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| Thursday
(November 05, 1998) |
|
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| SONYPS Vampire
Saviour EX Edition and Carnage Heart 2nd Zeus were shipped
overnight and are expected tomorrow. Those two should make up the totality of the NCS
import experience this week due to a slow market in Japan. |
|
| An update regarding the
SATURN Langrisser Tribute that we opened pre-orders for last week. The
deluxe package will include Langrisser Dramatic Edition (Langrisser 1 and 2), Langrisser
3, 4, 5, a telephone card and a special Langrisser booklet that looks back at the popular
series. The package will include 4 CD Roms. Langrisser Tribute is expected to ship on
December 23 at a retail of Y9800. |
|
| One new Saturn import was
announced overnight for delivery on December 17. Girl Doll Toy is an
adult adventure from Xuse that has been ported over from the PC in it's uncensored form.
Pre-orders from adults over 18 are welcome. |
| NCS Domestic Playstation sale listing |
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|
CT #034 US$3.00 |
|
| Candy Toy Daily |
| A glittering Pocket Monster
pendant awaits the purchaser of today's CT. A large variety of Pocket Monsters are
available, including such names as Pikachu, Rattata, Pigeotto, Meowth, and Bell Sprout.
Pendant can theoretically also be used as a keychain since it comes with a hook-clasp. |
| Click for the
monster menagerie pictured on the back of the box |
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| Wednesday
(November 04, 1998) |
|
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| So
much noise out there concerning the Dreamcast. While we have not received final
confirmation from anyone concerning the quantities and pricing, we do have one observation
to make. When the Sega Saturn and Sony Playstation consoles were first announced in Japan,
distribution houses in Tokyo were able to quote pricing, albeit outrageously high pricing,
for the consoles months before delivery. It is now less than a month before the Dreamcast
is slated to ship and we have no word, no confirmation, and not even an estimate
of the quantity that we can buy. This is odd and very frustrating, to say
the least. We are perfectly willing to place a large deposit to guarantee quantity but
with no one willing to commit to pricing and numbers, we sit on our hands and wait. We've
heard all the rumors, both from customers and from staff at Japanese magazines, vendors,
and distribution houses. Some of the rumors are laughable but others are seemingly
probable. One rumor that is likely true which NCS will relay to our customers and visitors
is that Asia will not have the Dreamcast until January 10. NCS still deals and maintains
contact with all of the major houses in Asia and it appears that one of the two licensed
Sega agents in Hong Kong will only be given 10-20 Dreamcast consoles at the outset. Demand
is easily 10,000 times that in the city alone. This means the supply will only be used as
demonstration units to gear up demand for the next Sega allotment in 1999. The main bulk
of units will be in Japan but even Japanese companies are unable to commit. If the
situation becomes such that prices are marked up to the moon, NCS will have to reassess
the market and plan our Dreamcast strategy. We absolutely do not want a repeat of the N64
debacle where first day prices were ~US$700 for the console. Less than two weeks later,
prices were cut in half as supply flooded the market. Many, many customers were not happy
when that happened and companies lost a lot of money. Sega held a conference with some of
the major distributors in Japan overnight concerning Dreamcast. NCS expects some news from
our primary Japanese vendor tomorrow or Friday concerning delivery details and pricing. Of
course, nothing is guaranteed but we do require the information to plan our course of
action, since we have thousands of reservations on hand and e-mail inquiries on Dreamcast
fill our mailbox every day. If NCS receives more information and details, we will relay
them on this page. Until then, please refrain from sending e-mail concerning these issues
since we don't have all the answers at this point. We should have them within the next two
days and by then, you'll know what we know. Guaranteed. Thank you. |
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|
 |
Candy
Toy #011 US$3 |
|
| Candy Toy of the Day (CT #011) |
| Ultraman Spinning Top
provides hours of mesmerizing fun as you insert the space-age looking top into a launcher
and rev it up for a dance on the floor. Also includes a bag of crunchy candy which should
provide you with energy to spin. |
| Click for the
photo |
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|
The following USA releases
arrived a couple of days ago and are available for shipping.
