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Daizenshuu EX - Updates from May 2009 |
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31 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 11:45 pm EDT -- Episode #0177 of the podcast is available for download! Meri and I took a listen with the "Dragon Soul" CD single for your review enjoyment. We also talked about the latest two episodes of Kai, went through some great e-mail, etc. You know the drill by now. Download the show now, or head on over to the podcast page for more information or to subscribe.
We didn't get around to sharing all of these links last week, so here are the official press releases from Namco-Bandai announcing that all recent video games will see a release in Europe:
There is also a ton of Atari/Infogrames news, but it will have to wait until tomorrow so I can type up a coherent explanation. It's all in the podcast episode, if you want to give a listen.
We are also re-debuting the "Music" section of the site with this episode! You will find exclusive music for download that has been premiered first on the podcast. The "Music Database" has been moved over to the "Guides" section and has a few updates here and there. I still have some tinkering to do with it, so go easy on me until I have a chance to give it a fresh look tomorrow with some sleep in me...!
Don't forget about our contest... you have just a few days left to get in those entries and win the two "Super Exciting Guide" books...! |
25 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 9:10 pm EDT -- Episode #0176 of the podcast is available for download! We apologize for the day-late-posting on it, but it's a long holiday weekend for us... so that's our excuse. This week we brought on Herms (and eventually Hujio showed up) from Kanzentai to discuss and totally dissect the two recent "Super Exciting Guide" books from Japan. Beyond some of the repeated information from past books, we got a chance to dig into new information like Mr. Satan's real name, and perhaps the most intriguing, the idea of "Makaiôshin". Download the show now, or head on over to the podcast page for more information or to subscribe.
We had to leave you with the following image to go alongside one of the later discussions in the episode. You'll know it when you hear it.
We also started up our newest contest with this episode! Do not fear, non-podcast-listeners... this one is (as always) open to everyone.
If you are interested in winning copies of both books courtesy of our good buddy Tanooki Kuribo, head on over to the "Contests" page for full details. You have a little under two weeks... get those entries in!
VegettoEX @ 10:59 am EST -- Just as we have been expecting based on the current relationships between Namco-Bandai and Infogrames, Namco-Bandai will be releasing the new Wii game entirely on their own in Europe. Re-titled (from Tenka-ichi Dai-Bôken to) Revenge of King Piccolo, it should show up over in Europe some time in the fall of this year.
CERGY-PONTOISE, FRANCE – 25 May 2009 – NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe S.A.S. today announced the forthcoming launch of Dragon Ball®: Revenge of King Piccolo exclusively for Wii. Scheduled for European launch this autumn 2009, Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo promises to thrill fans with the first ever appearance of the original Dragon Ball story on Wii in glorious 3D.
Heading back to the early days of the Dragon Ball story, players will control Kid Goku as he sets out on fantastic adventures with his friends. The title faithfully reproduces the uniqueness and special humour of the early Dragon Ball series, while adding an original blend of action and adventure to the mix. With the original Japanese music and voiceover included for maximum authenticity, Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo offers fans a dazzling new experience with the characters and universe they know and love.
The visuals in Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo take the series to a new level by faithfully reproducing on-screen the original drawings of legendary Dragon Ball artist Akira Toriyama down to the finest pen strokes. Thanks to the high-quality, state-of-the-art graphics, fans will be able to immerse themselves in the Dragon Ball universe like never before.
Game modes include Story mode which follows Kid Goku from the Red Ribbon Saga to the King Piccolo Saga with the ability to replay previously completed stages, and the unlockable VS mode where players can take different unlocked characters into battle.
With in-game collectables, a host of unlockables, and more fun, fights and adventure than ever before all delivered in dazzling 3D, Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo is the definitive Dragon Ball videogame experience coming to Wii this autumn 2009.
Still no word on an American release, but we will of course keep you up-to-date. Same goes for the now-a-little-old new DS game, faithfully translated as (but dropping the "Kai" element), Attack of the Saiyans.
Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans coming exclusively to Nintendo DS™ this autumn 2009 in Europe and the PAL regions.
The game follows the Saiyan Saga of the original DBZ story starting from the World Tournament and Goku’s triumphant defeat of Piccolo. Players will take the role of Goku and travel the DBZ universe from jungle to Snow Mountain on their quest to victory.
Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans features a host of original features which will be sure to thrill fans, such as brand new gameplay, unique game modes, fun side quests and content never before seen in either the anime or manga series.
More details about this exciting addition to the DBZ range of video games will be announced soon. Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans is scheduled for launch across Europe and the PAL regions in autumn 2009.
We will hit you back later not only with the podcast episode for this week, but also a new contest! Stay tuned...! |
22 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 11:05 am EST -- In addition to the news below, we just added a quick update over to the "CD Singles" page. Since the Dragon Soul CD single is out, we have an official tracklisting for it. We also have the tracklisting for the Yeah! Break! Care! Break! CD single, though no cover art yet. Look for a review of the opening's CD single very soon. We'll also be giving away a copy of the Limited Edition version, so stay tuned!
