Since news of US release of Fate / Extra by Aksys Games, I have been eagerly anticipating the day I could finally play this game.  Last week, that day finally arrived.  The game is set in an alternate timeline to Fate / Stay Night, but events of the Holy Grail War play out in a different manner.  Some of the key differences is that instead of 7 teams of Masters and Servants, in Fate / Extra there is 128 teams.  Also, the battles take place in a virtual world where “magi” are more like super-skilled hackers.  The game does include characters from Fate / Stay Night (though back stories are somewhat different), as well as addition of new characters and characters from other Type-Moon works.

My initial plan was to download the game via the Playstation Network since I already owned the Japanese released limited edition that included the same premiums the US edition picked up.  But on the day of release, I kept checking PSN and game was not available!  Wanting to get started playing as soon as possible, I decided to head to local Gamestop where I was fortunate enough to pick up a copy.

The US edition included the Fate / Extra art book, soundtrack, and game. Unfortunately the Saber Extra figma was not included. On the plus side, the art book was translated into English so you can read the commentary for each image and as well as Takashi Takeuchi’s thoughts regarding Saber Extra. Very insightful actually.

Side-by-side comparison of the US and JP Limited Edition boxes.

Side-by-side of all the premium items included in the respective boxes of the two editions. Again aside from figma not much of difference between two regions.  If you preordered Fate / Extra you were also sent a copy of the Fate / The Fact magazine.  From what I saw, the US version left much to be desired.  It was just a paper booklet whereas the Japanese version had a hard cover case and CD included.  So the US version of the magazine was missing the hard case and CD.  Other than that, content of magazine is same with US version being translated obviously.

It should go without saying that I chose Saber as my servant for my first play through of the game. Going to share some of the screens from my first few hours of playing. Lot of these images contain dialogue from Saber.

The first thing that instantly becomes clear to fans of Fate / Stay Night is this Saber’s personality is certainly different from Arturia.

In fact, if I have the feeling that she is tsundere ^^;

She has a lot of pride in herself.

Game play consist of predicting what your opponent’s actions will be and choosing an option that will counter it. Servants can chose between Attack, Guard, Break, and Skills. Masters can use items or magic to assist their Servants. As far as combat is concerned, Attack beats Break, Guard beats Attack, and Break beats Guard. Skills are special moves Servants can perform, which include special attacks, buffs, or Noble Phantasms.

If you string three successful moves, then you an perform an Extra Attack. So the challenge comes in predicting what move your opponent will execute and choosing the right move to counter it. If you find yourself lousy at predicting moves and your opponent lands a successful chain of three moves then they will perform an Extra move on you. This system is what gives a somewhat simple system a bit of complexity.

Successfully beat your opponent and you are rewarded with PPT (used to buy items and formal wear) and Experience. Sometimes also rewarded with items to help keep your Servant in top health. Level up your Master Level and you will be rewarded with SP that can be used to improve the stats of your Servant and unlock abilities.

Saber found that her opponent was too weak to entertain her. Saber may be unsatisfied but I have to say the gameplay has been pretty satisfying thus far.

Saber begins to act tsun towards her new Master.

My Servant is not happy that I know nothing about the Holy Grail War.

Or of Servants in general for that matter ^^;

She gives brief explanation which ends after mention of the Saber class.

She takes great pride in her classification as Saber lol

Great pride indeed

We are a team!!

Being her Master, I acquire about her identity.

But she will not disclose that to me…

…at least not yet. I guess Saber doesn’t completely trust her new Master.

Setup for this image is humorous. Upon meeting Rin Tohsaka for the first time she will grope you. And her Servant (who remains hidden) will comment to her that she is a pervert. Actually quite hilarious.

But it worked out to my favor because she instructs me in a few basics of the Holy Grail War.

Meet Saber in our private room for the first time. She does not like the accommodations but will make due.

It is important you visit your private room often. There are times when your Servant has key story points to discuss with you and if you don’t visit your private room you will miss these!!

She also mentions that she is not using her full potential. This is my fault. One of my many short comings as her Master.

T-T Trust me, she does get better. She doesn’t cut you down ALL the time lol

I did mention she is tsundere right??

