» NCS' Daily Updates emailed directly to you every morning: Subscribe with subject header "DU Sub" for automatic addition. RSS Feed also available for subscription.
 
 

TIME GA-KO Alarm Clock JPN

Preorder Import: US$36.90/ea
 TIME GA-KO Alarm Clock - Preorder, Ships on July 31
«©NCSX» In the upcoming Metal Gear Solid 4 game, there's a scene where Naomi Hunter and Sunny Gurlukovich cook three sunny-side up eggs on a frying pan. The tender sequence is punctuated by a cooking timer in the shape of a no-nonsense duck. To get the cooking time for the eggs proper, Sunny sets the GA-KO Timer so that it'll shake and sing out "Dah-Dah" when the eggs are ready.
   Konami brings the GA-KO Timer home this summer but the company transitions the product into a more useful GA-KO Alarm Clock which tells time and gets you out of your slumber with insistent "singing" sounds. Note that the duck's wings are on its hips which means you better get up when the alarm sounds off.
   The product measurements are H:160mm x W:102mm x D:107mm and the clock runs on two AAA batteries. The clock is constructed of ABS but the timepiece face cover is polycarbonate. The distributor's solicitation notes that only 2000 units will be produced and preorders are welcome today.
 
 

CD Square Enix Music V1 JPN

New Import: US$30.90/ea
 CD Square Enix Music Compilation Vol. 1 - New, In Stock
«©NCSX» NCS started reservations a few months ago for a Square Enix exclusive (http://member.square-enix.com) soundtrack which collects 24 tracks of music from various Squaresoft games including FFVII, Front Mission 4, and Saga Frontier. After waiting patiently, the soundtrack is now in stock and shipping to all preorders. Similar to the Mario Galaxy OST Platinum Edition which was exclusive to Club Nintendo, the Square Enix Music Vol. 1 soundtrack is only available on Square Enix's website for members. The track list starts with J-E-N-O-V-A from the FINAL FANTASY VII Original Soundtrack and follows up with The Man with the Machine Gun which was originally from the FINAL FANTASY VIII Original Soundtrack. Many more selections from popular soundtracks stream afterwards...
 
 

NDS Shokera Renai JPN

New Import: US$40.90/ea
 NDS Shokera Renai Otona no Tame - New Import, In Stock
«©NCSX» Milestone's new Shokera Renai Otona no Tame no Metabo Dassutsu Training software + accessory pack is designed to help users keep track of their daily caloric intake and exercise. The software runs on the NDS and serves as a diet diary to record your daily meal regimen. Photographs for roughly 500 dishes are included in the food database in case you're not sure what a hamburger looks like. Two accessories are included - a plastic pedometer with belt clip which tracks your daily walking distance and a tape measure so you can measure how big your belly is. If you're pudgy and want to lose the tire around your stomach, you can track your eating habits and exercise over a period of time and then reduce the consumption or boost the exercise accordingly to meet your target weight.
 

 

 

PS2 Hanayoi Romanesque JPN

New Import: US$65.00/ea
 PS2 Hanayoi Romanesque: Ai to Kanashimi - New, In Stock
«©NCSX» A breathless audience of over 120,000 players has already enjoyed the visual novel charms of Hanayoi Romanesque on their mobile phones. Those throngs are clamoring for more so Marvelous brings the game home for a bigger and brighter adventure to explore.

   Players take on the role of a school teacher named Tamami Kirihara who works at an academy that's been around since the Meiji era. The scions and other blood relations of the prominent Housyou family attend the school but they're all cursed. Tamami happens to be able to view the curse known as "Logos" on the boys and she's also able to lift the curse and free the lads from its effects. Along the way, Tamami may find romance with one of the Housyou sons. Hanayoi Romanesque is a interactive romance adventure that's targeted at girl gamers. By reading a lot of text, looking at nifty artwork, and making a few choices during the story, players help Tamami find love. Some choices will take the Tamami to different scenarios and conclude her story in different ways which opens up the replay potential for the game. Upgrades in the PS2 update of the game include full voice acting for the characters and new CG events.
 
