Custom Beat Battle Draglade

Four fighters with elemental alignments battle on 2D playgrounds with the aid of a driving beat. Conventional weapon strikes and special elemental attacks are available to each fighter but the wrinkle in Draglade is the Custom Beat System. Players create a combo routine on a track and then execute the steps involved to ignite rapid-fire attacks against an opponent. The routine's steps are displayed on a gauge located on the lower-right corner of the screen. As the beats are executed, your fighter performs a staccato of attacks, slashes, and perhaps a finishing blow to cap the routine. Four characters are featured in the game - a redheaded warrior named Hibito, the blue-haired Kairu, a hammer-wielding warrior named Daichi, and the flamboyant martial artist known as Guy. «more»

Odin Sphere

From the Publisher
The story of the world's end, hinging on the bravery of those chosen by the Psyphers...

The nation of Valentine was once a grand kingdom with powerful magic. With the power of a magical relic known as the "Cauldron," King Valentine subdued the neighboring nations and brought them under his control. His kingdom enjoyed a long period of prosperity... but a sudden disaster destroyed it overnight. War broke out between the Fairy Kingdom of Ringford and the warrior nation of Ragnanival over ownership of the now-abandoned Cauldron, and control of the wasteland that was once Valentine. With the battle growing fiercer by the day, Demon Lord Odin, King of Ragnanival, sets forth a plan to conquer Ringford and claim the Cauldron once and for all.

Meanwhile, in the neutral realm of Titania, King Edmund had become a puppet king of his court sorcerer Urzur, who schemes to follow a forgotten prophecy and bring about the Armageddon; a prophecy stating that the world will be destroyed in five great disasters, but the survivors will become kings... As the nations struggle for control, the world steadily slips unknowingly toward its demise, and the prophecies become clear. «more»

Shining Wind + Partial Bonus

The world of Endias is in a state of tension and three warriors known as Soul Bladers only serve to fuel the drama and intrigue that's afoot. Riviera serves as the setting where three kingdoms exist in an uneasy state that's teetering on the brink of all-out war. The Beastmen lord over the seafaring Seiran Kingdom, the Elves maintain their stronghold at Beilgarde, and the Humans keep watch from the Filias Kingdom.

The protagonist of Shining Wind is a lad named Kiriya who's a Soul Blader with the power to seal dimensional fissures known as Chaos Gates that are wreaking havoc in Riviera. Kiriya allies himself with the Filias Kingdom while another Soul Blader named Souma fights on behalf of the Seiran. The third and strongest Soul Blader named Traiheart leads the Beilgarde Empire.

At the outset, Kiriya explores the world with a friend named Seena who provides backup muscle and interactive foil. Kiriya carries a red-colored Soul Blade in his right hand which is activated by pressing the TRIANGLE button. Instead of a sword slash however, the Soul Blade shoots out spheres of energy which do significant damage to enemies. In his left hand, Kiriya also carries a short sword which is swung by tapping the SQUARE button. To bolster Kiriya's attacks, he can link up with Seena to throw out a powerful projectile blast where Seena serves as the missile. «more»

General Updates

Wii Meitantei Conan: Tsuioku no Gensou All preorders for the new Detective Conan game for Wii will also ship today and new orders are welcome to ship this afternoon. We'll throw up a game synopsis and NCS game notes tomorrow morning.

NDS Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2 The second shipment of Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Tamashii: Osu Tatake Ouendan 2 arrived today and all orders submitted yesterday will ship this afternoon. New orders are welcome to also ship today.

US Postal Rates Hiked The USPS raised domestic and international shipping rates on May 14 and we'll implement the new tables in the next few days. Since the international shipping rates have gone up by 50% to 90% for the newly branded Priority Mail International service which was once Global Priority Mail, we're looking into alternatives for our international customers. We are also considering setting up an outpost or partnership in Hong Kong for direct shipping of Japanese products to our customers in Europe and the United States. The small package postal rates in Hong Kong are still very reasonable.