PS3 Tales of Graces F - New Japanese Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» Three disparate kingdoms rule the world of Efinea - Fendel, Strata, and Windol - all of which vie for supremacy over the other. In the land of Windol sits a city named Lhant which is governed by a lord named Aston Lhant. Aston's first-born is a lad named Asbel who goes off to become a knight but upon his father's death, returns home to rule the principality. Namco's latest Tales game follows the story of Asbel and a girl named Sophie who helps him fend off an attack perpetrated by troops from Fendel. The mysterious Sophie suffers from amnesia which is a regularly used plot device in Japanese video games since it adds intrigue to the character.

   Tales of Graces was originally released on the Nintendo Wii last year but an upgraded version is headed to the Playstation 3 on December 2. The PS3 edition includes an new scenario titled "History of the Future," upgraded visuals, alternate character costumes, and new techniques (Blast Calibers).

Early reservations will include a bonus Dramatic DVD and DLC code card that are being given away by Namco in 50% ratio.

PS3 Hokuto Musou International - New Japanese Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» The original Japanese release of Hokuto Musou reached market on March 25, 2010 and sales were strong. The North American localization of the game arrived on November 2 and roughly one month later, Koei re-releases the game in Japan under the title of Hokuto Musou International. The reissue features the improvements found in the North American rendition including a new stage, an English speech option, different enemy contingents, and alternate costumes that may be worn by Kenshiro and company.

   In Hokuto Musou, Kenshiro battles groups of bare-chested bruisers who wear leather pants. They'll crowd around Ken like a pack of wolves but he can fend them off by punching, kicking, and using the almighty Hokuto Shinken martial art which is capable of destroying enemies from within. Body blows result in copious spurts of blood which eject from thug bodies and some attacks turn foes into what can only be described as "Sloppy Joes." Without the bread.

Wii Kamen Rider OOO - New Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» When the Playstation 2 was King of the gaming universe, Bandai's Kamen Rider games were released with alarming regularity on the console. Nowadays, the PS2 is no longer the console of choice for Kamen Rider - that honor goes to the Nintendo Wii 

   Kamen Riders from the Heisei era return to the Wii for another fighting game where two challengers face each other and commence with the punching and kicking. Kamen Rider W and Kamen Rider OOO (Ozu) are the latest members of the Kamen Rider family and they're playable in the game. Ozu is the red-and-black-helmeted player on the front cover of the game and he may mount a motorcycle in the game called the Rider Ozu Bike. Bandai touts a new fighting system where a particular battle system may be chosen for each Rider's bout and theme songs from the Kamen Rider television shows are included for added authenticity. Bandai is publishing the OOO game on the Wii and PSP - the PSP version supports ad hoc versus mode and features a custom soundtrack. Every copy of the first printing of Kamen Rider Ozu includes a Rider Ozu data-scan card which is included inside every copy of the game. The card may be used with the Kamen Rider Battle Ganbaride Card Battle Taisen coin-op.

PSP Kamen Rider OOO - New Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» When the Playstation 2 was King of the console gaming universe, Bandai's Kamen Rider games were released with alarming regularity on the console. Nowadays, the PS2 is no longer the console of choice for Kamen Rider - that honor goes to the Nintendo Wii which has hosted a spate of releases in the past few years.

   Kamen Riders from the Heisei era return to the Wii for another fighting game where two challengers face each other and commence with the punching and kicking. Kamen Rider W and Kamen Rider OOO (Ozu) are the latest members of the Kamen Rider family and they're playable in the game. Ozu is the red-and-black-helmeted player on the front cover of the game and he may mount a motorcycle in the game called the Rider Ozu Bike. Bandai touts a new fighting system where a particular battle style may be chosen and utilized for each Rider's bout. Snappy and peppy theme songs from the Kamen Rider television shows are included for added authenticity.

   Bandai is publishing the OOO game on the Wii and PSP this week in Japan - the PSP version supports ad hoc versus mode and features a custom soundtrack. Every copy of the first printing of Kamen Rider Ozu includes a Rider Ozu data-scan card which is included inside every copy of the game. The card may be used with the Kamen Rider Battle Ganbaride Card Battle Taisen coin-op which is Japanese exclusive. If you reside outside of Japan, you might be able to sell the card on Ebay for a dollar or two. 

Wii Taiko no Tatsujin Wii Minna de Party 3-Daime - New Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» The third Taiko no Tatsujin game for the Wii brings back the drum banging action that has addicted players in the arcades, on the PS2, PSP, and even the Nintendo DS. The subtitle of the upcoming game is "Minnade Party 3daimei" and the word "party" refers to the simultaneous 4-player option where up to four people holding a Remote can participate.