 

PS2 Togainu no Chi JPN

New Import: US$65.00/ea
 PS2 Togainu no Chi: True Blood - New Import, In Stock
«©NCSX» Boys Love games aren't screaming up the sales charts but they have their loyal audiences. Sometimes all one can hope for is a successful niche in the wild, woolly, and fickle world of gaming. Togainu no Chi was originally released for the Japanese PC in 2005 and has garnered a devoted (mostly female) fan base over the past few years. The backdrop of the game is a dystopian Japan after the ravages of a third World War. The story follows the tribulations of a reluctant warrior named Akira who fights for his freedom in the Igura Tournament which is administered by a drug kingpin. Fighters in the Igura battle each other to the death and gather their opponents' dogtags as they move their way up to the final conflict against the kingpin of the Vischio mob.
   The mature content in the PC original has been wiped from the console conversion of the game to make it somewhat family friendly. The characters in the game are invariably chiseled, dark, somber, and apparently appealing. The PS2 version features a new character named Yukihito who's voice is provided by Hiroshi Kamiya, a new opening movie, exclusive CG events, and updated music. Every copy of the game will ship with a bonus dogtag and a True Blood Remix audio CD.
 
 

PS2 Togainu no Chi JPN

New Import: US$88.00/ea
 PS2 Togainu no Chi: True Blood LE - New Import, In Stock
«©NCSX» The limited edition of Togainu no Chi includes a book titled "TOSHIMA 20XX Periodical Report" which is bundled with the game DVD inside a nifty slipcase. The book is all about... Togainu no Chi.
   Boys Love games aren't screaming up the sales charts but they have their loyal audiences. Sometimes all one can hope for is a successful niche in the wild, woolly, and fickle world of gaming. Togainu no Chi was originally released for the Japanese PC in 2005 and has garnered a devoted (mostly female) fan base over the past few years. The backdrop of the game is a dystopian Japan after the ravages of a third World War. The story follows the tribulations of a reluctant warrior named Akira who fights for his freedom in the Igura Tournament which is administered by a drug kingpin. Fighters in the Igura battle each other to the death and gather their opponents' dogtags as they move their way up to the final conflict against the kingpin of the Vischio mob.
   The mature content in the PC original has been wiped from the console conversion of the game to make it somewhat family friendly. The characters in the game are invariably chiseled, dark, somber, and apparently appealing. All orders include a bonus dogtag and a True Blood Remix CD.
 

 

 

PSP Powerful Pro Yakyu 3 JPN

New Import: US$48.90/ea
 PSP Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball Portable 3 - New, In Stock
«©NCSX» Year in and year out, NCS can rely on Konami to release a few new versions of Powerful Pro Baseball on the popular consoles of the day. About a decade ago, the consoles of choice were the Sega Saturn and Playstation. This year, the PS2, Wii, and PSP will all get the 2008 versions of the Powerful Pro game. Maybe one day, the PS3 will supplant the PS2. In any case, it's the Playstation Portable's turn this week.

   Jikkyou Powerful Pro 3 features updated 2008 season data for all twelve professional teams, updated uniforms that the players wear, and the latest player stats. A number of game modes are playable including:

» Success Mode - Create a baseball player who starts his career in high school and makes his way to the major leagues.
» My Life Mode - Join the big leagues as a rookie and be a team player.
» Pennant Mode - It's a new season and the pennant race is on

   The controls rely on a cursor targeting system where every pitch or swing of the bat is governed by a reticule which pinpoints the area of impact. The fielding isn't as precise as the pitching and batting but players in the infield or outfield can efficiently sidle left and right to home in on grounders as well as fly balls that pop upwards momentarily. Two players can link up wirelessly to play a versus game.
 
