SR Senjou no Valkyria Figure Collection - New, In Stock

Sega's Senjou no Valkyria for the Playstation 3 was a solid sales winner when it was released earlier this year. Even though the game is a new property that has a short history, Yujin nevertheless believed in it enough to license the characters and green-light a gashapon set featuring the femme fatales from the game. Each figure measures 10cm or 3.93" tall and the characters in the set are as follows:

» Alicia Melchiott - Carries a rifle and is equipped with binoculars
» Asara Gunther - Wears a shawl and carries headphones in her hand
» Rosie - Bad ass who stands like a lumberjack and totes a firearm
» Eleanor Varrot - The tallest figure in the bunch; wears glasses

There's a fifth "secret" figure which is Eleanor Varrot without glasses. NCS will supply this collection in sets of four at US$16 or a complete set of five at US$20. Preorders have shipped already and new orders are welcome to ship today. «NCS Photo Gallery - 18 snapshots»

Ketsui Death Label - Japanese Import Preorder

NCS didn't expect Cave's Ketsui - Kizuna Jigoku Tachi game to be revived after six years had passed since its debut in Japanese arcades. It's on the way however with Japanese distributors starting official preorders for the Nintendo DS retail version on Tuesday.

Demos of the game released by publisher Arika have shown that the NDS hardware is fully capable of rendering the streaming waves of bullets that fill the game's stages without any noticeable lag or slowdown. Although the coin-op original was a vertical aspect shooter, the NDS version doesn't look bad at all with its horizontal aspect screen. The most important facet for us however is the speed of the game and we're pleased in that respect but we'll give the game a thorough examination once it's in stock.

Ketsui Death Label will include a single-player mode, a multi-player mode, and a training mode which will help beginners learn how to twitch.

The Nintendo DS version of Ketsui will be bundled with a bonus Master Play DVD which shows an expert blowing through the game without losing a single ship. Preorders are welcome to ship on October 23, 2008 at JPY5524 or US$53.90 from NCS.

Fate/Unlimited Codes SP-BOX - Japanese Import Preorder

Saber, Shiro, Rin, and the rest of the FATE/STAY rabble are back in a 2D fighting game which reached Japanese arcades just a couple of months ago. Fate/Unlimited Codes was developed by Capcom and Cavia with the game engine supplied by Eighting. The game looks 3D but the fighters face off on a 2D plane with the occasional 3D background shift and special attacks that swivel in 3D motion. The SP-Box edition of Fate/Unlimited Codes for the Playstation 2 will ship with a limited edition Saber Lily Figma figure that's being produced by Max Factory exclusively for the game. It won't be sold separately in any other capacity.

According to the preorder details, only 50,000 units of the SP-Box bundle will be produced. That seems on the plentiful side but at least one of our suppliers has warned that there may be product shortage. With that many sets shipping to market however, we're fairly certain that there'll be more than enough to go around for anyone who wants one. Pricing is set at JPY9990 or US$105.90 from NCS and preorders will ship on December 18.

Trigger Heart Exelica Enhanced LE - Import Preorder

The Naomi arcade version of the Trigger Heart Exelica shooter was originally released in the Spring of 2006 to some fanfare from the fanbase. The Dreamcast edition followed up in early 2007 and over a year later, the Playstation 2 version completes the circle with an "Enhanced" game which includes a bonus Exelica Nendroid figure. We're not sure where Exelica's partner in crime, Cruel Tear, is but where's her Nendroid figure? Inquiring minds do wonder.

The play mechanics in THE are fairly routine where the gals blast away at their foes with standard vulcan shots and flit through vertical aspect stages. The wrinkle in the routine is something called the "Anchor Shot" which allows Exelica or Cruel Tear to tether an enemy ship. Once captured, the enemy vehicle may be launched like a projectile at other enemies for added scoring. An enemy ship may also be hooked and then used as a barrier against enemy shots. It's a new shmup technique to explore and revel in. Developer Warashi also touted the V.B.A.S. (Variable Boss Attack System) where end-level gargantuans change their attack patterns based on the skill of the player. Preorders are welcome to ship sometime in the winter of 2008 at JPY12,800 or US$135.90 from NCS.