At least she ends her complaints with a nice comment.

For all the complaints she makes, she also encourages her Master too.

Saber has a dislike to Shinji and how he treats his fellow Masters.

After completing our training in the arena, Saber has some nice words for her beloved Master.

*You may praise me. You may pet me.*

Saber gains a bit more respect for her Master.

Saber warns on the importance of gathering information on opposing Servants true identities. You have six game days to gather information on you opponent for the week. In that time, you must figure out the identity of enemy Master’s Servant using clues you gather both in school and while in the Arena. Uncover enough clues and your Matrix regarding that Servant will level up. If you get your Matrix to level 3, then on the seventh day (which is the day must fight the enemy Master and Servant in an Elimination Battle) you will have a chance to discuss with your Servant the clues and raise your Matrix to Extra. With a E level Matrix you will have better odds of predicting moves your opponent will use. So it is very important to learn the identity of the enemy Servant within the time frame in order to have edge in the battles.

Sometimes you will encounter the enemy team in the Arena. Battles between two Servants is prohibited in the Arena, but this won’t stop enemy teams from attacking you or using other tricks. In the event of enemy attack, all you have to do is survive three rounds and the SE.RA.PH system will end the fight per the rules of the war. But these battles do have a purpose as they allow you chance to learn the identity of the opposing Servant.

Saber again remains of the importance of gathering intelligence.

And she again remains you that she will keep her identity secret for as long as possible.

Information gathering by Rin.

Information is power.

Sometimes when you visit your private room your Servant will not want to talk to you.

Early on in the game you will be able to use the SP gained from leveling to increase the various stats of your Servant. This will also allow you to unlock the special abilities of your Servant. Or as Saber puts it, restoring some of her former glory ^^

My relationship with Saber changed. She no longer refers to me as “Master” but instead calls me “Praetor” – which is a title of Roman origin. Another clue of regarding her true identity.

This is one of the moments where you gain insight on Saber via private room conversation. Her words are harsh but the information is sweet.

You will be given two options.

I chose to ask Saber again about her identity…

…And she seems to go along with it…

…and I am treated to this little treat…

…but Saber quickly back pedals…

…and again quickly reminds her dear Master that must wait to learn her true name ^^;

If you chose the other option about how she speaks, then you get this little tidbit revealing a bit about her past.

Another question you can ask her is regarding her gender. Her responses here are quite interesting.

She confirms that physically she is a petite woman.

And even though she says its not an issue, she also makes it clear to not make comments regarding her height. XD

o.O So her spirit is both male and female?? Tell me some more.

I see…I see…

Orientation of her soul?? Oh my…

Oh my!!

OH MY!!! This Saber is certainly unlike Arturia.

Shinji again gets on Saber’s nerves.

Saber understands Rider love of wealth. But doesn’t like how she goes to any lengths to obtain it.

I couldn’t tell she adores the finer things in life…oh wait…yes I did.

The day of the Elimination Battle arrives. Saber again tries to reaffirm her Master that victory is ours.

This is when we go over the information gathered about the enemy Servant. If you gathered enough then you will granted Matrix E!

On the way to the Elimination Battle the trash talking begins. Saber has a sharp tongue.

She has a few choice words for Shinji…

Saber finds the Coliseum to be lackluster…to say the least.

After the long battle and Shinji’s pathetic display of losing bores Saber. I will admit that I felt sorry for his defeat because of his display. It was kinda sad.

But Saber has little sympathy for the fallen Master…

…the Servant on the other hand she gained a bit of respect for.

She doesn’t understand why her Master sheds tears for her defeated enemy. But the act moves her…

…and she gains more admiration for her Master.

She also talks about what it takes to win.

As the second round begins, I meet with Saber in our private room…

…and she again reminds me of our private room needing more elegance to it. I guess those lamps I got her from Taiga wasn’t enough. It is important to complete Taiga’s quest as they will add more decor to the private room. They will also allow you to fight a secret boss in the game from what I hear.

Saber also reveals more about her past life.

And reveals that there are things she even regrets from her past. I suppose both her and Arturia share this quality. Both have regrets regarding how they ruled.

Saber and Archer have a few words.