 

Wii Family Trainer JPN

New Import: US$85.90/set

Includes game and mat controller
 Wii Family Trainer - New Import, In Stock
«©NCSX» Back in the summer of 1986, Bandai released a fitness game titled Family Trainer: Athletic World on the 8-bit Famicom which shipped with a flimsy mat controller. The idea was to get kids off the couch and in motion with simple mini-games that were played by stepping on the circular cues located on top of the mat. Sales were mediocre and Bandai eventually abandoned hopes of starting a video game fitness craze.
   Fast forward two decades later and Bandai's at it again. Emboldened by the recent success of Nintendo's Wii Fit, the company revives Family Trainer for a new generation of gamers. Similar to the original incarnation, Bandai includes a flexible mat controller with the game which looks suspiciously like Konami's dancing pad. The mat is designed for use by one or two players who are able to step lively side by side. This means the entire brood can take turns engaging in gaming exercises which take place upon the mat controller. That's not all folks - the Wiimote is also used in some games for arm waving antics so the whole body gets a workout.
   Bandai touts over 15 cooperative and competitive games in Family Trainer including one where players make like lumberjacks and leap over rolling logs by jumping on the mat.
 
 

PS2 Garou Archives 1 JPN

New Import: US$29.00/ea
 PS2 Garou Densetsu Battle Archives 1 [Best]  - New, In Stock
«©NCSX» Relive the early years of the brothers Bogard as they sought revenge for the murder of their father, Jeff Bogard. Joining the siblings was one Joe Higashi who kicked up a storm with his Thai boxing discipline. Together, the three formidable young men would show the underworld of Southtown their collective Fatal Fury... «cue the corny music»
   To commemorate the 15th anniversary of the series, SNK Playmore reaches back in time and collects four Garou Densetsu games and stamps them onto one DVD. Since this is volume one of the Battle Archives, the second volume should contain the Real Bout games and perhaps Wild Ambition. The games in vol. 1 in the order of release are:

» Garou Densetsu aka Fatal Fury
» Garou Densetsu 2 aka Fatal Fury 2
» Garou Densetsu Special aka Fatal Fury Special
» Garou Densetsu 3 aka Fatal Fury 3

GDBA is a near 1:1 conversion overall with online multi-matching mode and character color mods to change Andy from trademark red to nouveau blue.
 

 

 

PS2 Garou Archives 2 JPN

New Import: US$29.00/ea
 PS2 Garou Densetsu Battle Archives 2 [Best]  - New, In Stock
«©NCSX» The Fatal Fury series went past trilogy status about a decade ago and the story of Geese Howard continued in the Real Bout series. With his star on the rise once again, Geese moves to retake control of SouthTown and is opposed by the Bogard siblings, Joe Higashi, and a host of others. Fatal Fury Battle Archives 2 collects the following games on one DVD:

» Real Bout Fatal Fury
» Real Bout Fatal Fury Special
» Real Bout Fatal Fury 2: The Newcomers

The most impressive game is Real Bout 2 with shiny visual gloss and intuitive, fluid gameplay that plays true to the Neo Geo source code. Plug in a Neo Geo joystick and you're home again. The "Newcomers" in Real Bout 2 refer to Li Xiangfei and Rick Strowd who joined the usual Fatal Fury stalwarts in the 2D, 2-plane fighting action. New to the PS2 game is a Practice Mode and online connectivity where bouts may be fought against other players on the Multi-Matching BB service.
 
 

PS2 Fuun Super Combo JPN

New Import: US$29.00/ea
 PS2 Fuuun Super Combo – SNK Best - New Import, In Stock
«©NCSX» It's been over a decade since Savage Reign aka Fuun Mokushiroku and Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle aka Fuun Super Tag Battle gobbled up credits in arcades across Japan. While neither game was particularly memorable or unique, Kizuna Encounter has the distinction of being a very rare and thus very expensive Neo Geo home cartridge.

   In Savage Reign, a hulking bruiser named Shishioh announces the Battle of the Beast God Tournament where he throws out a televised challenge to the greatest fighters in the world. From all corners of the planet, a motley assortment of nine combatants converge on Shishioh in respective bids to win untold wealth and fame.

   Kizuna Encounter takes place after the events of Savage Reign where Shishioh announces another Battle of the Beast God Tournament. In the first challenge, Shioshioh was soundly defeated by the boomerang-wielding Hayate. In the new contest, Shioshioh mandates that the fighters battle in teams of two - thus the "Tag Battle" distinction in the game title.
 
 

PS2 KOF Nests Collection JPN

New Import: US$29.00/ea
 PS2 King of Fighters NESTS Collection [Best] - New, In Stock