Watched Aegis of Uruk => pre-ordered => canceled => released => resisted => watched Sword of Uruk => really wanted her again => still resisted to get her online => saw her in a shop and asked and she was reserved so gave up => went back today to pick up a nendoroid and was informed that she’s available now => and here I am writing this up….

While she cannot really be classified under the “cheap” category as far as 1/8 scaled figures go, at first glance she still falls into the “worth the price” category at least for me. And after opening her and getting an even closer look, she’s definitely a purchase I don’t regret.

These pictures here depict her without her mantle, with the mantle pics further down the post. A peg goes through each foot, and personally, the peg on her left foot doesn’t really feel very secure to me, though only time will tell if it’ll actually hold. As far as the shoot went, proceeded smoothly enough without any sign of trouble.

I really like how she looks in this sculpt, and hair color was done really nicely as well.

Hair sculpted really nicely as well, though the lock of hair on her left tends to obscure her face somewhat.

Her clothes are really awesome with really nice detail all around, clean paint job, and a nice finished look to it. Can’t say it’s a really complicated design, but it’s nothing plain either and depending on tastes, that may be a good or bad thing. Works for me though.

A peg inserts into her left hand from her weapon to keep the weapon in place. The frills on her shoulder are removable and have to be removed in order to place her mantle on.

Really nice finish on her weapon, and has articulated parts that depict the weapon in ready or standby mode. Basically the pincer like things you see can be slid forward and clamped shut.

Something I’m never fond of really, figures with human-like proportions at the thighs :p I guess I just like my thighs stick-thin or something, or something not quite as “full” I guess. Nice little detail on her thighs though.

Boots have a nice design, and I really like how the paint looks on the metallic parts of this figure.

Haven’t been getting much Alter stuff lately, so going by past experience, I’ll just say that at least the base isn’t a plain ol’ base like Alter normally dishes out :p

Here’s Fatina with her mantle on, as mentioned earlier, the shoulder piece is removed, and reveals two holes on her shoulder where two pegs from the mantle insert into. The mantle is actually pretty light, but I noticed that the figure is still slightly weighed back by the mantle and tilts backwards just that little bit. I’d recommend bracing the mantle against a wall just so to offset the slight weight backwards to prevent any heartbreaks in the future just in case.

In the end I chose to display the figure with the mantle, since I prefer that look more, though it does come with a few disadvantages, such as obscuring the detail on her back, that added weight on a figure that’s sculpted leaning backwards, and perhaps most importantly, she takes up a hell lot of real estate in the display. With the mantle flowing backwards, and her weapon poking out front, I can’t say she’s really space friendly and she’s fairly large for a 1/8 scaled figure as well.

Just a few shots of a simple scene that hopefully reveals some nice angles which I most probably will miss anyways. Do enjoy them =)

A really great looking figure for me, and still in stock at most online retailers, no doubt due to combined factors such as her cost, and that the series really wasn’t a massive hit in the vein of stuff like SHnY or K-on. Still, I can actually say that she’s a nice grab all in all and is definitely worth the price tag in the end. Hopefully this little review helps you make a decision if you’re sitting on the fence and thinking =)

Series: The Tower of Druaga – the Aegis of URUK
Manufacturer: Alter
Released: Oct 2009
Price: 8200 Yen
Scale: 1/8 Scale
Availability: In stock @ HLJ & HobbySearch

A game I was totally looking forward to, considering how much I loved the atmosphere and story-telling in ef. Wasn’t really amused that I wasn’t able to access their site thanks to the foreign IP blocking nonsense and pretty much made do with what little information magazines provide, but decided that I wanted to support them nonetheless since I really liked the ef series.

So the main premise of the game goes that the world faces total destruction in 100 years. It was then that 2 plans were brought into action: a central government for the entire earth, and the “フェリクス計画 (Ferikusu plan)” which will lead the way to escape the earth into space. 99 years later, the plan has proceeded smoothly and the girl who has overseen the evacuation remains and the protagonist is assigned to protect her while she remains. The story begins when they meet…

Small box as per what the ef series came in, but also as pretty :p

Manual is the same deal as well, full color awesomeness of one piece of paper folded in half.

Minori discs always have such atmosphere to them~

Lycee trading card included inside the game.

And once you install PLUS+MOSAIC, an additional option pops up between Memories and Exit in the title screen. Besides the 18+ scenes that add-on disc includes, violence and blood is also more accurately reflected in eden*. The PLUS+MOSAIC option is not accessible until you have cleared the main game.

Same sized as the main game, but with the thickness of a DVD case. Quite a bare bones affair, just includes an installation sheet, the sheet with the serial number, and the game disc.

