Friday, February 27, 2009

Weekly Famitsu Vol. 1055 - New Import, Subscriptions

«©NCSX» The latest issue of Weekly Famitsu features coverage on the following games and/or events:

» Coverage on PS3 Ryu Ga Gotoku 3 which features tidbits on the fighting system, the hostesses at Club Ageha, and info on convenience stores.
» Famitsu's Reviewers rank NDS Pipopa (4/4/4/6), NDS Game Center CX2 (9/8/8/8), NDS Dragon Dance (5/7/6/6), PSP Shin Sangoku Musou Multi Raid (8/8/8/8), and PS3 Ryu Ga Gotoku 3 (9/10/9/10).
» Game guide for X360 Star Ocean The Last Hope which includes maps, stats, and character profiles for the main cast members.
» Preview for a new Wii RPG titled Arc Rise Fantasia which ships in 2009.
» Profile for Yu Nakamura who clowns around with a guitar.
» The Pick Up Food section for this week checks out "Rare Cheese Cake," "Strawberry Pudding," and a treat called, "Gelee Koku."
» Every issue of the magazine includes a bonus 83-page booklet which checks out every game released for the Wii, PS3, PS2, and X360 in 2008.

Kamen no Maid Guy: Boyoyon Battle Royale - New, In Stk

«©NCSX» An heiress named Naeka Fujihara who's being courted by suitors of dubious intent gets a protector in the form of a maid. Not just any maid - a man-maid named Kogarashi who dresses up in a regulation-issue outfit and possesses great enthusiasm for his job. Kogarashi's partner is a maid named Fubuki who provides comedic foil in the animated series. Gadget Soft brings the zany world of Kamen no Maid Guy to the PSP with a collection of mini-games, a fighting game, and all around wackiness which are contained within the context of the Story Mode.

The cast of characters include
Fubuki The Maid Guy Tamer, Elizabeth K. Strawberryfield, Tsurara, Shizuku, and a brand new maid character named Arashi who's 16 years old and skilled with the knife. The fighting game takes place in a 2D battlefield with two planes - the foreground and the background which allows combatants to jump to and fro for evasive maneuvering. Objects may be used to wallop opponents and cause the shattering of brassieres. When a particularly well placed blow hits a fighter in the chest, her blouse is shown splintering and her bosom is visibly shaken by the attack. The bouncing motion is made possible by a system called the "Super Tayunizm Engine" which the developer has visibly used in other parts of the game. Players may adjust the sensitivity of the "boob engine" so that the amount of bounce is either muted or intensified per one's preference. To recreate the atmosphere of the animated series, Gadgetsoft hired the voice actors to provide the speech, intonations, and other utterances in the game.

Kamen no Maid Guy: Boyoyon Battle Royale LE - In Stock

«©NCSX» An heiress named Naeka Fumiwara who's being courted by suitors of dubious intent gets a protector in the form of a maid. Not just any maid - a man-maid who dresses up in a regulation-issue outfit and possesses great enthusiasm for his job. Gadget Soft brings the zany world of Kamen no Maid Guy to the PSP with a collection of mini-games, fighting games, and all around wackiness.

The limited edition includes
three items as follows:

1) A gold "sun" badge which may be affixed to a cap or other accessory.
2) Black t-shirt that plastered with white-line-artwork of Maid Guy and the words, "Masquerade Maid Guy" emblazoned across the bottom.
3) Puffy sticker strap which features Fubuki in the background and Shizuku in the foreground. Both are apparently nude but only the top of their bosoms may be viewed since the puffy sticker terminates mid-breast.

The game and the bonus items are packaged in a fairly flimsy cardboard box which we'll package securely since we don't want it to be absolutely crushed while in transit.