| N64 |
F-Zero X |
Nintendo |
US$49 |
| N64 |
Silicon Valley |
Take Two |
US$49 |
| Sony |
Medieval |
Sony |
US$39 |
| Sony |
Metal Gear Off. Guide |
Millenium |
US$9 |
| Sony |
Rival Schools |
Capcom |
US$39 |
| Sony |
Test Drive OR 2 |
Accolade |
US$39 |
|
|
|
The following USA releases
arrived a little while ago and are now on sale
| N64 |
GT 64 |
Ocean |
US$45 |
| N64 |
WWF Warzone |
Acclaim |
US$47 |
| Sony |
San Francisco Rush |
Midway |
US$33 |
| A listing of one and two
piece USA stock items that NCS still carries in inventory will be posted tomorrow in the hopes
that we clear the stock. |
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| The rest of the week appears
to be exceedingly slow, importwise. Japan is returning from a one day vacation and most of
the action appears to be in USA releases this month with Tomb Raider 3 and Turok 2
expected |
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| Tuesday
(November 03, 1998) |
|
|
| A late shipment of magazines arrived this morning. Subscriptions and single issue
orders will ship today. There is another incoming periodicals container at port right now
and we hope to take delivery of those cartons on Thursday if there are no further delays. |
|
| Japan was on holiday
overnight. Culture Day is observed on November 03 and celebrates the development of
Japan's unique culture. Traditional festivals and events are held and exhibitions in the
fields of painting, movies, music and writing are displayed. No video games are celebrated
just yet, but perhaps in another 20 years when the Nintendo generation takes power. |
|
| New Candy Toys are released
every season in Japan. The next batch should start shipping in January with a new
collection of figures, novelties and gadgets. NCS expects to receive a CT catalog of the
hundred or so new ones expected next year and will post up scans of some of the more
interesting ones to accept pre-orders in December. |
|
|
 |
| Candy Toy of the Day (CT #033) |
Per
unit US$8.00 |
| Talking Pokemon Toy with 3 inch tall Pikachu
that is powered by two batteries (incl). Press a button on the back of Pikachu and it'll
yell out it's name via a speaker in it's rear. Bolt-on zig-zag tail also included. Very
cool and one of our favorite CTs. |
| Click
for the NCS photo |
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| Monday
(November 02, 1998) |
|
|
| The Neo Geo Pocket enjoyed a
successful debut in Japan and is now sold out. The second production run of the handheld
will be on November 09. The limited edition colors of the NGP (Camouflage Blue, Camouflage
Brown, and Maple Blue) will be re-produced but again, in limited numbers. Due to the
continued fall of the U.S. dollar, the second batch of NGP from SNK is quoted at higher
prices. If NCS does decide to import the second batch, the prices will be roughly US$73
for the handheld. NCS has inventory of the NGP handheld at the regular price of US$68
but will likely sell out today. |
|
| The Metal Gear Solid Premium
Package Gold Version has been made available again to distributors. NCS was unable to
secure any of the Gold Versions when the game initially shipped but it appears that some
stock has resurfaced in Japan. The prices are unfavorably high but we will source a small
quantity to add to our inventory. We expect to take delivery in a week's time. Full
details on the package will be posted then. |
|
| Coconuts has released a
version of Densha de Go (Y3980) for the Gameboy. The popular train
simulation actually looks decent on the small screen but it pales to playing the game on a
console with the condutor controller. Interested parties may special order the GB version
of Densha with NCS for delivery in 1 week. |
|
|
Pre-orders for the following Playstation
imports will close at the end of business today. Delivery this month
| Advan Racing |
Atlus |
US$51 |
| Doumo no Yabou 2 |
Banpresto |
US$51 |
| Guyferd |
Capcom |
US$51 |
| Juggernaut |
Tonkin |
US$60 |
| Meitantei Conan |
Bandai |
US$51 |
| R-Type Delta |
Irem |
US$51 |
| Tsun Tsun Gumi 2 |
Kodansha |
US$40 |
|
| Doumo no Yabou is an
F1 racing sim while Guyferd is an interaction adventure movie. Juggernaut is a 3 CD 3-D
horror adventure and Meitantei follows the adventures of a boy detective. R-Type Delta is
the latest in the shooter epic and Tsun Tsun is a colorful Puyo Puyo style puzzle game. |
|
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| Pocket Bowling
(US$39) for the Color Gameboy was released last Thursday in Japan.
Pre-orders are welcome for delivery next Monday. |
|
| A much delayed shipment of
import magazines is expected tomorrow. Such tardiness shouldn't be tolerated but we're at
the mercy of the freight forwarders. |
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