Game disc.

Phonecard that comes as a pre-order bonus. Nyaa~ Nothing great in terms of bonuses for eden*, but that’s mitigated somewhat by the very nice visuals, and story-telling that minori provides. There could be lots of sweet extras and whatnot included, but if it’s a crap game, it’s a crap game.

Characters

シオン – Sion

The Ferikusu that possesses the highest intelligence on earth. The most important element in the plan to evacuate earth. Her outer appearance resembles that of a young girl, but in reality has lived almost 100 years. Ever since her birth in the lab, she has never stepped out of the lab before. She wishes to stay on earth after the project has been successfully completed.

エリカ – Elica

Born from the same genes as Sion and plays the elder sister role, Elica specializes in medicine. Likes listening to music and cherishes an old radio. For some reason seems to know the protagonist from earlier before they met.

浅井・F・ラヴィニア – Asai.F.Lavinia

A sociable female soldier and is of the same age and rank as the protagonist. Paired together with him to be the bodyguards of Sion. Very popular among the other soldiers, with fights breaking out over her. Very proficient with knives, she has undertaken a secret mission from Naoto.

稲葉 直人 – Inaba Naoto

The commander in the lab where Sion resides, an excellent soldier but does not have any interest in promotions within the army. Sympathizes with Sion and Elica deep inside his heart, basically a nice guy. Was the person that helped the protagonist enter the army as a child.

榛名 亮 – Haruna Ryou

The protagonist of this tale, was assigned to the lab where Sion is to be her bodyguard. Was abandoned by his parents during troubled times and lived in the mountains, leaving his home and joining the army only after a certain incident happened. An exceptional soldier that has achieved great results in the battlefield.

And some sample screens of what I’ve seen so far~

Really sweet and stunning visuals, the atmosphere the game provides is truly awesome and since this is more an interactive novel rather than the AVG types where you make choices that determine the flow of the game, the way the story unfolds is really something that works. Featuring the “Musica” engine, the story plays like a movie where the camera shifts focal points depending on the situation and is truly a nice touch. And add to it a stellar soundtrack and great voice-acting (fully voiced, including protagonist) and you’ll be wanting more as the story proceeds. Definitely a game worth getting even from the little I’ve experienced so far.

Publisher: Minori
Character Design: ちこたむ (Chikotam), KIMちー(Kimcheee)
Genre: Interactive Novel (Romance)
Released: Sept 18, 2009
Price: 5800 Yen (eden* main game) – 1980 Yen (PLUS+MOSAIC)
Availability: eden* (in-stock @ HobbySearch & ErogeShop)
PLUS+MOSAIC (in-stock @ HobbySearch & ErogeShop)

The 2nd title from Minato Soft, with the 1st title being: “君が主で執事が俺で -- Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de” which most will be familiar with since it aired as an anime last year. This title as usual caught my eye in magazines and among the line up for August, this title definitely caught my interest the most, so here it is~ *May be NSFW*

The OP theme is titled: 愛で斬るなら痛くな～い！ -- Ai de Kiru nara Itakuna-i! and is performed by the 5 main heroines.

Pretty sweet box, and as you can see from the reverse of the box, a pretty large cast within the game as well.

Not exactly a game manual, but serves more as an installation guide, with the manual being installed instead and viewed as a web page. Contains the lyrics for the songs within the game as well.

2 game discs, where full installation equals 7.2 GBs.

Material book containing sketch art and CGs as well as a glossery of terms within the game. Included with the first print edition of the game. No pictures within since it’s recommended to avoid looking at it before beating the game to prevent spoilers and I’m a man who listens to sage advice…

System voice CD that is included in the official pre-order campaign. Contains system voices of about 50 characters within the game.

The other CD included in the pre-order campaign, includes the full tracks and karaoke versions of the songs within the game.

Screen cleaner which is a shop pre-order bonus.

That box thingie contains a B2-sized bath poster which also comes as a shop pre-order bonus. Same illustration as the phone card here, which is not shown due to obvious reasons.

Pretty much plays like other adventure games, with SD cut-ins during the game as well as a character select screen at intervals. Story thus far has been pretty awesome with lots of gags thrown in. Sub-characters are really engaging as well and things are shaping out to be really interesting at this point. Additional characters get unlocked as you progress through the game which certainly entices you to go for 100%, and all the heroines are pretty inviting as you shall see~

川神 百代 -- Kawakami Momoyo

Class: 3-F
Height: 173cm
3-size: 90 . 58 . 88
Blood Type: O
Birthdate/sign: Aug 31/Virgo
Weapon: Fists

The only elder person within the group of friends (風間ファミリー -- Kazama Family）. The protagonist (直江 大和 -- Naoe Yamato) is treated by her as her underling and she in turn plays an elder sister role to the protagonist.

