosts N' Goblins, Street Fighter, Onimusha, Viewtiful Joe, Killer 7, Monster hunter, Darkstalkers, Steel Battalion and a few new ones which are held under confidentiality. Capcoms/most management's booth showed off a large array of items, such as toys, trinkets, comics, games, and t-shirts; all hosting favorite and memorable Capcom figures. Capcom has one of the largest videogame character franchises in the videogame industry. Characters such as Ryu, Sir Arthor, Strder, Megaman, and Captain Commando make up the foundation of what Capcom stood for 15 years ago. Although these characters still exist to this day, they are now backed by a new age of Capcom characters that sport the same captivation as the old characters and who have stepped up to the plate to lead the new age of Capcom. Coming in the future is Capcom Fighting Jam which will help the Capcom vs. SNK 2 franchise. Hopefully there will be an arcade version as nothing has been heard yet on it. However games like that, whether people think is poor or not will continue to keep life in the arcades until a better option comes along to help the arcades. One of the games that I greatly anticipate is Resident Evil 4. Leon is my favorite character of the series and after missing a couple of the games installments it's good to see him back in the mix. Finally Devil May Cry 3; Capcom's prime example that style is everything. Seeing the trailer to this game can only make one wonder why do the enemies continue to bother Dante? Capcom is poised to have a good second half of the year and all you gamers should keep an eye out for the upcoming releases.

Licensing 2004 International is at the Jacob Javits Center at 35th and 11th Avenue New York, NY. 10001. The final day of Licensing 2004 International is Thursday June 10th 2004. A post wrap up of the event will be produced on Friday June 11th 2004.