Space Invaders Extreme - Preorder

It doesn't seem like nearly 5 years have passed since we sold products from the Space Invaders 25th Anniversary celebration in 2003. There was the PS2 game, the special 25th Anniversary bundle, and a bunch of other products that have sold out over the years. Time flies and we find ourselves near the beginning of the Space Invaders 30th Anniversary event where Taito will release another batch of games and products to mark the occasion.

Space Invaders Extreme on the PSP is a fusion of genres. It mixes rhythm design sensibilities with classic Space Invaders convention to create something that's new but honors the old. Original music from club scene artists are used to energize the levels and the Space Invaders not only march in regimented lines as they always have but some levels have them flying in like.... Galaxians. Extra kinetic visual flair comes from the background movies that play while the shooting action takes place in the foreground. Preorders are welcome to ship on Feb. 21.

Space Invaders Water Bottle - Preorder

When 2008 rolls around, Taito will celebrate the 30th Anniversary of Space Invaders. Yep, it's been three decades since a lone cannon fended off an assault mounted by pixel-perfect aliens. Since Space Invaders is a pretty big deal, NCS expects a motley assortment of products which will commemorate the franchise over the course of next year. Taito's first preorder is a trio of aluminum water bottles with a carabiner on top. Each bottle is extruded from a single sheet of aluminum and we're told they're durable and resistant to major denting. Three varieties are on offer but we've got dibs on the "C" version which features pink invaders against a black backdrop. Preorders are welcome to ship in late April 2008.

Space Invaders Keychain - Preorder

We know a guy who used to listen to Art Bell and frequents websites where "aliens" from outer space are a common subject. He scoffs at Taito's Space Invaders because in his words, "They don't look like that!" and "The real aliens are only one part of a big galactic conspiracy!"

Gee, thanks. Next time we see one, we'll know. In any case, we prefer the aliens in Space Invaders because they're colorful. They're also keychain friendly fodder as seen in Taito's new collection of crystal clear acrylic cube keychains which hold a pixel alien within its confines. Preorders are welcome to ship in mid-late April 2008. Price: US$8.50 for a set of three.

General Updates

Star Wars Pepper Mills - Sold Out A shipment has arrived for the R2-D2 and R2-Q5 pepper mills and we'll be processing and shipping preorders today. The mills are packaged in cylindrical plastic containers which are aesthetically pleasing. Each mill stores about 3 ounces of standard peppercorns. To grind them into pepper particles, twist the droid's dome to churn out the dustings onto your food, on an unsuspecting friend, or any other flat surface. Please note that we're sold out but restock should be available for us in mid-late January 2008.

Milky Angel Evolution Vol. 2 - In Stock All preorders for the Milky Angel Evolution Vol. 2 trading cards will ship today. The shipment arrived too late this morning for us to take card samples for posting but we'll update the product listing tomorrowg. Based on a cursory glance of each factory box this morning, a special foil-based trading card is packaged in each box.

Juicy Honey Premium Edition - Sold Out Mint wasn't able to fill our entire request for the Juicy Honey Premium Edition cards which arrived today but we'll process and ship preorders this afternoon. Each retail box is shiny and shrinkwrapped and holds three inner boxes of cards. The release was limited to only 2,000 boxes but we'll try to find some stock since there's bound to be a supplier somewhere who's holding some inventory. The three JAV idols featured in the collection are Kotono, Maria Ozawa, and Rio.

Kinu Nishimura Mai Shiranui - In Stock All remaining backorders for the Max Factory Mai Shiranui figure will ship today and new orders are welcome. We were able to import a good batch of the figures and the inventory should last a couple of months.

Final Fantasy 4 Trading Arts Mini - Sold Out Another batch of the FF4 figures arrived and we'll begin processing backorders today. Please note that we may receive another shipment of the figures in late January to fill orders that were placed after we closed preorders but some of our toy suppliers are now on their holiday. They will return to normal operations in mid January 2008.

Simple DS Vol. 29: The Sports Daishuugou - New, In Stock

Five popular sports are captured in D3P's Sports Daishuugou so that virtual athletes can get their game on. The sports are:

Baseball | Golf | Soccer | Tennis | Volleyball

Each sport is a full featured event with regulation rules and various play modes. In addition to the main game modes, mini-games are also playable including the "Home Run Contest" in Baseball and "Penalty Kick" in Soccer. Sports Daishuugou also supports multiplayer gaming with the wireless communications function so that up to four players can participate.

Japanese Import Outlook - Arrivals on Wed-Thurs

PS2	Super Robot Taisen Original Generation Gaiden	Banpresto
	Super Robot Taisen Original Generation Gaiden LE	Banpresto	X
PSP	Star Ocean The First Departure	SquarEnix
	Star Ocean The First Departure PSP Bundle	SquarEnix
	Suzumiya Haruhi no Yakusoku	Namco
	Suzumiya Haruhi no Yakusoku Limited Edition	Namco	X
Wii	Metal Slug Complete	SNK
	Nodame Cantabile: Dream Orchestra	Bandai
	Ason de Wakaru - The Party Kanji	D3
	The DokoDemo Asoberu - The Shooting Action	D3

General Updates - From December 24, 2007

Christmas Holiday Instead of working, NCS will join the throngs of Santa Claus impersonators tomorrow in Time Square and perhaps drink some watered down eggnog. We'll resume normal trading on Wednesday. Please note that UPS is only picking up Air packages today and no Ground packages.

USA Holiday Week No USA releases are on tap for this week but new domestic game shipments will resume on January 8, 2008 with the release of the highly anticipated Jackass: The Game for Nintendo DS, DDR: Disney Channel for the PS2, and Harvey Birdman for the Playstation Portable.

Toy Shipments on Thursday A large shipment of toys from Japan didn't make it in today but it's now scheduled to arrive on Thursday. We'll process and ship all backorders for the Kinu Nishimura Mai Shiranui figure and the Star Wars Pepper Mills on Thursday. Our supplier also shipped a bunch of Star Wars Soy Sauce Bottles and we'll throw those up for sale once we get a look at them and take some snapshots.

PSN Tickets The tickets are sold out again in record time but another batch will arrive on Wednesday or Thursday of this week. We will receive both JPY3000 tickets as well as JPY5000 tickets, the latter of which is perfect for purchasing the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue download which is priced at JPY4500. Backorders placed now will be processed on Wednesday or Thursday at noon or thereabouts.

Face Cover Portable 2 - New Import, In Stock

Bolt Hori's Face Cover Portable 2 to the two screw holes on top of the PSP or Slim PSP and it is automatically protected by a smooth-plastic flip-top. Once the face of the PSP is entirely covered, it is protected from bird droppings, flies, rain, and other things that whiz through the air.

When the Face Cover Portable is attached, note that the PSP will no longer fit inside the standard PSP carrying case or other slim cases. We're still able to fit the PSP inside an Aero Case without squeeze issues. Pricing is set at US$12.00 and three colors are available - Black, Silver, and Blue.