Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Cyber Gun Attachment with Vibration Function - Preorder

When the Wii and its wireless controller were first announced, NCS assumed that the Wiimote would stay the same shape forever and ever. The market has other ideas however as the Wii Cooking Mama kit, Zelda's sword, the upcoming Wii racing wheel, and other bolt-into accessories have proven. Cyber adds a gun to the Wiimote's arsenal.

The Cyber Gun Attachment isn't the first pistol accessory to reach the Wii - Nintendo's Wii Zapper takes that honor but it's the first one that looks like an actual gun. A berth on top of the accessory accepts the Wiimote and a lift-over latch secures it with down. Once fitted properly, grab the firearm by the handle, slide your finger over the trigger, and get ready to blast away zombies and other malcontents on the Wii. Preorders are welcome to ship on or around April 30, 2008 at JPY1505 or US$22.90 from NCS. Jan Code:
4544859008016

Jack Skellington Mosquito Killer - Preorder

We're going to be accused of stating the obvious in about 1 second but here goes: "Jack Skellington of Nightmare Before Christmas fame has the look of death upon him." Maybe it's the sunken eye sockets, the bone-colored patina, or just that he looks like a skull.

Skeeters will know the deathly power of Jack Skellington this summer when Sega goes into the bug repellant business. Jack's head is used as a holder for an herbal-based mosquito repellent coil which is lit to produce a pleasant odor which skeeters steer away from. A total of 10 coils are included with the
Jack Skellington Mosquito Killer and each coil lasts about 6 hours. Preorders are welcome to ship in late July 2008 at US$18.90 each. Two styles are on offer - a congenial Jack (A) and an ominous Jack (B).

Caltoy UJ Dolphin Plush - Preorder

Sega forges ahead with another Caltoy UJ plush when the summer of 2008 rolls around. One other creature of the sea has already received the Caltoy treatment - the round whales from 2006 - and Orca is scheduled to ship in May 2008. The third sea creature swims to us in the form of a Caltoy Dolphin which will be available in seven different colors. The rainbow assortment is a departure from the usual 3-4 color variants of the previous Caltoy animals and we welcome the additional variety. Each dolphin plush measures 70cm or 27.55" in length.
Preorders are welcome to ship in late July 2008 at US$49.90 per plush.

Mickey & Minnie Senpuki - Preorder

Summer is on the way. That means steamy days and sultry nights where the only comfort to be found is in front of a fan. Make that a Mickey Mouse fan that's shaped like a palm tree. Each fan measures 20cm tall and operates on two AA batteries to provide about 10 hours of relief from the summer heat. Two variants are on offer:

» Mickey version with light green palm fronds
» Minnie variant with dark green palm fronds

The Japanese word "senpuki" translates to "electric fan" and if you're curious, the Japanese word for air conditioner is "reibou" or "
冷房." Preorders are welcome to ship in late July 2008 at US$15.90 each.

Votoms Scopedog Turbo Custom Version-1 - Preorder

The Armored Trooper Votoms franchise is big in Japan and the Scopedog robots have appeared in a little under 20 video games over the years. The PS2 title Soukou Kihei Votoms was the most recent release which sold reasonably well. The Scopedog has been made into action figures and model kits over the years but Yamato's upcoming remote-control robot may be a first.

The RC Scopedog is set at 1/24 scale and measures 17cm (6.69") tall with sculpting by Kenichi Nomoto. A one-handed infrared controller included with each toy features a miniature thumbstick which is pushed and prodded to send the Scopedog rolling around on the wheels beneath its feet. Preorders are welcome to ship in mid-late June 2008 at JPY15000 or US$155 from NCS.

General Updates

Japanese Release Delays
NDS Let's Brass!! has been delayed once again from March 27 to April 24. The Wii conversion of Karous has also been delayed from March 27 to TBA 2008. Preorder numbers for Karous which includes three games (Karous, Rajirugi, and Chaos Field) were apparently... insubstantial.
KORG DS-10 Synthesizer
Last week's announcement of the Korg DS-10 Synthesizer for the Nintendo DS caused a stir in the market amongst musicians and others. Publisher AQ Interactive hasn't started preorders yet - the SKU and the Jan Code hasn't been assigned but reservations should open up in the next week. We'll post an update once Japanese distributors start preorders.

PSP Biohazard UMD-Video - Clearance Sale

Sometimes when it's rainy outside, we play a game in the office where we break down the theme of a movie into a single sentence and everyone guesses the movie title. For example:

"Somewhere in Europe, someone is killing man-whores."

Easy breezy right? If goaded into breaking down the original Biohazard movie into a single sentence, we might have to go with:

"Alice in Umbrella Land."

We're clever like that. For collector's who need to own everything related to the Biohazard franchise, here's your chance to pick up a copy of the Japanese PSP UMD-Video at a nearly 50% discount. The cover features a gun-toting Milla who's ready to blast with both barrels.


NCS Sale Offering

Pricing per PSP Biohazard UMD-Video is set at US$15.90 which includes free shipping by USPS Media Mail within the United States. All stock is new and factory sealed. Please note that Japanese UMD-Videos will ONLY play on Japanese PSP systems. [View Larger photos] Jan 4976219652933

Monday, March 17, 2008

Dramatic Dungeon: Sakura Taisen - New, Restock Soon

Early Partial Shipment
One of our suppliers in Japan was able to get a small shipment of Dramatic Dungeon Sakura Taisen shipped out to us on Friday of last week. We won't be able to fill all preorders today but we'll ship whatever we can. The remainder of our shipments are scheduled to arrive on Wednesday or Thursday of this week. Please note that the limited edition of Dramatic Dungeon Sakura Taisen is expected to arrive on Thursday. We did not accept preorders for the limited edition but we'll update our website once we have news on pricing and availability.


NCS Game Synopsis
«©NCSX» Ever since Sakura Taisen shipped on the Saturn console in 1996, the series of Sakura games and videos have sold over 400 million copies. Those are impressive numbers by any metric and a resounding validation of the franchise's drawing power. The Nintendo DS is the gaming platform of choice in Japan at the moment so Sega produces a new Sakura-themed dungeon exploration game for the handheld. The cast of characters from multiple generations of Sakura Taisen games are all present including the main heroines Sakura Shinguuji, Erica Fontaine. and Gemini Sunrise.
Steampunks are absent from the game so the heroes such as Oogami, Sakura, Iris, and many others walk around in their theater clothes while attacking with swords and blunting oncoming blows with shields.