神川 一子 -- Kamikawa Kazuko

Class: 2-F
Height: 159cm
3-size: 77 . 54 . 79
Blood Type: B
Birthdate/sign: Feb 26/Pisces
Weapon: Naginata

In the same class as Yamato, energetic and positive. Referred to as “Wan-ko” since her name can be read as one-ko and regarded in a friendly and close manner as their pet within the Kazama Family. Looks up to Momoyo and aims to be her equal, therefore always training.

椎名 京 -- Shiina Miyako

Class: 2-F
Height: 155cm
3-size: 84 . 59 . 83
Blood Type: A
Birthdate/sign: Apr 13/Aries
Weapon: Bow and arrow

Childhood friend of Yamato and a member of the family as well. Looks cute, but does not talk to anyone outside of the family, responding to others in a mechanical manner. Rescued by Yamato while being bullied when young, she has taken a liking to him and tries to get his attention whenever possible.

黛 由紀江 -- Mayuzumi Yukie

Class: 1-C
Height: 167cm
3-size: 88 . 56 . 87
Blood Type: AB
Birthdate/sign: Oct 26/Scorpio
Weapon: Japanese Sword

A very shy girl, she is unable to converse normally with others, and instead talks to her cellphone mascot strap which is pictured in game disc 2. Stays in the same dormitory as Yamato.

クリスティアーネ ・フリードリヒ -- Christine Friedrich

Class: 2-F
Height: 163cm
3-size: 80 . 58 . 81
Blood Type: A
Birthdate/sign: Oct 26/Scorpio
Weapon: Rapier

An overseas transfer student that joined the class of Yamato. Does not like the tactical style of Yamato, preferring a straight forward approach which is more in line with her character. Views Kazuko as her rival.

A pretty fun-filled game for me so far, and I’m expecting it to only get better. Theme of this game is centered mainly around friendship, and that’s always something that I enjoy. I’m probably gonna clear Miyako first, followed by Yukie (they’re both so cute!). With any luck, I’ll be able to update further. Until the next time where I can drop my stuff for the next post~

Publisher: Minato Soft
Character Design: wagi
Genre: Adventure/Fighting women & Romance
Released: Aug 28, 2009
Price: 10290 Yen
Availability: In stock @ ErogeShop

Yet another old figure released Dec 2008, but gotten only recently. Was another of those figures chopped off the preorder list before release but decided to get her after all since the price is pretty fair, it’s been a while since I bought anything, and the bunny she holds onto tempts me lots as well :p

Same honeycomb-like base as the first figure of the series: Mitsurugi Meiya, they’re meant to be displayed together with the bases fitting each other nicely. The third figure in the lineup: Kagami Sumika features the same type of base as well. Three pegs are on the base in total, with one each for the foot, and the third peg on the side of the base to lock bunny in position.

Pretty nice shading on her hair though it’s pretty hard to tell since I chose to go the incandescent and dark look once again. Hardly makes for review material really, which is why I’ve actually been sitting on posting this shoot for two weeks, but laziness gets the better of me so here it is anyway.

While Mitsurugi first attracted me due to the glossy and polished finished look of her suit, I have to say the next thing that attracted me to Kasumi other than the bunny would be her hair. The nice, sharp angles of her twintails, the two little feeler thingies sticking out at the nape of her neck, and the general detail of her hair are really nice. The highly polished surface now probably just give me headaches as dust shows up really obviously on it =/

The polished surface also almost allows you to see which brand of aluminum foil I use even for my reflector =/ But aside from those factors, the surface finish is still something different from most other figures out there so it’s always a welcome addition all in all. Design of her suit is somewhat simplistic yet futuristic enough to my little brain, and I really like how the blue on her suit looks.

More aluminum foil delight, and oh yeah, the logo too for the organization Kasumi belongs to.

Was a bit of a pain to fit Kasumi into the base since the rear peg that goes into her right foot felt a little too short and didn’t feel like it inserted fully into her toe region. Fit okay after a little bit of messing around.

Bunny love~~~~~~~~~

Another reason why I didn’t post this as early as I could have, since I could really figure out what kind of scene to set her with and things got put on the backburner soon enough and ended up that way for a while. Decided that less is probably more yet again in this case since trying any scene would be pushing things and leave a very forced feel overall. Went with just dusting off Meiya and throwing her in for this final photo :p Kasumi is a pretty sweet figure, though really not very eye-catching and would appeal to only certain tastes. Price of 6800Yen would likely tone down the urge to get her as well. Can’t say she’s highly recommended unless you’re a fan of the series, you can get her for a reduced price, or you simply love distorted bunnies.