VegettoEX @ 10:12 am EST -- We are finally getting a chance to catch up on a couple news stories still straggling behind.
First up is the home release of Evolution, which seems to be coming 28 July 2009. Amazon's listings for both the DVD and Blu-ray have this date, so it seems like a pretty safe call. Our buddy godofchaos over at The Fanboy Review also notes that the home release (or at least a particular version of a home release) may be getting the subtitle "Z-Edition" from Fox. After having watched a screener of this version, it was noted that no additional footage was contained within the normal stretch of the movie, though this does not include any extra material that will be included.
In related news, it looks like the Japanese DVD and Blu-ray release will be on 24 July 2009, and will include English subtitles along with their Japanese dub.
Our European buddy sangofe managed to get in touch with Plus Licens and inquired about the franchise's situation over there. I clearly remember reading this on the podcast back in April, but it doesn't appear to have ever hit the home page.
Thank you for your e-mail concerning DragonBall. Plus Licens represents the rights holders for the DragonBall TV series, DragonBall GT and DragonBall Z, as well as the upcoming movie DragonBall: Evolution, in the Nordic region and Eastern Europe. This map shows the countries in question: (link #1)
For DragonBall we handle both the TV/DVD rights and the merchandising rights. That means that our potential customers are TV channels and DVD distributors who want to buy the right to show the TV series, but also different companies who want to use the DragonBall characters on their products or in their marketing. Such contracts can cover different territories; sometimes they only apply to a single country and sometimes multiple countries (e.g. the Nordic region). In practice this means that the salespeople at our offices in Stockholm, Warsaw, Moscow, Kiev, Budapest, Prague and Bucharest now regularly present DragonBall to potential local customers in different market segments. You can see a few examples of how we present DragonBall to potential customers in both marketing and TV/DVD here:
(link #2)
(link #3)
When it comes to the TV series we can negotiate the rights to both the original and the version adapted for children, it's the customer who decides based on his wishes and needs. If we sign a deal with a TV channel or DVD distributor Plus Licens is however not involved in the translation/dubbing other than on an administrative level. That is handled by separate studios. The translation of names and proper nouns are often coordinated with the company that published the manga so that they remain consistent. All material - voices, translations, marketing material - is continually reviewed and approved by Toei, the rights holder.
We are happy to hear about your interest in DragonBall and know that there are many knowledgeable and dedicated anime fans in the Nordic region as well as Eastern Europe who will hopefully contribute to making the series as successful on TV and in merchandising as it already has become as a manga.
There you all go... a little bit of news from around the world. We'll hit you back this weekend with a podcast episode, so check ya' then. |
21 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 9:47 am EST -- Now that a couple days have passed, a little more information has slipped out about the two new games on the DB-horizon. First up is the new game for the Nintendo Wii, titled 天下一大冒険 (Tenka-ichi Dai-Bôken), or The World's Greatest Adventure. Our Korean forum buddy DongHyun even has some new images over at their website which seem to come from the game's official website that just opened:
From the looks of it, we will finally be getting a new console game for the first time in many years that is not a fighting game (though keep reading, since you know a fighting game is also on its way). Goku skiing? Gigantic fish jumping over bridges? Fighting Bear With Sword™? Sign us up.
Our forum buddy (and Sparking! METEOR non-apologist connoisseur) Innagadadavida is certainly keeping up on the other new game coming our way for the PS3 and 360, DragonBall: Raging Blast. Namco-Bandai has already put up not just the official website for the game, but a slew of screen-shots in the opening video:
So there you have it. We will continue keeping you up-to-date on all the latest information with these games, including if Atari/Infogrames announces anything about a domestic release.
We have a little bit more for you this update, though. Julian sent me over a couple pictures he took:
While we may not necessarily like the new covers the tankôbon have received, it's certainly nice to still see a huge set-up promoting the series after all these years. |
19 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 11:15 am EST -- Remember back in late February when we and our buddy godofchaos told you that a new game based on the original DragonBall series was currently in development for the Nintendo Wii?
French site wiiz.fr has a photo/scan from an upcoming magazine feature with the first details and screens from the game. We'll keep you up-to-date with details and the full name of the game as our Japanese friends get us higher-quality versions from the magazine.
In addition to this, gamekult.com spills the beans that the new DBZ game mentioned in the Namco-Bandai fiscal report from the other day is a new game entitled DragonBall: Raging Blast. The current photos/scans from Xbox Evolved make it impossible to tell anything else, but it appears to be a new game more along the Sparking! style than Burst Limit (the word Sparking! on a prior page of the magazine also hints that way).
