Friday, May 08, 2009

MELTY BLOOD Actress Again - Import Preorder

«©NCSX» The coin-op version of Melty Blood Actress Again originally shipped in September 2008 and it was one of NCS' better selling coin-op kits for last year. In late December 2008, Ecole shipped an MBAA Rom A-Version eprom kit to operators which upgraded and rebalanced the game. The money has been pretty much made on coin-op MBAA so it's time for Ecole to give the greenlight for a Playstation 2 home conversion of the game which ships on August 20, 2009 and is being published by Sega.

Melty Blood is a popular 2D fighting game in Japan with fast action and fluid gameplay. It's the kind of fighter that draws in hardcore players who hone their technique and sharpen their skills by practicing hours upon hours against other hardcore players. Actress Again features three groove variations - Full Moon, Half Moon, and Crescent Moon - which govern the moves and combination attacks that a particular character can utilize. The PS2 conversion features new game elements and a brand new character.

NCS is accepting preorders for a regular edition of Melty Blood AA which is priced at JPY5800 or US$59.90 from NCS and a limited edition which includes a 2-disc MBAA Soundtrack and a slipcase. The LE version is priced at JPY7800 or US$79.90 from NCS. Please note that Japanese chain store retailers will also receive a Riesbyfe Stridberg NTT telephone card with the limited edition of MBAA but we're unsure if this card will be given away to general distribution. We'll update accordingly once we receive confirmation.

General Updates

PS3 Korean/English Wares - Sale
The Korean versions of Hakuna Matata and Aquanaut's Holiday:
Hidden Memories are in stock and shipping today. Along with the default Korean language option, both games also feature an English language option. Pricing is set at US$30.90 each. Buy both games for a virtual taste of the land and the sea that's only available on the Playstation 3.
PS3/X360 BlazBlue Fighting Stick Shortage
All of our Japanese vendors returned to work yesterday and gave us a shot of bad news. There will be a shortage of the BlazBlue Fighting Stick from Hori for both the PS3 and Xbox 360. The shortage ratio appears to be 80% based on the quantities allocated to us thus far. For example, for every 100 units preordered, Hori will only fill 20 units. Similar to the Xbox 360 Death Smiles LE shortage, NCS will try to fulfill everyone's preorder by going through alternate supply channels. Please wait for further updates.

We're unsure why the preorder process for some items is basically botched nowadays. We submitted our final numbers last month and ordered a sizable surplus since preorder velocity was pretty high. Despite our preparations however, there's still going to be a sizable shortfall of product.
NEWS Early Closure Today
NCS will close for business early today at 5:00PM EST instead of the usual 6:00PM. We'll resume normal business hours next week.
ETC Trio Linker Plus II Restock
Use Playstation 2, Gamecube, or Dreamcast controllers on your PC or PS3 by plugging them into the Trio Linker Plus II. Dance controllers aren't supported but you can connect your favorite PS2 joystick and use them with PC software. A new production of the Trio Linker Plus II was finished this week and our shipment arrived today. New orders are welcome.
SOTW Next Week's Sale Preview
We're probably going to throw up the 3DO Policenauts Pilot Disc or the 3DO Policenauts game for next week's sale. We're a little leery about the Policenauts game because it's packaged in a double jewel case and we've found a small number of copies with discs slipping around inside.

All of our inventory is brand new and factory sealed but back in the day, publishers didn't take proper precautions to secure discs to the plastic spindles. A little block of plastic foam would've been sufficient to keep the disc from ejecting. Most of the copies we've checked are fine but we're just leery about shipping them out and then having the discs pop out while in transit.
X360 Death Smiles Limited Edition - Conclusive shipment next week
A final shipment of Death Smiles LE will arrive next week to fill all remaining preorders/backorders. Thanks to everyone for their patience in waiting it out and allowing us the opportunity to fill all orders. NCS also expects to restock the regular edition of Death Smiles next week.