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Another Week in Japan: Hardware and software numbers 4/7-4/13
In a strange turn of events, there's only one new DS game in Japan's top thirty this week, and that's Oshiri Kajiri Mushi's Rhythm Lesson DS. In case that title doesn't ring a bell, you may know it better as "that butt-biting bug game." If there's one thing we've learned from this bug, it's that biting is serious business. Despite Japan's love for DS software and quirky rhythm games, though, Oshiri Kajiri Mushi only debuted in the eighteenth spot. Perhaps butt biting is even too weird for Japan?In hardware, the DS fell behind the PSP once again. Yet, there's already signs of the Monster Hunter hype beginning to dwindle, as the PSP sold 35,000 less units than the week before. Will the new brown model that comes out next week help the PSP keep a wide lead, or will the gap start to narrow again between the two handhelds? We're looking forward to finding out!To see the Japanese placings and numbers, just check after the break.
Taiko Drum Master ships 500k
Those of you who pay attention to Japanese sales have probably noticed that week after week, Taiko Drum Master DS sits comfortably in the top thirty. It may not sell absurd quantities (according to Famitsu, usually around 6,000 copies per week as of late), but it can't be argued that the game has legs, especially considering that it debuted nine months ago. In fact, it's the only third-party game for a Nintendo system that shows up on the charts with such consistency. It was only a matter of time, then, before the game hit the 500k landmark. We're glad to see Namco's game doing so well, and hopefully the DS sequel will find similar success.[Via GoNintendo]
Another Week in Japan: Hardware and software numbers 3/31-4/6
Sony dominated the first (and last) five in the top thirty software chart, but aside from that, everything else was Nintendo. The DS had fifteen games to represent it, but even if you added up the sales numbers for all those games, the total wouldn't come close to what Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G sold in its second week.Pokemon Ranger: Batonnage was once again the best-selling DS game, but newcomer Tottado! Yowiko's Deserted Island Life (which is about famous Japanese comedians being stranded on an island) did well, also. In hardware, the DS was crushed for the second week in a row by the PSP, which had its sales boosted by Monster Hunter and Star Ocean 2.Hardware: PSP: 120,964 Nintendo DS: 55,190 Wii: 44,618 PlayStation 3: 11,303 PlayStation 2: 10,423 Xbox 360: 1,452 To see the software listings, just check after the break.
Another Week in Japan: Hardware and software numbers 3/24-3/30
The PSP might have dominated in Japan, selling as much hardware last week as every other system combined, but that doesn't mean the DS didn't do well for itself. In fact, Nintendo's handheld came in second place, selling around 60,000 units.The story is similar in software, as DS titles came no where near to matching the sales of Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G, yet there was still a lot of DS representation in the top thirty, as usual. New titles rleased last week that made the cut include Mobile Suit Gundam 00, which debuted in third, Vitamin X Evolution, Lux Pain, and Home Teacher Hitman Reborn!Towards the bottom of the software chart, New Super Mario Bros. reappeared while Taiko Drum Master hung stubbornly onto the thirtieth spot. To see how other games were rearranged, just check after the break for the listings.
Another Week in Japan: Hardware and software numbers 3/17-3/23
Last week was the week of new releases! Anticipating high holiday sales, many publishers made sure to release their games last week, with a total of fifteen ending up in the top thirty (seven of those being DS titles). With this slew of new releases, though, a lot of games were bumped off the chart to make room. Etrian Odyssey II and Soma Bringer, for example, did not survive the onslaught. Yet, somehow Mario Kart DS managed to move up a spot -- that game never ceases to amaze us.The top of the heap was none other than Pokémon Ranger: Batonnage, which completely crushed the competition in its debut week. Sim City 2 DS did well also, ending up in the number four spot. In fact, this is the best an EA game has ever done in its first week in Japan, with the exception of the FIFA titles. Time Hollow and Super Dodgeball are some other notable new releases, ending up in spots ten and seventeen, respectively.
