General Updates

PS3 Dual Shock 3 A shipment of the Japanese PS3 Dual Shock 3 controller [available in either Ceramic White or Black] is scheduled to arrive on Friday or Monday. New orders are welcome to ship upon arrival. Pricing is set at JPY5500 or US$65 from NCS but the price should drop after the holiday crush that's now upon us. Suppliers took delivery of about 3500 units of each color yesterday but if that bulk doesn't sell quickly, expect quicker price drops...

TOYS SR Shooting Video Game History Gashapon Based on pro-forma invoices from last week, Yujin's shooter gashapon collection should be shipped from Japan this week. If everything goes according to plan, NCS will process and ship preorders by next week. We'll throw up big and glossy photos once the toys are in stock.

TOYS Kinu Nishimura Mai Shiranui Figure The second production of the highly anticipated Mai Shiranui ships from Japan this week and NCS expects delivery within 5-10 business days. We may be able to accept new preorders but we'll post an update when the figures arrive and are ready to ship.

Room Palette Skyrium - Japanese Preorder

In order to view the Aurora Borealis light show, one has to trek all the way to the Great White North and endure freezing temperatures. You'll also need to wear a fur-lined parka and woolen mittens to stave off the cold. The kind of cold that makes your teeth chatter together like wooden nickels clattering on a granite countertop... It doesn't have to be like that.

Behold the Room Palette Skyrium which uses 9 colored LEDs to create majestic light shows on the ceiling of your living room. By diffusing the light through a specially designed visor, the animated patterns that emerge from the Skyrium are somewhat eerie, sort of hazy, and undeniably mesmerizing. In addition to the Aurora Borealis setting, three other light modes are available including one called "Dream" which is probably very relaxing. Skyrium includes a timer feature for automatic shut-off and the projector may be adjusted at angles ranging from 0 to 90°. Preorders are welcome to ship on or around April 20, 2008. Jan Code: 4983164524307

Witchblade: Tsuzuki Shiori 1/7 Scale Figure - Preorder

American comic book heroines don't generally find big audiences in Japan but Witchblade made the transition to the world of Japanese animation last year. Discarding the premise as well as the characters of the original storyline entirely, a new Witchblade universe was created for the Japanese market.

Amaha Masane is the Witchblade carrier in the Japanese animation series and she interacts with a number of characters including a cloneblade named Soho Reina and her full-bosomed secretary Tsuzuki Shiori. Despite looking somewhat innocuous, Tsuzuki is a bloodthirsty killing machine who proves to be a worthy adversary to Amaha. Orchid Seed recognizes Tsuzuki with a 1/7 scale PVC figure which measures 23cm (9.06") tall and is decked out in a flimsy 2-piece bikini. Two of Tsuzuki's physical attributes are highly exaggerated but we're guessing the largesse was intentional. Preorders are welcome to ship in mid-late March 2008.

Japanese Import Preorder Update

Nintendo DS [Japanese NDS games are region-free]
2/07	L - The Prologue to Death Note - Rasen no Wana	Konami
2/14	Digimon Championship	Bandai
	Naruto Shippuden Dairansen Kagebunshinemaki	Takara Tomy
	Otometeki Koi Kakumei Love Revo!! DS	Interchannel
	Tokimeki Memorial Girl's Side 2nd Season	Konami
3/06	Eiken-Ou: 2-Kyuuhen	Gakken
	Jigsaw Puzzle DS	Hudson
Playstation 2 [Japanese PS2 games are region-locked]
	Tales of Destiny Director's Cut	Namco
	Tales of Destiny Director's Cut Premium Box	Namco
	Your Memories Off Girls Style	5gk
	Your Memories Off Girls Style Limited Edition	5gk
Playstation 3 [Japanese PS3 games are region-free]
1/31	Devil May Cry 4	Capcom
Playstation Portable [Japanese PSP games are region-free]
1/10	Zero Shiki Kanjou Sentouki Ni	Global A
1/24	Winning Eleven Ubiquitous Edition 2008	Konami
	Yggdra Union	Sting
Xbox 360 [Japanese X360 games are region-locked]
1/31	Devil May Cry 4	Capcom
Wii [Japanese Wii games are region-locked]
1/10	Kateikyoushi Hitman Reborn! Dream Hyper Battle!	Marvelous
1/17	Caduceus New Blood	Atlus
	Sonic Riders	Sega
1/24	Dairantou Smash Brothers X	Nintendo
1/31	Family Ski	Bandai

Pre-Holiday Trend Follower

Sales generally trend upwards as we head into the winter months but something happened yesterday that reaffirmed our positive outlook for December 2007. Someone bought this game along with a bunch of other Playstation One titles. Our records show that the last time we sold a copy of that game was on January 11, 2003 and we're now down to 5 copies. The sale of that game may seem insignificant but to us, it signals an outlier event that portends the possibility that by the year 2019, we'll whittle our inventory of that game down to 1 copy.

Ys and Ys II for Nintendo DS - Japanese Preorder

Interchannel has started preorders for remakes of the original Ys and Ys II for the Nintendo DS. The new games feature stylus-based control, chain combo attacks, new maps, and new enemy characters. A 4-player wireless battle mode is also available for multiplayer warfare.

» Preorder Ys [Ships on Feb 28, 2008]
» Preorder Ys II [Ships on Feb 28, 2008]

Time Crisis 4 + Guncon 3 - Japanese Preorder

The US and Asian territory versions of Time Crisis 4 were released a couple of weeks ago with bright orange Guncon 3 controllers (look to the right). When the Japanese version of the game ships on December 20, it'll include a black Guncon (photo on the left), similar to previous Guncons in the series. Preorders are welcome at US$129 for the Japanese bundle.

Aqua Beedz Art Series 3 - Preorder

Spin Master's Aqua Dots toys have been recalled in the USA and Canada due to potential toxicity in young children when ingested. The colorful beads that make up the Aqua Dots toys were coated with 1,4-butanediol which metabolizes into Gamma-Hydroxybutyric Acid (GHB). Although GHB is a naturally occurring substance in the human body, high doses can cause deleterious effects including vomiting and convulsions.

Aqua Dots is no longer available but Japanese manufacturer Epoch is forging ahead with their safe Aqua Beedz toys which plays similarly to the Aqua Dots. Instead of using a air-powered machine to blow beads onto a placeholder, the beads are inserted onto a platter by hand into patterns and designs. Once complete, spray water onto the beads and the glue on each bead's surface will bond to adjacent beads. Wait a few minutes and the artwork can then be removed and displayed. Preorders ship Mar 08.