NEWS General Updates

Interview with Yu Suzuki    James Mielke returns to 1-Up (momentarily) for a guest-interview with Yu Suzuki titled The Disappearance of Yu Suzuki. The first part of the interview is up today and the piece is an entertaining read.

Japanese Kinects for $153.55    A few vendors in Japan are offering Japanese Kinects for the equivalent of US$153.55 this morning. If they don't sell within the next 2 weeks in the run-up to Xmas, we'd expect a discount.

Japanese GT5 Racing Packs    Our shipments of the GT5 Racing Packs should arrive later this week and preorders will be processed and shipped upon arrival.

MAG Dengeki G's Magazine January 2011 - New Japan Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» Weekly Famitsu and Dengeki G's are two long-running magazines in the Japanese publishing industry. Print might almost be dead stateside but in Japan, it's still thriving thanks to manga, magazines, and dailies like the Asahi Shimbun. The latest issue of Dengeki G's will probably boast a circulation boost thanks to a special bonus that's included with every copy:

» Kirino Kōsaka toy figure which measures approximately 2.5" tall when fully assembled. The toy is packaged in its own separate cardboard container.

   Games featured in this month's issue include X360 Idolmaster 2, X360 Dream Club Zero, PSP Sevens ~beyond the Milky Way~, X360 Gal*Gun, NDS Love Plus +, PC Rewrite, PC Flyable CandyHeart, and many more.

   The magazine contains 425 pages, 178 of which are in full color and the rest in black & white. The latter half of the magazine contains manga serials such as Angel Beats and Little Busters.

MAG Famitsu Wave January 2011 - New Japanese Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» The January 2011 issue of Famitsu Wave includes print and video coverage of the following games and events in the Japanese marketplace:

» PSP Monster Hunter 3rd Portable game details and monster information along with a 1/3 page ad for Enterbrain's MHP 3rd Rookie's Guide.
» PS3/X360 Assassin's Creed Brotherhood
» Wii Party Quiz Mega Q retro-view and a listing of Wii Virtual Console games and their respective Wii Points costs.
» Game Camp checks out the Xbox 360 version of Space Invaders Infinity Gene and Wii Bit.Trip Runner in this month's issue.
» Cross Review Channel on Wii Metroid: Other M.
» 16th Girl photo feature on Japanese gravure idol Tashiro Sayaka.
» Porno Suzuki takes a look at Pac-Man products which include a Gumball Machine Coin Bank, Multi Vitamins, and Beanies.
» The original Super Mario Bros game gets a go from Famitsu's editors.
» Movie coverage on Kick Ass.

TOYS Skelanimals Metal Charm - Japanese Preorder

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» Skelanimals are dead creatures which look like their living counterparts but they're just a bunch of animated bones. Takara Tomy has started preorders for a Japan-exclusive collection of Skelanimals Metal Charms which features seven animals as follows:

» Maxx the Bulldog - He looks mean but Maxx is a softie at heart
» Pudge the Turtle -  A slow and methodical creature. That's Pudge.
» Oliver the Owl - A wise old bird who dispenses advice to the others
» Lolita the Killer Whale - A show animal who caters to the crowd
» Timmy the Spider - A spider who's so scary, he scares himself
... and two more.

   Preorders for the complete set are welcome to ship in March 2011.

TOYS Bukuri Sauce Keychain - New Japanese Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» When eating a bland-tasting burger, it helps to have a small pack of sauce to add some flavor to the dead meat. Some people reach for a pack of catsup while others go for the bitter tang of yellow mustard. Still others might reach for the mayo and maybe the hot mango chutney.

   Takara Tomy understands the attraction of small packs of sauce and they're releasing a set of 8 sauce pack toys which are tethered to a little loop of chain. A small bit of rubbery toy sauce is injected into each pack so that it'll ooze out when squeezed but retract back into the pack when unsqueezed. Condiments represented in the packs include mustard, ketchup, strawberry jam, peanut butter, and more. Preorders are welcome to ship in March 2011 at US$18.90 for the complete set of 8 condiment packs which are packaged in plastic capsules.

TOYS Custom Burger Keychain - New Japanese Import

NCS Product Synopsis
«©NCSX» NCS has stocked burger toys before but they've been of the prepackaged variety with preset layers and condiments. Takara Tomy's upcoming Custom Burger Keychain changes things up by allowing for the customization of the burger's layers and ingredients by mixing and matching. Six default sandwiches are featured in the collection as follows:

» Regular Burger
» Fish Filet Sandwich
» Double Cheeseburger
» Double Burger with Egg
» Bacon Lettuce Tomato (BLT)
» Burger with Lettuce and Mayo

   Preorders are welcome to ship in March 2011.

NEWS Japanese Release Outlook - Arrivals on Tuesday, Thursday

NDS	Fushigi no Dungeon: Fuurai no Shiren 5	ChunSoft
	Ninokuni: Shikkoku no Madoushi	Level 5
PS3	End of Eternity (Sega the Best)	Sega
	NeoGeo Pad USB	Exar
PSP	Boku wa Koukuu Kanseikan: Airport Hero Kankuu	SonicP
Wii	Fitness Party	Bandai
	Karaoke Joysound Wii Super DX	Hudson
	Karaoke Joysound Wii Super DX Mic DX Set	Hudson
	Kinect Animals	Microsoft

Space Invaders Fruit Juice Packaging

   Design firm New Movement has created a series of fruit juice cartons that were inspired by Taito's Space Invaders game. Rows of fruit serve as the "invaders" whilst a lone cannon sits at the bottom in defense of the planet. Three cartons for apple, plum, and pear were fabricated - when was the last time you had plum juice? The gallery may be viewed at http://www.gorgeousgamers.com/GGNews/albums/9482.