Import your games for cheap during Play-Asia's Easter Egg Sale
If you're keen on importing games, it seems like there's no better time than now. Play-Asia is having an "Easter Egg Sale," which means that all in-stock items that weren't released in the past thirty days are 20% off. The sale ends on March 31st, but you might not even want to wait that long, as items are going out of stock quickly. Some games that might be worth picking up: Ouendan 2 -- $24 (it's been on sale before, but $24 is the cheapest we've seen it) Taiko no Tatsujin - $39 (you've gotta love the cute little Taiko drum) Arkanoid DS w/ Paddle Controller - $39 (yes, this is being localized for Europe and likely NA, but it's not too bad of a deal if you're impatient) Paddle Controller - $16 (or, you can just get this -- currently only available in pink) Archaic Sealed Heat - $16 (not the most import friendly, but you should be able to get by on a tactics title -- especially for this price) Power Pro Kun Professional Baseball - $23 (one of the best baseball options for the DS) Choushoujuu Mecha MG - $16 (mmm, mechas) Daigasso! Band Brothers - $39 (another good rhythm game, with lots of instruments included) Feel free to add any of your own import recommendations in the comments below.[Via CAG]
Taiko Drum Master: So many guests
Taiko no Tatsujin: 7-tsu no Shima is turning into the Love Boat of DS rhythm games: a massive confluence of guest stars at various levels of notoriety. Also, much like The Love Boat, the music is great.Not only will Doraemon, the Oshiri Kajiri Mushi, and characters from Namco Bandai's own The Idolm@ster be popping in, but the seven titular islands will play host to even more game characters. Adorable little animate tiles from Mojipittan (a version of which is launching on WiiWare today) will dance, presumably to "Futari no Mojipittan," the game's signature tune. Characters from the horror/comedy manga (and, of course, DS game) GeGeGe no Kitarou spook it up, as do characters from the similarly gothy-cute Fukoumori. The Spelunker (of Spelunker) is no doubt happy to get a break from heights for a while.Finally, yes, those are the Power Rangers -- sort of. Our Power Rangers have undergone countless team, costume, and even show changes, because the Japanese shows from which they use footage (pretty much everything in costume) change. The latest such Japanese show, and the one represented here, is Engine Sentai Go-Onger.
Another Week in Japan: Hardware and software numbers 3/10-3/16
"If you bundle a game with a special brush stylus, they will come," the heavens whispered to Nintendo. While we expected Beautiful Letter Training (also known as Bimoji or Calligraphy Training) to do well, we didn't expect it to sell 66,000 copies in its first week. This first-party effort by Nintendo looks as polished and full of content as a calligraphy nongame could get, but we're still surprised by the high demand for this game in Japan. Nintendo has understood sales markets better than anyone else this generation, though, so we probably should have expected this.Also appearing on the charts are both versions of Hayate the Combat Butler, as we predicted. The mansion edition was slightly more popular, as preference was given to the little girls in little black dresses. At the sixth spot was Shugo Chara!, which, in case you were wondering, is yet another manga/anime-based game about a school girl.Harvest Moon: Shining Sun and Friends, meanwhile, jumped back into the top ten, while Soma Bringer dropped down a few notches. One other notable game on the chart is the infamous Duel Love, which debuted at spot twenty-seven. That's not a great start for the title, but perhaps nipple rubbing is more niche in Japan than we thought.Despite making a killing in software and having fifteen games in the top thirty, the DS remained in third for hardware sales. Still, considering that everyone and their mother already owns a DS in Japan, we're somewhat surprised that it comes so close to the top, week after week.Mosey on after the break to see the numbers in full, folks.
Another Week in Japan: Hardware and software numbers 3/3-3/9
Japan loves Doraemon, and it shows. Not only did the manga-based robot cat have a successful DS baseball game, but now a game based on the manga itself debuted in the top ten. Soma Bringer was still the top dog for the handheld, though, selling a total of 68,000 copies in two weeks. Are numbers like these high enough to motivate Monolith Soft to bring the game to English speaking markets? Well, we certainly hope so, but that remains to be seen.As for hardware, the DS stayed in third place again last week, but wasn't too far behind the PSP: Wii: 57,068 PSP: 53,924 Nintendo DS: 48,658 PlayStation 3: 21,008 PlayStation 2: 10,429 Xbox 360: 2,891 The numbers and placings for software are listed after the break, so if you're curious, just click away.
Fill your cuteness quota with this Taiko Drum Master 2 DS trailer
If this trailer doesn't melt your cold, embittered hearts, then you might as well resign yourself to a life alone, never loving anyone because you're just a tin man. Okay, maybe we took that too far, but come on! Smiling drums, happy music, ninja cats ... it's all one giant bundle of cuteness.We told you yesterday about the various instruments in Taiko Drum Master: 7 Islands' Adventure, and this video shows them in action for a few seconds. We also love the customizable elephant Taiko drum, and -- can we reiterate -- ninja cats!Rhythm games and quirky Japanese titles are right up our alley, so we enjoy this series because it incorporates the two. Is anyone else getting pumped for the next Taiko Drum Master?
Taiko Drum Master sequel needs more cowbell
Further securing its place on our list of games that need to be imported, Taiko Drum Master: 7 Islands' Adventure will feature more than just a drum. Siliconera reports that the game will include six other percussive instruments, like a tambourine, a bell, and, well -- some other types of drums. There may even be more instruments at hand, but we're going to guess that it stops at seven, since there's a "seven" in the game's title (eat your heart out, Sherlock Holmes). It may be a rather simple addition, but it's a nice enough change to add a little bit of freshness to the Taiko Drum Master series. If your looking to import this game, you won't have to wait long; it's set to release in Japan on April 24th.
The DS Life: First-person gaming
The DS Life is a weekly feature in which we scour the known world for narrative images of Nintendo's handhelds and handheld gamers. If you have a photo and a story to match it with, send both to thedslife at dsfanboy dot com.We're breaking away from our usual routine this week -- instead of fawning over touching scenes of handheld gamers, we'll look through ten pictures taken from the gamers's point of view. These photographs can reveal a lot about the shutterbugs who took them! You know, besides what game they were playing at the time.
