30 April 2005

Dimps DBZ3 Site Updated
VegettoEX @ 1:22 pm EDT -- For the first time since the game was released, Dimps' official site for DragonBall Z 3 has been updated. It simply showcases a little bit more of "Dragon Universe" and the eleven characters playable in that mode... nothing of any significance. If you like character model artwork, though, it's very neat :D.

They still have those two hidden sections that haven't been enabled... we eagerly await :D. Our guess is that, in due time, they will showcase all of the hidden extra costumes, and such.

Julian's off at Anime Boston this weekend, trying to score some dirt. And sing DBZ songs karaoke style.

24 April 2005

Loads of Video Game News!
VegettoEX @ 1:45 am EDT -- Ya' know, I'm just getting home, but there's too much to let the world know. Sleep is for the weak :P. It's gaming time!

First off, according to Bandai's press release for Sparking!, there will indeed be both a European and American release for the game (in addition to, obviously, the initial Japanese release). It reads, as translated by our good friend TripleRach:

"The newest product, like the first three releases, will be developed worldwide simultaneously, scheduled for release in Japan and the American and European markets starting Fall 2005."

For more information on the game (all in Japanese, of course... but it all looks so pretty in the obligatory Flash websites!), visit:

• Official Bandai Sparking! Website
  ( http://dbzs.jp/ )
  
• Official Spike (Game Developer) Sparking! Website
  ( http://www.spike.co.jp/dbzs/ )

On the heels of this, think back to a previous poll FUNimation had in which you could pick the next name for a DBZ game. Among these choices was Tenkaichi Budokai. Well, a new PS2 game has a listing on Gamestop.com entitled just that... Tenkaichi Budokai (OK, so they've got it backwards, written as Budokai Tenkaichi...). It lists a release date of November 15th.

So what is this game? All signs point to it being the domestic release of Sparking! (For those who don't know, "Sparking!" is the last line in the 1st opening theme to DBZ, "CHA-LA HEAD-CHA-LA"; we have the lyrics both romanized and translated right here on the site). We'll let you know more as we find out!

FURTHERMORE, Gamestop.com also has a listing for a one very special Super Sonic Warriors 2 (Bukû Tôgeki 2), on the Nintendo DS, no less! Release date on this one is set to November 22nd. Again, more info as we get it.

If we get new animated openings and Japanese vocal theme songs out of all this, I'll continue to be a very happy (and very money-spending) fanboy.

That's it for now! Special thanks to all of our forum goes for their constant (mostly legal) vigilance in the world of the interweb! No animals were harmed in the search for knowledge. We'll be hitting you all up with more information and translations as soon as we possibly can.

I've got some more contest prizes on the way. Be on the lookout! We love ya' ^_~.

18 April 2005

Budokai 3 Collector's Edition in Europe
Julian @ 2:25 pm EDT -- Thanks to forum-member sangofe, we've come across a report on the Belgian site PlayerOne about a European collector's edition of Budokai 3. For those of you who can't read French, I have prepared a translation:

After the deserved success of "Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3" on the Playstation 2, Atari plans to release a collector's version of its acclaimed fighting game. What's new on the program? This version will have a new cover jacket, the Japanese voices, and even three new unlockable characters. The collector's edition will be available this coming 21 June in Europe.

There's also an "exclusive" sneak-peek at the cover of the collector's edition on the page linked above (and no, the kanji don't mean anything important: they're "gold," "water," and "city," respectively). But while the art's nothing special, the game itself should be a treat... if you live in Europe.

And so once again, we Americans get the short end of the stick, while the European fans get treated to the original seiyû for the characters, and extras from the Japanese version (though it's not mentioned in the article, the three new unlockable characters are probably Piccolo-Daimaô, Long-Haired Trunks, and Level 99 Goku w/Halo, as they were in Japan).

But anyhow, be sure to check out our new feature, and don't forget to read the news below about the upcoming Japanese game, "Sparking!" (which we all hope will come to America as the antidote to "Sagas"). Get goin'!

17 April 2005

NEW FEATURE: "Ultimate Uncut Edition" review + more...
VegettoEX @ 2:15 pm EDT -- I've been working on this in bits and pieces for a few days, now. Now that the first of the "Ultimate Uncut Edition" DVDs have been released, it's time to really sit and take a look at them. What's up with the sound and video quality; truly "digitally remastered" or no? How are the translations? What about the extras? Oh yeah, and there's a new dub.

We've got a brand new feature all about them, comparing everything we can with the original 1996 dub (pressed in 1999 on DVD as Arrival) and the 2003 Japanese "Dragon Box" release by Toei. Special thanks to forum member DBW for the "Dragon Box" assistance!