Saber talks about the importance of unlocking her full potential as the battles will become more intense, especially her Noble Phantasm.

Saber again gets into verbal confrontation with enemy on the way to the Elimination Battle.

I notice that this Saber talks about the “beauty” in a lot of things.

Archer makes the mistake of calling Saber a princess. She doesn’t take kindly to this.

And corrects him to address her as Empress. Remember, Saber doesn’t like people commenting on her stature.

The Elimination Battle concludes with out victory. As Archer and his Master are being deleted, a conversation between to the two Servants shift to their Masters. Saber comments that compared to other teams, her Master is pretty lackluster…

… but the idea of seeing her rise above odds excites her…

…and that she enjoys being by her Master’s side.

That ends my photos of Saber moments. Currently close to my third round Elimination Battle with my next Master and her Servant. Overall I am really loving this game. Not really a game can get through mashing buttons. Does require you to do a bit of thinking. You have to try to anticipate what your opponents will do and chose moves based on what you think their actions will be. There are moments where game feels like a visual novel as events unfold. Given that you only have seven days between rounds, you have to use time wisely to both gather information and level up. Game days end when you leave the Arena, so you have to make sure you do enough investigating before entering the Arena because once you leave that game day ends. Also have to make sure you search each Arena thoroughly enough as need to locate certain items in the Arena for Taiga quests or story points. Not to mention more of the Arena you uncover, move mobs can encounter, which leads to chances to gain experience and level up.

I have to say that even though Saber can be harsh with her words, she also has her sweet moments. But that is what it means to be a tsundere, right? She certainly has no issue speaking her mind either. Like I said earlier her personality is quite different from Arturia. But the more I play through the game, the more I appreciate about her character. She is certainly different from the Saber Fate fans know. But she has her own strong points that makes her likeable to me. Her flamboyancy also intrigues me. She is spirited, yet refined.

Thus far I know only scratched the surface of what this game has to offer. Story has multiple endings and story paths that can be explored. Not to mention still two other Servants I can play though the game with. So there is plenty of replay value in the game. I am looking forward to uncovering more of the story Fate / Extra has to offer.

What is this?? Two copies of the Limited Edition?!

Let’s just say I was contacted by an individual who was kind enough to provide  a copy for my readers ^o^

Because a lot of Fate / Extra’s gameplay revolves around the gathering of information, if you want to win you will have to do the same.  Gonna make this one pretty simple.  I am a huge Fate fan.  Pretty evident by post made here right? What sparked my interest in Fate was one figure I got many moons ago.

To win just tell me what was the first Fate figure I purchased.  Here’s a hint – Key to finding it can be found on my About page.

You can post your answer here in the comments.  Be sure to include a link to the image of the figure I am looking for.  Please make sure to use a valid email account so I can contact you.

To keep in the spirit of the game, time frame for this contest will be one week.  The stage is now set.  Good luck!!

I have been eagerly awaiting more news from Aksys Games regarding the US release of Fate / Extra, but to my surprise I caught news of a different sort recently. Looks like Marvelous Entertainment has announced that they will be releasing a sequel to the popular PSP RPG titled Fate / Extra CCC.

Released is slated for Spring 2012 and like the first game looks like there will be a very attractive special edition of the game offered.

From the artwork and screens looks like Nero (Saber of Fate / Extra) will return but this time she is sporting a new white costume that very much resembles a bridal gown. Screen shots also reveal more of the long haired Sakura (affectionately called Sakurider by fans because she looks like a Sakura x Rider fusion), which leads me to think she will have a major role in this next installment.

Not too much is known at this time about the story or game, but obviously I have lot of questions. Who will the new servants / masters be? Will you be able to transfer your progress from the first game to the sequel? Why is Nero in a wedding dress?! Will Aksys also pick up the rights to this game for the North American fans like myself?

One thing is for certain – this is an exciting bit of news for Fate fans.

Ami Ami is currently accepting preorders for the Limited Edition version of Fate / Extra CCC. Strongly encourage fans preorder early, as the Fate / Extra LE sold out very quickly and after-market value for it went up quickly!