Series: Muv-Luv Alternative
Manufacturer: Good Smile Company
Released: Dec 2008
Price: 6800 Yen
Scale: 1/8 Scale
Availability: In stock @ HLJ

For some reason, Kotonoha has always been a favorite of mine, never mind that she’s psychotic (or maybe because she is~). So this figure by Kotobukiya has actually been eagerly awaited by me, which I haven’t really felt that way before for quite a while now for most figures. So is this figure worth the anticipation by me? Personally I think so, she may be another of those plain, school-uniformed figures, but I think I wouldn’t have it any other way since it’s Kotonoha~

She pretty much comes out of the box like she’s leaning already, but that’s more the pose of the sculpt than anything else. She comes pre-attached to her base with a screw through her right foot. Parts that are removable include the cellphone she’s cradling, the two strands of hair flowing out by her sides, an optional face (Kotonoha-sama~), as well as the bag containing the you-know-what.

The normal face which she’s usually like. I prefer this face actually, not because it’s better or anything quality-wise, but more because I find it more comfortable looking into a face like this ^^;

Kotonoha-sama~~~ Not a look you really want on your girlfriend or significant other, unless you like pain and enjoy the scenery of the insides of a bag.

And Kotobukiya didn’t foul up much this time with Kotonoha, granted, there really isn’t much to mess up with a design like this. But I’d wager that it’s still possible to somehow mess up if you really want to. Her hair looks great, the two strands of hair fit in nicely enough and while it may be rather visible from the sides, it looks just fine when viewed from the front so that works for me, though it might not for others.

As mentioned earlier, simple design, so not much to mess up. Colors reflected in the review pics aren’t actually representative since I’ve opted for a warmer tone which I’ve been hooked on to recently :p Cellphone is inserted from below her right hand and wriggled in to fit. The grip is firm enough and doesn’t fall off, though it still might when trying to change her face since it’s kind of in the way.

Really great legs~ =D~ Her panties actually have a pretty sweet design as well, but I’m not going there for this review unfortunately ^^;

With legs like that, I would have chosen Kotonoha over Sekai no matter what and kept my head on and lived happily ever after really. Some men really don’t know what’s best for them :p But once again, no complaints about the finish of her legs.

The white lining along the bag’s edges could have been a little cleaner, guess handling the finer details aren’t really Koto’s strength, but with mass produced stuff, it isn’t very realistic to expect 100% anyways especially if you don’t have the luxury of picking and choosing the figure. The zipper is done pretty nicely though and looks believable enough. The bag is pretty heavy too and makes a great missile weapon if needed.

Two backdrops this time for the two different face parts. Had more fun shooting the Kotonoha-sama mode overall and in any case, I hope you’ll enjoy the shots too.

Pretty thankful that Koto didn’t really mess up with this figure since Kotonoha has always had a special place in my heart :p (Heck, she’s the one I sleep with at night xD) At 6800 Yen, might not be at a price where most collectors would be willing to fork out for a school uniform figure considering more action-packed figures such as the Shuraki series cost that same amount. And well, the bag is kinda morbid as well if you think about it. So I can’t honestly say this is a must-grab, but if you have cash/space to spare, and/or a fan of School Days or Kotonoha, it’s certainly a nice add to the collection.

Series: School Days
Manufacturer: Kotobukiya
Released: July 2009
Price: 6800 Yen
Scale: 1/8 Scale
Availability: In stock @ HLJ & HobbySearch

A November release last year which I received around December if I remember correctly, and finally decided to open it to get her out for a shoot. And with great pleasure and tears at having to remove the nice bubblewrap in which the seller kindly packed her in, I present Natsume Rin of Little Busters! fame.

A pretty small figure in part due to her pose and will probably turn most people off with her rather hefty price tag of 6800 Yen (Feels like Max Factory’s Taiga, but slightly taller at about 12cm). She’s only available originally via magazine order or Kotobukiya’s online shop, and I got her via ebay in the end since it’s probably the most convenient method for me.

She can be displayed without the many cats around though without the cat hanging off her left shoulder, viewers will be treated to a gaping hole on her back where the cat slots in. As well as a little hole on the base which fixes the cat on her left thigh in place. Otherwise, two pegs from the base slot into Rin’s toes to keep her in place on the base. The baseball bat and helmet are optional parts as well and an additional hair piece is included in order for her to wear the baseball helmet.