Taiko: Stand Master
Similar to its Sangokushi Taisen DS-branded base, Hori has another themed stand set in the works for rhythm game series Taiko no Tatsujin. The adjustable platform comes in red and has two holders for the drumstick styli that come with every copy of the original game. Also included in the kit is an adorable screen wipe The bundle may or may not also come packaged with the attachable banner of cheering characters -- we haven't decided yet if this would be distractingly goofy or awesome to the max. Japan has already seen one Taiko DS title release and has another coming, whereas every other country's DSes have been so far Taiko-less. Thus, it's safe to assume that Hori's accessory won't appear in North American stores any time soon. Import shop Play-Asia, however, has the stand available for preorder (due April) for $19.90. Peek past the break for a look at the full, watermarked product sheet.
Taiko Drum Master boxart wants you to be excited for the game
When it comes to dissecting boxart, there's usually one man who can get the job done. However, when it comes to Taiko Drum Master, there's little stopping this blogger from destroying all in his path to the delicious news. The latest on 7-tsu no Shima no Daibouken (known as Taiko Drum Master: 7 Islands' Adventure to us English-speaking folk) presents us with the boxart you see above. Looking at the boxart, we see the overly-cute taiko leaping high above the islands that make up the game's title. The slight sparkles surrounding the taiko implies that this game is fresh and clean, one that is new and waiting for an anxious player to pick it up. Also, you can see the taiko is directly above the volcano, causing us to believe it shot the little guy out toward the clouds, smile upon its face, so that it may leap to your attention and have you pick it up off the shelf. Of course, if you were to jump into a volcano in real life, you would probably not be the same anymore.You'd probably be Vader.
Taiko no Tatsujin's ironically earless guest
The last Taiko no Tatsujin DS game featured the Super Mario Bros. theme song, accompanied by wonderful Mario animations. We don't know if any Nintendo characters or themes are going to make an appearance in the sequel, 7-tsu no Shima no Daibouken, but Namco Bandai is still looking outside its own properties for guest appearances.The latest character to appear in Taiko: Doraemon. The Doraemon theme song is apparently a staple of Taiko games, even appearing in the last DS game. This time, however, Doraemon and friends will appear as guest characters in the bottom of the play area, basically distracting you as you're trying to play. It's quite likely that, since the song has appeared before, the characters have too. But they're cute, and these are new screens of their appearance in this game. Plus, it's pretty strange to feature an earless character in a music game.
More screens for Taiko's Drum Master sequel
Famitsu has dished out the goods in the way of some fresh screens for upcoming Taiko Drum Master: 7 Islands' Adventure for the DS. Like the first Taiko Drum Master game, there isn't any plan to bring it to the United States. And, considering it's just about the same game as the first title, you can bet we're incredibly upset that we're not getting it. Sure, we can import, but we don't have tons of money to do that.Any of you going to import the game?
Japan: Two Taiko no Tatsujin DS games, U.S.: still none
It's obviously New Famitsu Day, as all kinds of news is revealed via magazine scans. The latest new game announcement found in the magazine's pages is Taiko no Tatsujin: 7-tsu no Shima no Daibouken (Taiko Drum Master: 7 Islands' Adventure). It looks to follow the same formula as the other Taiko DS game: drumming on the bottom screen with two special styli, earning outfits for your adorable little drums, and engaging in 4-player local wireless play.Our reactions also follow the same formula as last time. With the single Taiko release in the U.S. having bombed, we're probably not going to get this one either, and thus we have no choice but to cry. We do our best to sob in rhythm.
Taiko DS can't handle clothed drums
There are few things freakier than dressing a musical instrument in clothes, and Taiko no Tatsujin DS Touch de Dokodon instinctively knows this. That's why the game rejects this activity.Either that or, you know, it's just a bug. Apparently the game has a problem in which you cannot continue playing after you attempt to change costumes in all three save slots. Bandai Namco is correcting the issue, and will have new copies of the game out soon. We would suggest holding off on importing until then, obviously.Is the DS really hard to program for or something? It seems like we've had a disproportionately high number of game-breaking bugs. Well, this makes three that we can count, but that still seems high.
Friday Video: Stylus is for the weak
Who needs a stylus? Or even a pair of styli? Pfft. Real gamers don't even need them to play Taiko Drum Master DS -- though we admit, it probably makes things a lot easier. Bring on the "pair of finger" in this week's video spotlight! Check out the action after the post break. We're curious what happened to this fellow's free styli-drumsticks, though. Did he just cast them aside in favor of going natural? How would you play?
WRUP: We want to be the Taiko Drum Master edition
Oh, the reasons why we wish we were Japanese just keep piling on, as Japanese gamers celebrate the release of Taiko Drum Master on the DS this week. Seriously, we're dying to get our hands on this game. Sure, we could import it, but who wants to navigate Japanese menus? Damn our laziness!Enough about us and our desires. What are you planning on playing this weekend?