Those that follow me on Twitter know that been I have been sharing a bit of news about things found interesting, including announcements from Anime Expo and of course DD stuff from Volks.  One of the news bits picked up today via Crunchyroll is that Aksys Games announced their plans to release Fate / Extra in the US!!

For those unfamiliar, Fate / Extra is basically a RPG written by Kinoko Nasu of Type-Moon fame.  The story takes place in an “alternate version” of the Type-Moon universe, or the “Nasuverse” as fans call it, that split off from the “Main” Nasuverse” in the year 1980.  Here a basic synopsis of the game:

The world is set in a school called Tsukumihara Academy, a fictional place existing with an artificial environment called the Moon Cell. There, the Moon Cell orchestrates a replication of the Holy Grail War using a system called Serial Phantasm or SE.RA.PH, which handles the summoning of Servants. Servant data is taken from the Automaton, a spiritual computer system built on the lunar surface by a pre-human civilization and discovered by humans in the year 2032. The Automaton has monitored and recorded all occurrences on the Earth (including the activities of human heroes) since time immemorial.

Each of the 128 participants in the war must duel the other Masters in a place called the Arena, where failure results in deletion from both the real and digital worlds. When only one remains, the “Holy Grail” shall grant the victor’s wish.

I picked up the import version of the game because I wanted the Saber Extra and mini art book that came with the Limited Edition.  And while I have played through some of the game using a basic translation guide online, it is not as enjoyable when you can’t understand all the dialogue being spoken.  Overall the game play is pretty fun and plays a lot like Persona series games like P3P or P4 with a combination of school life activities and dungeon exploration.

I have been hoping since getting the game that an English version would hit US shores and I am very excited that Aksys picked up the game.  Finally have a chance to play the game and enjoy it because I’ll understand the story that is unfolding while I play.  I am even more excited that they will not be altering the game for US release, keeping it close to its original Japanese origins, even keeping the name Fate / Extra out of respect for the fans of the Fate series.

Aksys will also be releasing a Limited Edition of the game, but don’t expect a rehash of the Japanese LE with figma and artbook.  Details of the US limited edition haven’t been released yet, but they have said the extras will be different than ones Japan received.

While on the subject of Fate / Extra, yesterday I mention that Clayz is releasing a Saber Extra figure scheduled for release later this year.  One of the first figures I bought was the original Saber figure Clayz produced.  That figure is what sparked my interest in Saber and started me on journey to learn more about her.  So in essence it was that figure that turned me into such a Fate and Saber fanboy.  This Saber Extra figure looks amazing to me so I want to make it a part of my Saber collection.

Interesting that Fate / Extra is being released by Aksys Games, the same company that brought us Guilty Gear (the first fighting game I bought for the original Playstation game console) and its “spiritual successor” BlazBlue.  My PSP actually sporting a modded (resized) version of my Mu-12 wallpaper as its theme right now.

As I said above, news is very exciting for me.  Especially since been wanting a new PSP game to play for a while now.

Last but not least enjoy this cute comic regarding initial playthrough of Fate / Extra.  Follow link for translation.

March 9, 2010 the game I have been eagerly anticipating for the last couple of years was finally released.  Final Fantasy XIII (13) hit shelves across the country at 12:01 AM.  Originally thought I was going to have to get a Playstation 3 in order to play this game, but Square Enix decided to port it over to the Xbox 360 which made me one happy camper.  But there was another item that I only found out a week before the release that would add to my joy.

Let’s step back in time for a moment.  The ‘launch event’ was scheduled to begin at 10:oo PM but I didn’t want to be standing around the game store for two hours.  So I figured I would leave base around 11:20 since it wouldn’t take but ten minutes to get there.  When I arrived, there were like six people already there.  Clerk rang up my order so that when 12:01 rolled around I could handed the game and leave.  Wanted to take a few pics with my camera but clerk wasn’t to keen on that so I had to do it ninja style with the iPhone.   Not much Final Fantasy stuff up to be honest, had this display poster up.

Few of the regular edition strategy guides out for those that wanted to be cheap and know all the game’s secrets.  I have to say that when it comes to RPGs I do like to get strategy guides.  Not so much to be cheap and know all the game’s secrets, but sometimes the writer can provide some good insights on hard parts of the game.  I wasn’t interested in this though…I had my eyes set on a bigger prize.