Many complaints about her seem to be mainly about how her eyes were done and I guess they kinda give off the @@” feel in this case. Her hair is really nicely done though, much more so than the first version of her also by Kotobukiya.

And cats are always a nice add to any figure I guess ^^;

I prefer this version’s look of the uniform as well. Can’t say that the finish on it is excellent though, which is always common when you’re talking Kotobukiya I guess.

Nyaa~

Nyaa~ Nyaa~ Nyaa~

Plastic stick poster that came along with the figure.

Pamphlet on the left and pencil board on the right.

Reverse of pencil board.

Reverse and content of the pamphlet.

Simple setup this time round. Summer has been really hot these days so too much effort probably would have me collapsing in the end :p My apologies~

As earlier mentioned, pretty hefty price tag even if it does come with lotsa cute cats so I can’t say it’s highly recommended. Not helped by the fact that it isn’t for general release either which probably doesn’t help to lower prices. And Kotobukiya doesn’t always produce stuff that justifies their prices is what I feel. A great grab nonetheless for the ones who like Rin or anything Little Busters! in general.

Series: Little Busters!
Manufacturer: Kotobukiya
Released: Nov 2008
Price: 6800 Yen
Scale: 1/8 Scale
Availability: Not for general sale, however, in-stock @ beNippon (have never tried them out personally though)

Came into my hands courtesy of a friend since I got this figure for him and he graciously agreed to let me take her out for some shots before passing it over to him. Haven’t watched Kara no Kyoukai yet since I’m waiting for the whole series to actually be completed first before going on a marathon with it. Hopefully I’m not gonna get remorse for skipping over her after watching the series =/

Definitely one of the nicer figures that come with a chair among a few others. And any lady with a cigarette between her fingers is always a good thing for me :p Touko comes with interchangeable heads which you can observe from the very first picture. I very much prefer her with glasses though even though I mostly prefer angrier looks. It just looks better somehow.

Glasses aren’t removable though I think she looks perfectly fine with them anyways. No real complaints about this figure either aside from the usual inconsistencies that come along with mass production. How her head fits in is really nicely done too that you can’t really tell that the entire skin region on the chest area actually detaches together with the head.

A bit of rough patches on her ponytail, thankfully, it’s limited to that area and won’t be really visible while on display.

Top is nicely sculpted. With folds looking natural and real.

Cigarette is removable but fits snugly and steadily between her fingers. Wristwatch on her left arm is done well and is actually worn on reverse by Touko. I assume that’s how she wears her watches.

Really nice legs and pants =O~~~~~

Very stylish shoes as well. She may have simple design, but it’s definitely not a bad thing in this case.

The armchair actually swivels and the wheels are movable as well, which is a nice touch since they could have just made it fixed . Detail and finish on the chair are nicely done as well. A base is also included with the series title on it. I probably wouldn’t use the base since it’s rather huge and the figure is really stable without the base anyways.

A pretty sweet figure that pretty much sold out on arrival at HLJ and didn’t take too long to sell out on HS either. So I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I won’t feel like getting her after I catch the series. Though since I normally like all things Type-Moon, I suspect I’ll be more than in a bit of trouble once I catch the show ^^;

Series: Kara no Kyoukai – The Garden of Sinners
Manufacturer: Alter
Released: July 2009
Price: 6800 Yen
Scale: 1/8 Scale
Availability: Sold out at most online retailers

Caught my eye when it was first announced, the period this story is set in (1923) was something different from most of the other stuff I have so far as well and it’s of the mystery genre. Character design was done by Tony and the scenario was done by 丸谷秀人 (Marutani Hideto) who worked on Twinkle Crusaders as well so it pretty much had everything going for it. Definitely not safe for work post this time and if you’re easily offended by nudity, please move along to some other post~ =)

Set in 1923, the protagonist, Viscount Masashige Yagisawa (矢旗澤 政重), receives an invitation to visit from a friend, Harumichi Odagiri (織田桐 治道) who has been secluding himself from the world. Together with his adopted sister and another mutual friend, they visit and Harumichi collapses and passes away during their visit. Days later, Masashige is informed by the butler of Harumichi that Harumichi has prepared an inheritance for him. Masashige follows the butler into the cellar of the Odagiri estate and finds a mysterious, young lady asleep within. Masashige whispers into the girl’s ears, she awakens, and addresses him as “Master” and smiles. The butler then informs Masashige that the master of the the young lady can do whatever he wants with her…

Two versions of the game were released, the Pretty Box edition as well as Tony’s Box edition. Pictured here is the Tony’s Box edition which features a special illustration for the box art, as well as stuff such as an illustration book, a plastic slipcase which has Tony’s signature printed on it, a soundtrack, and a bedsheet.

