In preparation for the XXV edition, enhanced by the poster designed by Jamie Hewlett, creator of Tank Girl and, with Damon Albarn of the Gorillaz band, COMICON Napoli is organising four unforgettable festival days.
Coming to Italy for the first time, Yuji Horii, one of the most innovative and beloved game designers of all time, is known for having created the legendary Portopia and Dragon Quest, the series of videogames that, since the 1980s, with the collaboration of the unforgettable character designer Akira Toriyama, has been so successful as to become a cultural phenomenon.
Considered the most influential RPG in the history of videogames, in 1984, Dragon Quest was the first title to bring the experience of role-playing games into the world of gaming and contributed to its development by engaging both the most inveterate video gamers as well as millions of casual gamers.
With his pioneering noir The Portopia Serial Murder Case, the first Japanese adventure game and first visual novel ever, in 1983, Horii inspired an entire generation of professionals, including the master Hideo Kojima or Eiji Aonuma, the producer of Zelda.
In the 1990s, Horii created one of the most memorable titles in the history of videogames, Chrono Trigger, created in 1995 by what has been defined as the “Dream Team”, consisting of Horii with Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of Final Fantasy, and with Akira Toriyama, the now-established author of Dragon Ball.
In the 2000s, Horii also created the successful series Itadaki Street and, now four years after it was first announced, he is close to releasing the new chapter in his most beloved saga, Dragon Quest XII.
Also from Japan and also in Italy for the first time, Sensei Shin’ichi Sakamoto is one of the most award-winning masters of contemporary manga in Japan, who has drawn comic art gems such as The Climber, Innocent and the most recent #DRCL midnight children, a majestic revisitation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
For this year’s edition, the 25th since the event’s opening, the lineup is packed with guests from all over the world to celebrate the festival’s global opening.
Other confirmed guests include Jon J. Muth, Thomas Taylor, Arthur de Pins, Paskim, Darick Robertson and Boichi.
Altan, one of the most beloved and esteemed comic artists and satirical cartoonists of all time, creator of ‘Pimpa’, will be awarded the COMICON 2025 Special Award for Lifetime Achievement;
The 25th edition of the COMICON Napoli – International Pop Culture Festival will be held from the 1st to the 4th of May in Naples, Italy.