Lucky I arrived when I did too.  Had us line up at 11:55 and about that time a lot of folks started to show up.  I was second in my line, so I wasn’t going to wait long.  In fact, I was out of there and home by 12:10 ^^

This was the main reason I wanted to go to the midnight release.  Clerk almost seemed like he wasn’t interested in selling these as they were out of sight, and kinda stunned I even knew about it.  In fact, guy that was standing around waiting heard me ask for it and wanted a copy as well ^o^  (I made him two sales LOL).

This thing is a true work of art that you have to see in order to appreciate.  Hardcover tome with beautiful Final Fantasy XIII logo embossed on the front.  The back has some writing also embossed on it, but I couldn’t make it out.  Must be from the game – so hopefully the meaning behind it will be revealed as I play.

According the Gamestop website, this guide will only be printed once and as you can see each one is numbered.  I examined this thing all around and couldn’t find a number on it, so I must be inside the book.  Perhaps to keep the value of the guides up they are wrapped in plastic.  Now this leads me mention something – I like to collect things, BUT I am not one of those folks that will not take something out of the box or open the package.  Collecting is fine, but I also like to enjoy my collectibles and I can’t do that with them in the box or still wrapped up.  So I may lower the value of it by handling it, but at least I get to enjoy it and not just look at it.

Obviously I got the game too.  But I won’t be talking much about that here.  Let’s face it, you can get a more in-depth review by the professionals at the various gaming sites.  I just play them for the entertainment value.

Busted up the game.  Obviously have manual, registration card (which is cool that Square now lets you do that online with a code, filling out those cards was a pain), and 3 disc.  I found that to be a bit surprising because Lost Odyssey had like 5 or 6 disc.  So this game will be pretty short in comparison I guess.  Its okay, its Final Fantasy so I think I’ll enjoy it.  I’ll show you my Final Fantasy collection another time.

Started to open the book.  Time to look inside!

Inside cover.  We have our cast of heroes.  I look forward to getting to know them and their stories very soon.  And look…what’s that in the corner…looks like numbers.  Let’s take a closer look, shall we?

Looks like I got number 127,176 out of 210,000.  Guess we know how many of these guides were made.  Was hoping for a super low number but lets face it, those are probably held back to give to people who helped put the guide together.  I would have settled for number 210,000 too ^^;

Another thing about this guide is it reminds me a year book.  That being said…it would be super cool to get the voice talent for the heroes to sign this.  I would love to get the signatures from the creators too!  That would make this a super collectible then.  I wouldn’t be able to part with it then, but then again I don’t want to part with it now.

And the first character to greet us is the lovely Vanille.  What a cutie!

Our main hero emerges, its Lightning!!  I love this image, its simply gorgeous.  I need that in poster form.

Another Lightning image.  I’m going to flip through it now and see what catches my eye.  Be back in a moment.

Here we have Snow.  I heard that his Eidolon (Summon) was Shiva Sisters.  Also heard that their Gestalt (Vehicle or Riding) form was a motorcycle.  I wouldn’t mind having the Shiva Sisters as my Eidolon =D  Snow, you are a lucky guy LOL!!!

Character pages.  Quite a few different character specific sections in this book.

Fang is a hottie.  She is still a mystery to me, haven’t read much about her.  So interested in knowing her story / role in the game.

Information about the characters’ Eidolons.

Here we have Sazh.  I love this dude.  Afro + Gunslinger = Win in my book.  And his Eidolon is a knight that transform into a sleek car.  His power is OVER NINE THOUSAND!!!

This just caught my eye.  It’s pretty.

This guy must be a villain.  I mean look what section he is on.  I’ll know before long what his role is.

Bad looking guys here.  Hope they are later in the game LOL

Sahz has a baby chocobo that lives in his afro =D

Books has some beautiful artwork of the locales.  Wish there was more in it.

I take these are fal’Cie.

And here we have the back cover.  Another gorgeous illustration with the credits to those responsible for putting the guide together.

Overall its a pretty good book.  If you are just wanting a strategy guide you may want to just get the regular edition.  Considering US release did not get a collector’s edition version of the game though, this is a nice consolation prize.  May want to hurry and secure your copy though, as once they are gone that is it.  Already popping up on eBay, so if this is something you want to add to your collection I would suggest getting a copy soon.