Game manual in full color.

A double disc game, requires disc 1 to be in the drive when running the game.

Box containing the bedsheet which measures 1350mm * 1900mm. The main factor that made the Tony’s Box edition almost double the price I suppose.

The plastic slipcase which contains the game box as well as the bedsheet box.

The soundtrack which contains the OP and ED song as well as BGM tracks within the game. It also contains system voices from the three main heroines. The pretty box edition on the other hand contains a drama disc.

Artbook which is in A4 format and contains 96 pages.

Contains promotion illustration material as well, and line art of CGs within the game.

Really would have preferred a phonecard of Kasumi (香純) =(

All things said and done, other than the stuff that comes with the game, this is one pretty massive game with 48 endings which are all roughly equivalent, over 160 CGs  by Tony, and a scenario by Marutani Hideto which is over 6MB in size (a 10-page essay I did back in school is roughly about 46kb).

This game presents two modes as well, namely: novel mode and window mode which displays how the game is sort of displayed depending on your preference. Content doesn’t change per se, just more like how the story is presented. As some characters come from different countries as well, the user has the option to select either the original native language used or to have everything in Japanese.

Game in Novel Mode.

Game in Window Mode.

Some backgrounds within the game.

Main Heroines

少女 -- Shoujo

The girl in the cellar left behind by Harumichi for the protagonist. Not just appearance-wise, but even her voice and actions are sweet and angelic. She does not know anything about herself, and can’t even fend for herself, having to depend on her master even for meals.

織田桐 香純 -- Kasumi Yagisawa

Adopted sister of Masashige. Originally the daughter of a servant in the Yagisawa Household, she was taken in by Masashige’s mother after her own mother passed away. Cheerful, active, and mischievous when she was young, she is now quiet and calm and does not talk much and her current demeanour suggests that she is afraid of something.

織田桐 舞子 -- Maiko Odagiri

Eldest daughter of the Odagiri household and sister to Harumichi. Married to a tycoon in Shanghai and has not been in contact since but has returned seemingly in time for the death of Harumichi. Quiet while she was young, she has since changed completely. She appears to have considerable influence in the underground world in Shanghai as well as possess some knowledge about the girl in the cellar.

An interesting game so far, seeing the protagonist deal with his inner demons as well as the inner turmoils the other characters face. Currently trying to know more about Kasumi and her demons but things don’t look quite good from what I’m seeing in the artbook =/ But with the 48 endings, there has to be something nice that happens somewhere right? ^^; And with a patch released on release date that adds two extra scenarios, this promises to be a game that will take quite a while to finish. Thankfully, the journey for full completion doesn’t appear to be a drag with pretty visuals along the way together with what so far is an enjoyable scenario.

Publisher: PIL/STONE HEADS
Character Design: Tony Taka
Genre: Novel/Adventure -- Mystery
Released: Jul 10, 2009
Price: 14,800 Yen (Tony’s Box), 8800 Yen (Pretty Box)
Availability: In Stock @ ErogeShop -- Tony’s Box -    Pretty Box

Not exactly the most confidence inspiring game in the sense that 2 patches have been released with the first patch available on the day it was released. But being Rosebleu’s debut release, I suppose it can’t be helped and further delays to the game wouldn’t be nice as well to the fans. In any case, the patches at least show to me that they care to make things right and that’s always a plus. In any case, rather picture intensive post and may not be safe for work. You have been warned~

Being stuck in customs for a whole two weeks, I was kind of wondering if the authorities were actually waiting for an arrest warrant to be issued before they called me up to let me know I could pick it up thanks to all the ruckus stirred up by certain….. people….. Hell, I may still be under watch by the men in black so I better get this post done with, if there’s no response after this post, I’m probably in a nice, cold room somewhere here enjoying heartfelt, late night talks with gruff but gentle machos explaining how the appearance of age is really very subjective and that I didn’t really mean to hurt anyone by liking pixels on my computer screen.

One of the nicer game boxes I’ve gotten this year and nicely sized. It also doubles as a frame kind of thingie which you can use to display around the house nicely.

Guess a pretty disc deserves some form of love no matter what :p

Game manual in full color.

Game disc.

Clear plastic bookmarks of Izumi Sola (泉空) and Fujisaki Amane (藤崎天音) that come with the first print edition.

