Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Metal Gear Solid 4 Ration Sound Keychain - Import Preorder

Solid Snake is the strong and silent type. When he talks, people tend to listen. Fans of the Snakester can listen to him talk all day with the upcoming MGS4 Ration Sound Keychains which feature choice phrases that have been clipped from the game and stored on a computer chip. To listen to a short snippet of dialogue, simply push the button on the front of the keychain and a somewhat tinny and hollow-sounding voice will blare forth. Use it to wake the neighbors, scare the cat, or terrorize the kids.

A total of six keychains will be sold in Japan through gashapon dispensers in random fashion. To make things easier for collectors, NCS will gather together all six keychains and sell them as a complete set for the price of US$25. Preorders are welcome to ship in September 2008.

Real Arcade Pro EX Joystick - Import Preorder

Hori recently opened preorders for the exclusive Real Arcade Pro EX joystick which will only be sold on Horistore.com. We're going to get them for ourselves and for anyone who might want one too.

There is a downside however. We have to pay retail for them. We also have to pay tax and shipping costs within Japan. Then we have to pay the piper to ship the dimension weight + heavy joysticks all the way from Japan to New York City. Are you cringing at the cost of procurement yet? We are. But it has to be done. We must have our Hori RAP EX. Preorders are welcome to ship on or around July 10, 2008 at US$218.90 each.

Shooting Game Historica 2 SP - Import Preorder

NCS started preorders for the Shooting Game Historica 2 gashapon toys in April which feature the following spacecraft:

»
R-Type III - R90 Ragnarok
» Fantasy Zone - Opa Opa
» Raystorm - R-Gray1
» Star Luster - Gaia
» Star Blade - Geo Sword

The gashapon toys are packaged in plastic capsules which is the usual delivery method for miniature PVC toys in Japan. To follow up on the SGH2 preorder offering, Yujin has now opened up preorders for the SP (Second Product) version of the toys which are packaged in ornate cardboard boxes. NCS is supplying the toys in complete factory cases of 12 toys at JPY4800 or US$49.90 to ship in Sept 2008. Preorders are welcome.

Daiki Kogyo Kanu Unchou 1/6 Scale - Import Preorder

Kanu Unchou's star has been meteoric in the 2007-2008 frame and all signs point to her continued ascent. We think of Kanu's popularity as a momentum play where every toy manufacturer gets in on the action since she's a surefire bet.

Then we saw the Daiki Kogyo version of Kanu Unchou announced overnight. In the past, when the Daiki Kogyo version of a toy is released, that usually signals the end of the bull run. It happened with Koyori in 2006 and Mai Shiranui in 2007. The same fate may face Kanu Unchou when the 1/6 scale Daiki Kogyo rendition is released this autumn.

Preorders are welcome to ship in late October 2008 at JPY128,000 or US$139 from NCS. Dimensional weight shipping will apply.

Fate/Tiger Colosseum Upper - Import Preorder

The cast members of Fate Stay Night are hardened warriors capable of doling out a lot of hurt. What happens when you shrink them down into chibi-sized renditions of themselves? One obvious result is they're a lot smaller. However, their heads remain fairly big when compared to their shrunken bodies. One thing won't change however - the newly minted munchkins still dole out the hurt.

Gamers who enjoyed last year's Fate/Tiger Colosseum will find more of the same fighting action in the upcoming sequel. The basic gist pits four fighters on a stage and the goal is to knock the other three out. Special power-ups may be collected for extra fighting oomph and the fighters can use magic to bolster their offensive repertoire.

NCS is accepting preorders for the regular edition of Fate Tiger Colosseum Upper today and a limited edition Megamori Box which includes a deck of tarot cards, a drama CD, and a special DVD. Preorders for both versions will ship on August 28, 2008.