I remember some years ago getting a Xenogears Perfect Works artbook for under $50 US.  Afraid that would be good fortune now.

Final Fantasy XIII (FF 13) is scheduled to release in Japan on December 17th, 2009 with a North America release scheduled for sometime in 2010.

I will be the first to admit I was not a big Final Fantasy fan at first.  I liked Secret of Mana over Final Fantasy and couldn’t get into the turn-based system.  I have always been a Square fan, but it wasn’t until I played Final Fantasy VIII that got into the Final Fantasy franchise.  After playing it, I went back and got FF VII and eventually all the remade games released on the Playstation.

I think part of the reason I wasn’t a fan at first was I was still pretty young and couldn’t appreciate the games.  When I was a teenager I could appreciate the gameplay and story more, which I think is what kept drawing me back to the franchise.  Most of the Final Fantasy games have good stories and gameplay.  So when I heard about Final Fantasy I was instantly interested.

Here is the Final Fantasy XIII E3 Trailer.  This trailer got me amped, especially when I saw the gameplay in action around 2:04.  I knew I would have to play this game.

Tokyo Game Show 2009 trailer.  Only recently saw this when browsing the video marketplace on Xbox Live.  After seeing this, I can honestly say this game will be truly epic.  Square continues to take the CG in games to the next level.  The graphics of so amazing and the story looks like it will be quite memorable.  And the gameplay looks pretty fluid from these videos, hope that’s the case in the actual product.

Of course leave it to Square Enix to go big with this release.  The game was originally advertised for the Playstation 3, so you can bet they would work out a deal Sony to get a bundle put together for the release.  Sure that will help sell some PS3 hardware to fans wanting to play FF XIII on the PS3

White PS3 slim with our main protagonist Lightning gracing the top of the new console.  The pink may turn off some people, but looks cool to me.  Those interested in picking up this console can head over to PlayAsia to secure a unit when preorder begins.

For the rest of us, you can pre-order a copy of the game for you either the Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 (PS3) home consoles.

Not much on the Final Fantasy 13′s North America site quite yet, but if you stick around you will at least be treated with some very high resolution CG images of four of your main characters.  Once again I have to applaud Square Enix’s skill with the CG ^o^  So life-like!!

Again we have Lightning.  Apparently when they designed her, she was suppose to be a “female Cloud Strife” but I hope she is more emotionally stable ^^

This guy is named Snow.  He reminds me of someone I know.  From the trailer I gather he has a big part in the overall story.

This cutie’s name is Vanille.  Don’t really know what her story is, but sure by the time the end credits of the game roll I will.

And this guy is Sazh.  I am digging this guy for a couple of reasons.  Big one being he is a gun-slinger and apparently uses fire magic.  Plus he has a sweet afro.  ^^;

You can visit the website and download high resolution wallpapers of all four characters.  Certainly can’t wait to play this, how may of you plan on giving FF XIII a play (or pass)?

Now we just have to wait on more info to be released about Versus!!

While cleaning up around the room, I found my old collection of Yu-Gi-Oh! cards in a box.  The latest series in the franchise – Yu-Gi-Oh 5Ds rekindled my interest in the franchise, including the collectible card game.  I was big into the card game when the first (actually 2nd =P) Yu-Gi-Oh! anime first arrived in North America, like many kids and teens (even some adults).

When the series first came out, I was working at Wal-Mart at the time and remembered putting back a box of booster packs every now and then so I could buy the entire thing after work in hopes of finding cool / rare cards.