Guest illustration book that contains er…. guest illustrations of the characters in Stellar Theater by several illustrators. Illustrators (in no particular order) include:

あずまゆき (Azumayuki)、植田亮 (Ueda Ryou)、☆画野朗 (Gayarou)、CARNELIAN、兼清みわ (Kanekiyo Miwa)、カントク (Kantoku)、きみづか葵 (Kimizuka Aoi)、くすくす (KusuKusu)、源ノ助 (Gennosuke)、九尾 (Kokonobi)、桜沢いづみ (Sakurazawa Izumi)、司田カズヒロ (Shida Kazuhiro)、しんたろー (Shintaroー)、鈴平ひろ (Suzuhira Hiro)、絶叫 (Zekkyou)、七尾奈留 (Nanao Naru)、羽音るな (Haoto Luna)、橋本タカシ (Hashimoto Takashi)、フミオ (Fumio)、べっかんこう (Bekkankou)、みけおう (mikeou)、Mitha、わき (Waki).

Guess who? Two of these at least should be very obvious since their style is very distinct And that’s it for the stuff that came with the first print.

BGM OST and DramaCD that came with the preorder campaign.

Soundtrack CD

Drama CD

Booklet for storing the clear plastic bookmarks and includes the bookmarks for Kanou Seia (狩野星亜) and Himenomiya Kaguya (姫ノ宮輝夜). Would kinda suck if you got this booklet from the preorder campaign somehow but missed out on Sola and Amane’s bookmark though since they come separately.

Thankfully, it comes with a plastic wrap which still allows you to open up the booklet. Would have been a pity to not be able to see it if you don’t like to unwrap your stuff like me.

Sola~~~~~ xD

As mentioned in the beginning, Stellar Theater is Rosebleu’s debut production, as well as 鈴平ひろ (Suzuhira Hiro’s) first game totally in charge of character designs. In case you don’t know who she is, she did the design for Shigure Asa in Shuffle!, had a hand in Pia Carrot 3, designed the waitress uniform in 11 eyes, as well as did some characters for Yosuga no Sora. She also did the original illustration that was made into this figure. And that’s it for the goodies that came with the game and the little bit of background on the game and on to the game itself.

In novel mode, it pretty much looks just like any other game out there and it comes fully voiced with the exception of the protagonist.

A screen of normal gameplay without the textbar.

So during the game, you get the standard choices to make now and then, as well as options to visit several places. And depending on your choices, you get different key words that you’ll be able to use in the “Horoscope Tree System (ホロスコープツリー)” within the game and progress the story. The system allows the protagonist to view the past in order to solve present events, to view the past, the correct key words that have a relation have to be chosen.

And for the past events you view, the stars on the tree light up and you’ll be able to get a summary of the event that occurred when you mouseover the lit star.

Pretty simple menu, with most of the staple options except for the Key Word and Horoscope Tree option.

And the two CGs show the “megane system (メガネシステム)” which started off as a “just for fun” thing for the production staff and because the boss of Rosebleu has a glasses fetish and felt that there wasn’t enough spectacled goodness in the game, made the system part of the final release :p

Main Heroines

泉空 -- Izumi Sola

Height: 144cm
Vitals: 71(A)/54/74
Blood Type: AB
Hobbies: Shopping, trying clothes on
Special Skill: Short distance running
Inept at: Sewing
Likes: Taking walks, casually walking and looking at various things
Dislikes: Unnecessary consideration towards her

A childhood friend of the protagonist but moved away 7 years ago and is supposed to have passed away but have appeared in front of the protagonist again and is one of the candidates to be part of the 12 Zodiacs. Treats the protagonist coldly for some reason, being friendly with everyone else. She looks exactly the same physically as she did when they last parted due to the full awakening of her constellation powers.

狩野星亜 -- Kanou Seia

Height: 161cm
Vitals: 83(C)/57/85
Blood Type: A
Hobbies: Hidden effort
Special Skill: Home cooking (limited to plain, simple cooking)
Inept at: Flashy displays or items
Likes: Sweet stuff
Dislikes: Spicy stuff (Curry has to be sweet)

Younger sister of the current Leo Zodiac and one of the candidates for the 12 Zodiacs. Has considerable power but has not fully awakened yet. Transferred to the protagonist’s school in order to take part in the candidate exam and became his classmate. A hardworking person by nature, Seia achieves outstanding results in both academics and sports. But due to her serious nature and the pride that comes along with it, she dislikes being found out to be hardworking behind the scenes.

藤崎天音 -- Fujisaki Amane

Height: 149cm
Vitals: 77(B)/55/80
Blood Type: B
Hobbies: Collecting cuttings of newspaper articles
Special Skill: High handed persuasion
Inept at: Staying still
Likes: Making a ruckus with everyone, festivals
Dislikes: Coffee

A childhood friend of the protagonist and Sola and plays the role of the elder sister in the group. Her favorite motto is: “Short in height, but big in heart”. Has a childlike exterior but possesses a dependable personality. Has a fair bit of brother-complex and pampers the protagonist lots, supporting him when he lost Sola years ago with another childhood friend.