Big thanks to Innagadadavida for the heads up on this one. Once again, we'll keep you updated with any and all forthcoming information and details. |
17 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 11:06 pm EST -- Episode #0175 of the podcast is available for download! This week, in addition to our usual Kai talk, releases, e-mails, and all that jazz, we have tons of music content for you. First up is an awesome new-age cover of "CHA-LA HEAD-CHA-LA" from Vitek over in Spain. In addition to that, we finally get around to doing full reviews of both Maximum the Hormone's Tsume Tsume Tsume / 「F」 and Sherry's Romantikku Ageru yo. For those of you who want some written content in addition to the audio, our "Reviews" page has been updated with full written reviews of both, as well! Download the show now, or head on over to the podcast page for more information or to subscribe.
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16 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 12:17 am EST -- Courtesy of examiner.com, we have learned that the latest fiscal report from Namco-Bandai leaks the information that a new DragonBall Z video game is in development for the PS3 and 360 and is tentatively due sometime in Q2 of the 2009-2010 fiscal year (putting it anywhere between October and March). Namco-Bandai expects to sell 800,000 copies of the new game across Europe and Japan (specifically listed as such; North America is not included).
There is obviously no additional word just yet, though it would make sense that the game will perhaps be a sequel to 2008's Burst Limit.
While the game is being developed in Japan, remember that Atari's (and therefore Infogrames') sub-license with FUNimation to distribute DB games for certain markets expires in January 2010. At the same time, significant business developments continue to transpire with Namco-Bandai and Infogrames across Europe with their Distribution Partners business.
This news is also in addition to the as-of-yet officially-unannounced game currently in development for the Nintendo Wii. |
15 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 3:10 pm EST -- A couple little things throughout the site have been given some attention. The "DVD Guide" is finally all updated and pretty, including the extensive DBZ TV section. Do things make a little more sense? Do you feel any important information is missing. Let us know.
The "DragonBall Kai" tidbit has also been updated with just a few, but interesting, minor items.
Hopefully you enjoyed the full written review we put up of the Rule/Sparkle CD single a little while back. We have another two coming your way very soon, hopefully in conjunction with the podcast this coming weekend. Stay tuned for that! |
12 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 9:35 pm EST -- Episode #0174 of the podcast is available for download! We meant to get this up yesterday for everyone, but hey... things happen. This week, Meri and I discussed the three most recent episodes of Kai along with how you all seem to think we feel about the show, catch up on some news, cruise through May's releases, and check in with some great e-mails. We're also debuting a new little section for at least the near future — we have an exclusive song for you! Download the show now, or head on over to the podcast page for more information or to subscribe.
In other news, I have been going through the "DVD Guide" and updating things here and there, along with doing some general clean-up work. The last section to go is the DBZ TV series... being the biggest, of course! |
08 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 12:42 pm EST -- We have been following these manga delays for a while, so it is no real surprise to see that a couple of the upcoming omnibus "Viz Big" editions for the "DBZ" portion of the manga have been delayed... again. DBZ #4 (covering tankôbon 26-28) has been pushed back from 21 April 2009 to 23 June 2009, while DBZ #5 (covering tankôbon 29-31) has been pushed back from 21 July 2009 to 20 October 2009 according to their Amazon listings.
While this may be another series of unpleasant delays for those of you following along with the podcast's "Manga Review of Awesomeness", it slightly works out since we have not yet decided if we will end up doing a manga review this month. Meri and I are going to try and get back into the swing of recording this evening to have an episode for you on Sunday. We do not like having manga review episodes too close to one another, so we will have to re-evaluate our schedule and see what makes the most sense. Look forward to what we have coming your way, though... it involves some exclusive audio you will not hear anywhere else, and maybe even some new "Tidbits"...! |
01 May 2009
VegettoEX @ 9:21 am EST -- Despite the CD singles for the opening and ending to DragonBall Kai seeing a release this month and next month, respectively (see the news from the end of March), it appears that Columbia will be double-dipping us with a "Koro-chan" version of a Kai CD in July.
The new CD will be called Koro-chan Pack Dragon Ball Kai and appears to feature (according to the CDJapan description) at least the opening and ending themes to the series, seemingly karaoke versions, and possibly more. It will be interesting to see how this release separates itself from the individual CD single releases for the opening and ending themes. The inclusion of a "picture book" along with the CD is certainly one way to set itself apart. This new CD will be released on 15 July 2009 for ¥1575 (right about at $15-16) by Columbia under the catalogue number COCZ-1083. You can pre-order it over on CDJapan.
You may remember back in September 2007 when Columbia released two "Koro-chan Pack" CDs for both the original DragonBall as well as DragonBall Z, both of which were also re-packs of previously-released music at a reduced price.
In other news, RightStuf is running a special sale on FUNimation items, so if you have any holes in your collection, now might be a good time to fill them in. While more recent items like the DVD season sets and Blu-ray double-features are brought down to only near-appropriate prices, older items like the (4:3) single DVDs range anywhere from $2-$6 a pop. Missing some DBGT DVDs? Want some DBZ with the Spanish audio track? Take a look and see if there's anything interesting to you. |
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