The introduction of the “Synchro” cards in this new Yu-Gi-Oh! series sparked my interest.  Synchro monsters are like a combination fusion / ritual monsters, considering the way they play.  It requires a special monster card called a “tuner” monster that you tribute with other monster cards in order to summon a powerful synchro monster.  Sychro monsters are actually a bit easier to summon compared to fusion / ritual cards because you can pretty much use (almost) any tuner monster to summon a synchro monster.  Fusion monsters require the Polymerization spell card and compatible monster cards.  Ritual summons require special ritual spell / monster cards plus a certain number of tribute monsters in order to summon.  So its far easier to summon a synchro monster ^^;

Yu-Gi-Oh! isn’t my first collectible card game, though it is probably my favorite.  I have been a fan of collectible card games since high school when I started playing Magic: The Gathering.  I would play it before classes or during study halls with some other players.  I will admit though I was never very good at Magic, as I could never draw enough mana cards.  Plus the guys I played with had some cheap combos ^^;

I still have my old Magic cards as well.  Also have a Magic: The Gathering art book and I think I even had some comic books from the franchise too.

Funny enough, in the original Yu-Gi-Oh! manga, the card game wasn’t called “Duel Monsters” but “Magic & Wizards,” a reference to to game Magic: The Gathering and its creator’s, Wizard’s of the Coast.

So…back to Yu-Gi-Oh! ^^.  I went through the trouble of securing Black Rose Dragon, Stardust Dragon, and Red Dragon Archfiend.  Obviously the game has other syncho monsters too but these are the signature monsters of three of the lead characters, hence my focus on them.  I will say that I like the look of the Black Rose Dragon best, if you couldn’t tell =D

One of the appeals of collectible card game is in the name – collectible.  Some people like to collect the cards, putting them in binders to preserve them and keep them safe.  Not really my style though, as I like to play with the stuff I collect ^^.  I mentioned earlier I would buy a who box at a time to get rare cards if I could, but not to stick in a binder…to play with them!

There use to be regular meet-ups for people to get together to play such games.  I would like to participate in one once I have constructed a new deck.

Do you prefer to put your cards in binders or do you play with them?

The Yu-Gi-Oh! anime will also be celebrating its 10 year anniversary with a special movie.  Don’t know much about the production except it will have Yugi, Jaden, and Yusei (the three lead characters from the 3 series) in it.

Here are some of the promos for the new movie

And of course what kind of celebration would this be if Konami didn’t release special cards to mark the occasion.  Kazuki Takahashi, the creator of Yu-Gi-Oh!, has created 8 redesigned artworks for 8 of the most popular, classic cards from the game.  The set includes Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Red-Eyes B. Dragon, Summoned Skull, Celtic Guardian, Gyakutenno Megami, Buster Blader, Jinzo, Shiba-Warrior Taro.

Those interested in owning these can check them out at Toywiz or your favorite card retailer.

Also seems that Mr. Takahashi has made new artwork for a new Obelisk the Tormentor (Giant God Soldier of Obelisk), which fans of the series will know is one of the three Egyptian God Cards from the  series.  What’s of interest is that this card may become tournament legal!  Up until now, all the Egyptian God Cards have been promotional only and not allowed in official duels because the cards contained no official text regarding play or their abilities.  This version of Obelisk actually contains detailed instructions of its summoning parameters and effects, so it could see actual tournament play.

Of course,this is simply speculation on my part.  Would be nice to see cards like this released for Saint Dragon – God of Osiris (Slifer the Sky Dragon) and Winged Dragon of Ra though.

Those interested in owning this new Obelisk can also find it at Toywiz or your check your favorite card retailer.

What card games do you like to play?  Does anyone remember the card game OverPower?

Thought I would share some blog stats for March 2009.  This March actually marked one year of the site being in operation since I relaunched it.  But I didn’t really do much work / updates to it 2008 and pretty much let it sit dead.  And when I did update it, most of my post were about Code Geass R2.  I decided to again start over in 2009 spending January redesigning the site and February doing some posts.  But it wasn’t until March that I really started to try and be more dedicated to updates here.

March 2009 Stat Overview:

870 Visits
2,089 Pageviews
548 Absolute Unique Vistors
2:51 Average Time on Site
62.18% New Visits

March was a good month because I got accepted into Danny Choo‘s Otaku.fm!  And it really helped boost traffic to the site.  Danny spent years developing his site into what it is today, and to share his traffic with other anime fans / bloggers is really gracious of him.  I am certainly grateful to him for it as linkage from his sites contributed to most of my referrals in traffic for March.  Dannychoo.com referred 130 visits and Otaku.fm referred 142 visitors.  163 were direct visits, which is certainly nice.