   The new Taiko game features a 70-song tracklist which includes songs from previous games as well as new additions to the series. Tracks include J-Pop selections such as "Ring a Ding Dong," "Butterfly Kimura Kaera," "Tamashii Rebory Ushon," and animation songs "Alright! Heart Catch Precure," "Mainichi Kasan," and "Kimi ga Shuyaku Sa~tsu!" Classical music selections include "The Nutcracker Suite" and "Symphony No. 7," Similar to previous Taiko no Tatsujin games, simple colored cues roll down a conveyer belt which are meant to elicit a Pavlovian response from the player. For example, when a Red Smiley Taiko rolls into the rubicon, hit the surface of the TataCon but a Blue Smiley Taiko requires a smack the edge of the drum controller. A selection of mini-games in "Taiko Land" may also be enjoyed which mix up the drumming action. Up to four players may play the game at once as long as four controllers are available.

PSP Kingdom: Ikkitousen no Ken - New Japanese Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» The Kingdom (キングダム) manga by Yasuhisa Hara follows the bloody adventures of a young orphan named Shin who aspires to become a general in wartime China. Shin's plans take place against the backdrop of the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history when the empires of Shu, Wei, and Wu were in conflict.

   The armies of the Three Kingdoms are on the march and fearsome bloodshed is about to erupt . Players take on the role of Shin and his ragtag cohorts where they battle enemies by themselves but on some stages, the active hero also leads a small gang of warriors who mimic his every move and slash at enemies in concert. In one special attack, they'll all leap up into the air and then hammer downwards to damage any enemy in the local area who's within the radius of their ground impact. Additional special attacks including a whirling attack, a rushing dash move which mows down anyone in the team's path, and angry berserker attacks.

   While the protagonist's team has a bunch of tricks in their offensive repertoire, the enemy isn't without their tactics either. Multiple enemy soldiers can link up together by holding each other's limbs to create a weird "human" giant who swings and attacks as one cohesive attack unit. In addition to single-player mode, the game also supports a 3-player mode where participants engage in multiplayer missions that were tailored for multiplayer action.

TOYS Star Wars Lightsaber Sound Flashlight - New Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» Earlier this year, we had one of our locks replaced because the Medeco cylinder assembly apparently went bye-bye. The locksmith that did the work needed a flashlight but the first light we tried was dead. Did you know that you're supposed to change the batteries in flashlights at least once every 10 years? We didn't. The second flashlight we tried was one of those shake-lights where you joggle it around for a minute or two to charge up the internal battery. That worked and the locksmith was so grateful, he only overcharged us by 50% instead of the usual 80%.

   The next time the need arises for a flashlight, we might reach for Taito's Star Wars Sound Lightsaber Flashlight (say that three times quickly) which shoots out a beam of white light to scare away the darkness. A second function on the 20cm saber allows it to make energy-swooshing sounds to impress the girls, the Star Wars nerds fans, and the occasional light-needing locksmith. Please note that three LR44 batteries are required to operate the flashlight (not included).  The Lightsaber measures 20cm and two styles are available: a black or a silver light saber.

NEWS General Updates

Monster Hunter Portable 3rd Update    Preorders for MHP 3rd shipped out yesterday and we tried to place a restock order last night. However, prices from Japanese vendors who export outside of Japan have been hiked to roughly JPY8800 which is 159.30% over the retail price. We're holding off on restock until sanity returns but prices should begin dropping this weekend. In related news, the Asian version of MHP3rd is also available but we'll probably wait for the Japanese stock.

iPhone 3G, 3GS Cases    All preorders for the Darius Burst and Space Invaders iPhone cases are shipping tomorrow. Sadly, there still hasn't been any news about iPhone 4G compatible cases from Taito yet. A series of Sky Girls iPhone cases were also released in Japan last night but they didn't look too compelling. If we decide to import a few for show, we'll

PS3 Tales of Graces F Tomorrow    A large amount of preorders for Tales of Graces F will ship tomorrow. If you wish to make any changes to your preorder such as upgrading the shipping, we would appreciate your notification before 3PM EST today. Thanks.

Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Aroma Candle    Backorders for the Cloud Strife Aroma Candle will be shipping out tomorrow. We'll also adding inventory to our supplies of the Sephiroth Aroma Candle tomorrow. New orders are welcome to ship on Friday.