MULTIMEDIA

TOKYO — The raging popularity of Street Fighter IV in Japan meant plenty of Chun-Lis and Kens in "cosplay alley" at this year's Tokyo Game Show.

Many people dressed up as the characters, which are mainstays of Capcom's fighting-game franchise, while hundreds of others donned costumes inspired by videogames and anime series, both mainstream and obscure.

Cosplay — short for "costume play" — is a popular pastime for anime and gamer geeks in Japan, who express their fandom by dressing in character. Some spend hundreds, even thousands, of dollars perfecting their outfits, but the more serious cosplayers custom-make their own costumes using fabric, a sewing machine and glue. Here are some of our favorites.

Left: Photographers on cosplay alley are required to stand single-file in front of the character they want to shoot; the cosplayers pose for each one separately until the photographer is satisfied.

Photo: Lisa Katayama/Wired.com