姫ノ宮輝夜 -- Himenomiya Kaguya

Height: 158cm
Vitals: 88(E)/58/84
Blood Type: O
Hobbies: All domestic chores
Special Skill: Massage
Inept at: Dealing with inconsiderate people
Likes: Novels oriented towards the general public, considerate people, having her head rubbed
Dislikes: Certain fetish oriented novels

Transferred to the protagonist’s school to take part in the candidate exam. In the same class as the protagonist’s younger sister. Lost her family in an accident and was taken in by relatives, in which she took it upon herself to deal with all the household chores. A refined personality, Kaguya is the type that displays the feminine virtues of old Japan. Considering others over herself, Kaguya is very popular in school.

And that’s it for the main heroines, do check out Roesbleu’s website for descriptions on the other characters and more~

From what I’ve played so far, the story is interesting with fun dialogue all around. Voice acting was done really well and the in-game system is really interesting. It’s Suzuhira Hiro’s designs, and I’ve always liked them, so that’s definitely another plus for me. Sola is definitely my favorite, followed by Amane, Seia, then Kaguya (I guess it speaks of my dislike for big boobs~ =/). With only four Zodiacs revealed in this game, hopefully there will be a sequel or fan disk of sorts in the future. The protagonist’s sister is really cute as well :p

Publisher: Rosebleu
Character Design: 鈴平ひろ (Suzuhira Hiro)
Genre: ADV — Romance
Released: Jun 26, 2009
Price: 8800 Yen
Availability: In stock @ ErogeShop

A December release, and one that I’ve been waiting for more than half a year before it finally arrived. This is definitely well worth the wait for me, considering Yukiko is my favorite character in the game as well (≧▽≦)

A release by Alter and only available via the Atlus Shop website. She comes in a normal version (Weapon being: Hanachirusato [花散里]) and a limited version that depicts her extra weapon obtained by defeating the secret boss in her castle: Suzaku Feather (孔雀の尾羽). Got the limited version (odd since both of them are kind of limited, especially if you don’t live in Japan) for myself though now I’m pretty tempted actually to hunt down the normal version as well ^^;

Her pose definitely isn’t of the boring category. Two pegs go in her right foot and one on her left. Clear yellow base with the P4 brand on it. Figure stands about 19.5cm and is at 1/8 scale.

For those familiar with the game, you’ll probably know what the glasses are for. In any case, they’re included as optional parts with this figure and personally, I prefer Yukiko without glasses since I’m not much of a glasses guy (probably because I have to wear em for the rest of my life -_-;)

I really like how her hair was done and can’t get enough of it. Quite a lot of action going for the hair sculpt which is really sweet.

No messy paint jobs all around though it really isn’t a complicated color scheme and there’s not much to botch I guess.

I really like how her cardigan was sculpted as well. While it isn’t the most colorful cardigan, the design and sculpt of it is really sweet.

Sleeves are not ignored as well sculpt-wise.

Yukiko’s secret weapon, the Suzaku Feather (孔雀の尾羽). It’s removable as well and the fit is pretty good, no danger of it falling off whatsoever.

Really nice pattern and movement on the skirt as well, with additional shading at the edges.

Details nicely done on the shoes as well.

Nice, long legs. But besides that, they bothered to sculpt in the tendons behind her knee through her stockings as well.

A closer look at the base as well as her shoes.

And for those familiar with Persona4, you probably know that the dungeons within the game reflect the inner psyche of different people. And thus I present to you facets of what I’m really like inside in the backgrounds of the next few shots. Yeah, I know, I’m totally random and ridiculous :p

There’s really nothing I can complain about this figure, though probably more than a bit is due to my own bias ^^; Alter really did an awesome job on Yukiko and it’s a pity that Rise is in a swimsuit (though the Atlus Shop Rise looks a lot better than the normal version IMO) and the WAVE version of Rise is well….. it’s WAVE…  But all in all I’m happy enough that Yukiko is obtained =) She’s definitely a nice grab for fans and non-fans alike. Not exactly a cheap figure to obtain (unless you live in Japan) but you may luck out and be able to get her cheaply enough （*＾ー゜)ｖ With any luck I’ll be able to get a normal version for myself as well hopefully xD

Series: Persona 4
Manufacturer: Alter
Released: Dec 2008
Price: 6500 Yen
Scale: 1/8 Scale
Availability: Atlus “D” Shop exclusive