Check it out, everyone! And don't forget to see the exciting news about the new Japanese PS2 game ("Sparking") coming out. Read about it, below!

15 April 2005

DBZ: Sparking Announced for Japanese PS2
VegettoEX @ 5:35 pm EDT -- I was wondering to myself yesterday... "Self, do you think we'll get any more Japanese-made video games? 'Cuz, ya' know, the American-made ones haven't been so hot."

Sure enough, the latest Japanese Jump reveals screen shots from the upcoming Sparking PS2 video game! Check out our thread in reference to it (and the original Jeux-France update).

Thanks to sangofe's translation for us, we know that the game:

• Will be available for JP PS2 this year (tentatively)
• Will be an action/3D game
• Will have 40+ playable characters
• Will "give more liberty" than the Budokai series

It wouldn't surprise me if someone at Bandai of Japan got a hold of Sagas early on and proposed their own better version in disgust :P.

Scans for the issue of Jump showcase SSJ Goku blasting away (at what looks like a SSJ Vegeta) in a 3D battlefield, with big images of himself and Janenba on the sites of the page.

Fanboys, you might want to change your underwear, now.

14 April 2005

DBZ Movie 11 + "Doomrider" + Future Updates
VegettoEX @ 6:05 pm EDT -- Special thanks to everyone for not flooding my e-mail box with the DBZ movie 11 cover art and release date ^_~. I've updated the appropriate "DVD Guide" and "Movie Guide" pages. It's almost the original Japanese cover art, yet again! Huzzah! I fully expect, now, to see movie 12's cover un-touched for its domestic release...

Long story short, DBZ movie 11 is being titled Bio-Broly by FUNimation, and will see its release on August 16th.

If you haven't had the chance to check out "Doomrider"... there's no better time than now! Thanks to AnimeMusicVideos.org now hosting multi-editor projects (which are almost always larger than 100 MB in size), we now have a definite hosting solution. The torrent will no longer be supported, so please download from the org. Thank you!

There's going to be some kind of content update this weekend. I've been working on a few things, so at least one of them will surface. Look forward to it all, please!

10 April 2005

Do You Own the 1st DBZ "Dragon Box" DVD Set?
VegettoEX @ 8:35 pm EDT -- Amazingly, I didn't get a single response when I posted this request on our forums. Weird.

Do you own the first DBZ "Dragon Box" ? (The actual Japanese giant boxset; none of that bootleg nonsense). Do you know how to:

• Rip a VOB
• Load it up in VirtualDubMod
• Copy a frame
• Paste into Photoshop
• Save a lossless PNG
• ...?

If so, please send me an e-mail (VegettoEX@aol.com) immediately. I'm trying to pull together some stuff, and would really enjoy having your help on the project.

We've got a ridiculous amount of stuff coming soon, but it's just so much work. You probably won't see anything along the lines of daily updates for a bit, but once this stuff hits, you'll be busy for a few days :D. Hopefully that'll make up for it! Helper found... thank you!

05 April 2005

Akira Toriyama Turns 50
Julian @ 4:45 pm EDT -- I know it's a bit late in the day to be saying it (it's not even the 5th in Japan, anymore), but today is a very special day: Akira Toriyama's 50th birthday!

So, Mike and I would just like to say:

Tanjôbi Omedetô, Toriyama-sensei~!!

Some new stuff is coming later in the week, but this was more important right now.

04 April 2005

Sagas Opening Available for Download
VegettoEX @ 9:00 pm EDT -- All gazillion of you can stop e-mailing me requesting this, now :D. The Sagas new animation can be downloaded up in the right-hand corner of this page (along with the good ol' Japanese vocal opening from Budokai 3). Keep in mind that this was an American-made game, and only an English narration exists (thus far, anyway) for the footage. Also, it's not really the "opening" to the game... it's just the first FMV sequence for chapter one in story mode.

Please do not direct link to the file. I always see on your little message boards when you do, and it's not nice :). Special thanks to new forum member b_boult for the hosting!

In other news, the complete Neko Majin kanzenban was released in Japan, today! Expect a few review (and specific details, of course) in the near future... once we get our shipment, in, of course ^_~.

Expect some new kickin' content coming this week.

01 April 2005

The New & Improved Daizenshuu EX
VegettoEX @ 12:00 am EST -- Woohoo! A long time in the work, we're ready to get all of our new sections out to you! We worked our rear-ends off to get this all done, so please enjoy them all! Simply visit any of the new links in the menu, and have fun!

And as an extra tidbit, here's the cover for the Neko Majin kanzenban due out next week in Japan!