144 visits were from search engine inquiries.  The top inquiry was about the Triggerheart Exelica Enhanced limited edition game.  I’m guessing talking about the special Nendoroid that was included helped considering the game was released in late March.  Still wish I could have got the game because I wanted that figurine.  Sadly it is out of stock now.  The second inquiry was the Black Rock Shooter figure GoodSmile Company announced.  Third top was Yoko Littner with various other keywords attached.

There were a few inquires that I have to wonder about.  For instance, number 4 top referred inquiry was aa867.  This appeared to be an image attached to my Utena Kissed a Girl post and somehow lead people to Ultima-i in search engine inquires.  Other inquires that lead to some ‘stray’ visits included the word “ultima” in them.  I suppose that should be expected considering what I decided to name this site.  But for me naming this site Ultima-i was a logical choice, which you can read more about in my profile page.

HubSpot’s Website Grader currently grades Ultima-i as 89/100, ranking 62,681 out of 878,393 websites that have been ranked by the service thus far.

Google Indexed Pages are 171 with a PageRank of 2.  Last crawl date was April 1st, 2009.

Alexa rank currently 5,737,940 which is in the top 20.49 % of all websites.

Technorati currently ranks Ultima-i 1,357,989 which is in the top 1.94% of blogs tracked by the service.

We have 1 del.icio.us bookmark submitted and 1 Digg.com submission.

As I mentioned before, Ultima-i is powered by WordPress using a theme I created called Individual System.  It is a work in progress and there are things that do need to be fixed on it.  I am working on the next revision to the theme and it should address some minor issues as well has show more of my own style in it.  Since relaunching Ultima-i I decided that I would make it a point to use my own theme creations and not themes created by others, because I want this blog to express who I am.  Its not perfect so please if you experience any kind of problem with it I would like to know so I can approve the user experience.

I also want to take this moment to say Thank You to everyone for visiting my site.  870 visits probably seem like nothing to experienced blogger but for me it is a great achievement.  In just March 2009 I exceeded the visits to this site from March 2008 to February 2009, so that’s a big step for me.  And I couldn’t have had that without each one of you that thought there was something interesting here to check out.  So again, Thank You!

I look forward to what April has to bring and promise that I will try and provide you with more updates!

What interests me about the LE is that it comes with an Exelica Nendoroid.  For you non-figure or otaku out there, a Nendoroid is a super deformed chibi version of a character in figure form.  Nendoroids are produced by GoodSmile Company.  Here she is:

And Exelica is certainly an excellent one to have because of the accessories she comes with.  

But it also means she is super expensive, as you can see from the price of the limited edition.  Which is why I am hesitate to pre-order the game, because after shipping it could be close to $200 US.  Especially since the “normal” size version Alter released some time ago costs about the same.  Of course, it cool to set the Alter version and Nendoroid version up together…that would make a cool display piece ^^  Which would you prefer, Alter or Nendoroid version?

A shot of Exelica from behind to see her flight system.  Limited edition games with figures are nothing new.  Street Fighter IV was recently released and it came with a figure of C Viper.  Last December Capcom also released a Limited Edition of Fate / Unlimited Codes that came with a Saber Lily figure.  I ordered that game because I a huge Saber fan and I couldn’t pass up the Saber Lily figma that came with the game…which I still haven’t played.  How many of you got the Fate / Unlimited Codes LE?  How many of you played it and if you did, what did you think of it?

As you can see, the flight unit can also be removed and like all Nendoroids comes with interchangeable faces and limbs.  I like to change the faces on my Nendoroids and I like to swap faces between them.  That is one great thing about them because they basically follow the same template.  Question for the Nendoroid owners out there: Do you swap out faces or accessories between your Nendoroids?

Still have a little time to decided if I am going to get Exelica or pass.  Being a figure fan makes it hard to pass up, especially considering how rare figures can become as time passes.  But at the same time, I got the game for 800 Microsoft points  ($10) from Xbox Live Marketplace.  I have to wonder how much Alchemist “enhanced” the gameplay to justify the substantial price difference between the XBL and PS2 versions.  Even with the figure included, its a lot of money.  Its going to be a tough decision, so we’ll see the closer we get to the game’s release date.