Kira Kira Rock 'n Roll Show - New Import, In Stock

«©NCSX» Rockers are generally grungy, smug, and occasionally wear shiny leather vests. The girls in Kira*Kira: Rock 'n Roll Show are rockers but they're not grungy. They're clean-cut, chipper, and wear bright prints which exude soft colors. Originally released on the Japanese PC in 2007 and targeted at a mostly male audience, Kira*Kira is an interactive adventure which features static images, lots of dialogue to read, and a relatively attractive group of high school heroines such as Kirari Shiino. She's on vocals and guitar while Sarina Kashiwara plays guitar, Chie Isurugi's on drums, and Shikako Maejima plays bass guitar. There's something about Shikako though. Although she looks like a girl, she's really a he - a boy named Shikanosuke who impersonates a female so their band Dai 2 Bungeibu can be considered an all girl's group.

As the story goes, the band performed at the school festival to much adoration and their show was aired on the internet. It caught the attention of talent agents who signed them up for a tour. The band mates get their show on the road and travel to gigs in a ramshackle white van.


All orders will ship with a bonus "Dai 2 Bungeibu Band Overdrive Night Tour 2008-2009 "Rock 'n Roll Never Die" Live Video DVD" (d2b Live at 1226) which is being given away by the publisher in 1:1 ratio.

Kira Kira Rock 'n Roll Show LE - New Import, In Stock

«©NCSX» Rockers are generally grungy, smug, and occasionally wear shiny leather vests. The girls in Kira*Kira: Rock 'n Roll Show are rockers but they're not grungy. They're clean-cut, chipper, and wear bright prints which exude soft colors. Originally released on the Japanese PC in 2007 and targeted at a mostly male audience, Kira*Kira is an interactive adventure which features static images, lots of dialogue to read, and a relatively attractive group of high school heroines such as Kirari Shiino. She's on vocals and guitar while Sarina Kashiwara plays guitar, Chie Isurugi's on drums, and Shikako Maejima plays bass guitar. There's something about Shikako though. Although she looks like a girl, she's really a he - a boy named Shikanosuke who impersonates a female so their band Dai 2 Bungeibu can be considered an all girl's group.

The limited edition of the Kira Kira game includes a bonus Audio CD titled "6th Single / Own Colors" which contains four tracks.
All orders for the limited edition will also ship with a bonus "Dai 2 Bungeibu Band Overdrive Night Tour 2008-2009 Live Video DVD" (d2b Live at 1226) which was given away by the publisher in 1:1 ratio. The DVD contains a live performance that's somewhat surreal and mildly entertaining.

Destiny Links - Recent Import, In Stock

«©NCSX» Eight character archetypes are selectable at the outset of Destiny Links including a gnarly pirate armed with a pistol that can fire a tri-shot and a bard who attacks with his musical instrument. After choosing and naming your protagonist, he/she takes a boat ride to the island of Ameisia where quests and missions are aplenty. Upon disembarking from the ship, the hero is shuttled immediately into a building where introductions are made and assignments are gathered.

Destiny Links is playable solo but up to four gamers may link up wirelessly to participate in a cooperative quest. Movement is handled through the D-Pad and attacks are triggered by pressing the A" and "B" buttons. Early in the game, the enemies include winged insects, rabid rabbits, and fire-breathing boars which roam the countryside.

General Updates

Ryu Ga Gotoku 3 Rise Dragon Bundle
The release of the special Yakuza 3 bundle was delayed by a day to our distributors in Japan but the bundles have shipped as of last night and NCS expects delivery on Monday of next week. We don't have any surplus sets at this time and aftermarket vendors have raised the price by about JPY12,000 so we're holding off on ordering any more until we see a return to sanity. The Rise Dragon Bundle is limited to 10,000 units and based on what we see in our vendor database, there's at least 5 suppliers in Tokyo who are hoarding 20+ bundles at higher than normal prices.
King of Fighters XII Cabinet Kit
We're tempted to reserve the KOFXII full cab kit that vendors started preorders for earlier this week. The kit includes two Viewlix-L (Blue) cabs, a VS communication kit, and two chairs. The price is JPY1,020,000 or roughly US$10,500 and the crating and freight cost would probably run another $1500. If we decide to bring one in, we'll take photos of the set-up.