Monday, January 19, 2009

Weekly Famitsu Vol. 1050 - Subscriptions Only

Cover Date - January 30, 2009
The latest issue of Weekly Famitsu features print coverage of the following games/events:
» Hideo Kojima and Toshihiro Nagoshi sit down and talk about games and current/upcoming projects.
» Preview of Super Robot Wars K for the Nintendo DS which checks out the numerous animated series to be featured in the game.
» Famitsu's reviewers rank NDS Monster*Racer (8/8/8/7), PSP
Hokuto no Ken: Raoh Gaiden - Ten no Haoh (6/6/7/5), Wii Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekidou (6/6/5/5), Wii Fragile: Sayonara Tsuki no Haikyo (8/8/8/7), and X360 Left 4 Dead (10/9/8/8).
» Famitsu includes a little booket in the centerfold of the magazine which looks back at all of the highly ranked games of 2008 on all platforms. The DS section takes up 13 pages while the PSP section spans a measly 4 pages. The Wii is notable because it's the only gaming system which garnered two perfect 10s for Dairantou Smash Bros X and 428 ~Fuusa Sareta Shibuya de~. The PS3 had one perfect 10 game in MGS4. As a comparison, there were no NDS games which scored perfect 10s in 2008.

Street Fighter 20th Anniversary Drink - Preorder

«©NCSX» Appreciation Systems Company (Apris) of Japan makes unremarkable beverages but since they package them in nifty character cans, some forgiveness is in order for the quality of their drinks. We've dodged most of their offerings in the past such as the Rockman E-Tank but they're coming out with a Street Fighter 20th Anniversary Drink that we can't ignore nor dodge successfully. History is being made and NCS has to reluctantly embrace the SF canned drink. At least Apris isn't calling them something weird like potions.

Street Fighter IV ships next month and Apris is gearing up for the occasion by announcing a beverage that embodies the verve and strength of the game. Not really.. but work with us here for the sake of our preorder solicitation. An ingredient list hasn't been disclosed by the beverage distributor but we're guessing the following ingredients will be listed once it has been announced: Fructose, water, ginseng extract, taurine, riboflavin, xanthan gum, and maybe a little minty fresh flavoring just for the heck of it. The artwork on the can shows a few characters but Ryu looks sort of like a gorilla. An angry gorilla with a red headband.

Each can is priced at US$4.90 or you can elect to purchase a full case of 10 for the bargain price of US$49. Shipping charges for beverages from Japan are outlandish but we might go the sea-freight route if that'll bring our import costs down substantially. Preorders are welcome to ship on or around late February 2009. Due to the weight of the cans, NCS advises shipping by UPS Ground for multiple can orders but we'll ship by USPS Media Mail if ordering a single can at the flat rate of US$2.50.

General Updates

Martin Luther King Holiday
Today is Martin Luther King Day in the United States which honors the fallen civil rights leader. The US Postal Service is on holiday but UPS and Fedex are working a normal pickup and delivery day. Orders placed over the weekend and today will ship tomorrow.
Playstation Network Tickets
The PSN tickets are currently sold out but another batch should arrive in the next few days. Xbox Live Points Cards (1400p) are available.
No More Snow
There was some light snow over the weekend but the roads were cleared quickly. This bodes well for upcoming import shipments that are scheduled for Thursday.

Japanese Import Outlook - Arrivals on Tuesday-Friday

NDS Monster * Racer Koei

New Chuugaku Eitango Target 1800DS IE Inst.


Zubo EA
PS2 Pia Carrot e Youkoso!! G.P. Gakuen Princess GN Soft

PSP

Hokuto no Ken: Raoh Gaiden - Ten no Haoh Interchannel

Zill O'll Infinite Plus Koei
Wii

Another Code R - Kioku no Tobira

Nintendo

Fragile: Sayonara Tsuki no Haikyo

Namco


Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekidou

Kadokawa


Suzumiya Haruhi no Gekidou DX Pack

Kadokawa

USA Release Outlook - Arrivals on Mon-Wed

UFO's Ultimate Shooting Collection being released this week is the North American localization of Milestone Shooting Collection which contains Chaos Field, Rajirugi (aka Radirgy), and Karous.
NDS Sim Animals EA

Big Bang Mini Southpeak
PS2 Ar Tonelico II NISA
PS3 Skate II EA
PSP Star Ocean: 2nd Evolution Square
Wii Sim Animals EA

Ultimate Shooting Collection UFO
360 Skate II EA

Samurai Spirits Nakoruru Figure (Orange) - Clearance

Original Update: May 5, 2003
«©NCSX»
BPS sculpts two robust Nakoruru figures in a choice of orange or red trim colors. Nak measures 12" tall and aims a dagger at something or someone in the distance. The folds in her clothing, the waves in her hair and those baby blues are beautifully crafted and all contribute to the exceptional quality of this figure. The Nakoruru figure was a premium prize item that was used in UFO catcher machines. Since our inventory came direct from the manufacturer, a UFO catcher claw has never touched them.

Please note that only the orange trim version of Nakoruru is available. The red trim version sold out about a year ago.


Original: View the NCS update and product photos from 2003.

Sale Offering
Pricing is set at US$29.90 per Nakoruru figure which includes free USPS Media Mail shipping anywhere in the contiguous USA. Media Mail normally delivers in 5-10 days. For our international customers, we will ship by USPS First Class Airmail which will carry a flat rate of US$16.55.