Okay, a bit of progress today. But first, Gundam Head mod!

Head on the left, eyes/face on the right

In 2003, I played my first Super Robot Wars game. At that time I was only a fledgling Gundam fan, with little knowledge of mecha and Japanese in general, but this series totally blew me away with its beautiful animation, and I’ve been hooked ever since.

For those who don’t know, Super Robot Wars (Super Robot Taisen) is a crossover, turn based strategy game like akin to Final Fantasy Tactics, Fire Emblem or Disgaea. One of the main drawing points of SRW though, is being able to use units and characters from various popular anime series, such as Gundam, Evangelion, and Macross, and other lesser well known in the west, like Mazinger Z.

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Short update on the build.
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I would like to extend my thanks to Yu Suzuki for making this awesome game. I would also like to extend a massive FUCK YOU to Yu Suzuki for making this game.

Here’s why.

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Where YJ revisits an old favourite

In 1999, Sega released the Dreamcast. The system had a good variety of games, most of which were arcade ports, but fans of the system were hoping for an RPG that could be the system’s own Final Fantasy. In the following year, gamers were blessed with this true gem of a game.

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EB Games has gathered much scorn over the past few years as being the gaming retail outlet that charges RRP for everything. Why buy at EB when you can go to JB to get it much cheaper? Despite this, I actually do most of my games shopping at EB nowadays. Here’s why.

Price Matching – EB will price match any store’s lower price ie everyone else. What’s cool is that you can actually price match up to 7 days later after you bought it, they may only give you store credit back for it though.

Webmail voucher – it’s like having a permanent 15% off software, which despite their crazy prices is actually sometimes cheaper than buying elsewhere. Best used on really expensive items like Collector’s Editions.

Return Policy - 7 days to play and return anything. If only I had bought Alone in the Dark Collectors Edition from them last year…

Preorder bonuses – EB usually offer some kind of exclusive preorder bonus with popular games, and you could always just return the game afterwards.

Crazy Trade deals – EB games usually have some kind of crazy trade scheme for AAA release titles. Usually they will give more than the cheapest price you can pay with it elsewhere you can actually make/save some money. They don’t give you cash of course, but think of it as a saving on your next game. Or in combination with JBs trade deals you can pull off some really crazy shit (see Red Elite for $60 ).

There are some things to watch out for of course. The main one being that usually they will only give store credit for refunds or whatever. I bought a Pro console once, which I then found JB were offering Kung Fu Panda/Lego Indy with their pack for cheaper. I tried to return my unopened Pro, but was told I could only get store credit. After much hassling, I managed to price match and get store credit + the 2 games. I usually plan my purchases well, so store credit is never useless to me.

Where YJ tries to build a Gundam model after a 3 year hiatus

Wing Zero Custom. Not really a fan of the design, and that’s probably why it shall be my first victim in my return to Gunpla. Chicks dig the wings though. Pics after the jump.
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Where YJ is bitter about all the money he’s wasted on ‘collectors’ editions over the past few years
Special editions of games have been on the rise over the past few years. These days it seems that every second game has some kind of Collectors / Limited / Special edition. I’ll just refer to them as CE from now on, because they often mean the same thing. These CE usually include some kind of ‘Making Of’ DVD along with some fancy tin case, but do the extras really justify the extra cost?

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Where YJ reminisces about one of the best games ever made

Back in 1990 when I got my first computer, and I just started getting into PC games, I watched my bro play a game which totally captivated me. That game was Wing Commander.

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The Perfect Grade Astray has just been released recently, and at a whopping 18,000 yen it’s one of the most expensive ones out there. Is it worth the price?

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