General Updates

GA-KO Alarm Clock Update All preorders for the GA-KO Alarm Clock received prior to August 6, 2008 at 9:38AM EST will ship tomorrow (August 7, 2008). Orders that are placed after August 6, 2008 at 9:38AM EST will ship on or around August 13 when our third batch of GA-KO Alarm Clocks arrive. New orders are welcome to ship once we restock. Thanks for reading.

KORG DS-10 Synthesizer Any remaining backorders for the Amazon exclusive KORG DS-10 Synthesizer Nintendo DS software will ship tomorrow. We'll have a small amount of surplus inventory for new orders.

E-Mail Information If you're using Hotmail or Yahoo Mail or any other web-based email system and are expecting a reply or PSN Ticket from NCS, please check your Junk E-mail or Deleted Items folder if you don't see it in your Inbox. This is an ongoing issue that we'd like to resolve but we can't control the spam block/filter parameters that web-based email systems utilize.

New Old Neo Geo Cartridge Inventory - Sale

We thought that everyone's (by everyone, we mean everyone) Neo Geo cartridge inventory was found, sold, and exhausted years ago. NCS started receiving offers for new and sealed Neo Geo AES cartridges recently but we assumed they were bogus solicitations. Yesterday, we received the exact offer (with the same unmistakable wording) from one of our trusted vendors and it turns out that the inventory is legit. Our first question was, "Who the %#&@ keeps this much inventory in storage without trying to actively move it?" Then we looked at the piles of Saturn, Dreamcast, and Playstation inventory in our own warehouse. Never mind.

The following USA Neo Geo cartridges are on offer at US$38.90 each which includes "free" USPS Priority Mail shipping within the United States. They're all new and are still sealed with the official SNK "faces" sticker. The photos we've seen show the carts in excellent condition.

» 3 Count Bout - New in box with SNK seal
» Alpha Mission II - New in box with SNK seal
» Blue's Journey - New in box with SNK seal
» Ghost Pilots - New in box with SNK seal
» Magician Lord - New in box with SNK seal
» Ninja Combat - New in box with SNK seal
» Riding Hero - New in box with SNK seal
» Sengoku - New in box with SNK seal
» The Super Spy - New in box with SNK seal

According to the seller's information, they still have multiple hundreds of each cartridge available for sale. Some of the numbers are ridiculous when we consider how much more they would've gotten for the carts if they had sold them a few years earlier. Orders are welcome by clicking the links for each title above and we expect to ship on Friday (August 8). If you're an old NCS customer, orders may also be submitted by email request and we'll process and ship your order with current account details on file.

Slam City with Scottie Pippen for Sega CD - Clearance

Digital Pictures' Slam City is quite possibly the worst game we've ever played. It's worse than Pitfighter on the Super Nintendo and Pac-Man on the Atari 2600. Next to Slam City, Shaq Fu looks good. Are there any redeeming qualities in Slam City? Not really. Maybe that's why we're still saddled with a few boxes of Slam City from 1994. That's 14 years that the game has been collecting dust bunnies in NCS warehousing. We did think of one redeeming quality since the last sentence - Slam City is funny. Not "Ha-Ha" funny but more like "WTF" funny thanks to the dialogue used in the game and the basketball player known as "Juice."

Buy a copy for the chuckles. When the chuckles aren't as forthcoming any more, use the discs as kitchenware. Since there are four CDs in the game packaging, you'll get four kitchen table coasters for the price of one.

Sale Offer: NCS' remaining inventory of Slam City with Scottie Pippen is new, factory sealed, and in mint condition. Price: US$12.90 per copy which includes "free shipping" within the United States by USPS Media Mail Service. «View larger photos»