The Normanic Vault

Otaku Collection Haul for June 2026

Welcome to the Otaku Collection haul for the month of June 2026. This update features 3 anime releases, 15 physical video games, and 5 live-action Asian Cinema releases plus 1 other live-action release.

For this haul, we acquire a dozen Japanese video game imports from different retailers and a couple other pickups, including two of Anime Limited’s newer titles, Arrow’s June line-up and a few gifts for the Birthday haul.

The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story

The first item of the month is a Japanese PlayStation 5 import that I’ve wanted to own for a couple of years now, and it’s been pretty pricey. But an opportunity came and I managed to get a copy at a solid price!

The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story is a Full-Motion Video game developed by studio h.a.n.d., the folks behind Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days and Neo: The World Ends with You, and published by Square Enix. It’s been on my radar for a while because I wanted more of the adventure visual novel style similar to 428: Shibuya Scramble and this one fit that niche. It’s gotten decent reviews and the Japanese physical release includes English support which is neat.

ACA Neo Geo Selection Volumes 5-8

A couple of months ago I acquired the first four volumes in this series, and it took a while to secure more not only because of pricing but the stock kept selling out as these collections were popular. VideoGamesPlus finally received more stock and I ordered the next four volumes in the series.

ACA Neo Geo Selection Volumes 5-8 from Hamster Corporation continues the collection of classic Neo Geo games for the Nintendo Switch, featuring fighting games, sports games, side-scrolling shooters games and more from SNK.

ACA Neo Geo Selection Volume 5 includes Aero Fighters 2 (Sonic Wings 2), Aggressors of Dark Kombat, Art of Fighting 2, Burning Fight, Cyber-Lip, The King of Fighters 2002: Challenge to Ultimate Battle, Real Bout Fatal Fury, Super Sidekicks, Thrash Rally, and Twinkle Star Sprites.

ACA Neo Geo Selection Volume 6 includes Aero Fighters 3 (Sonic Wings 3), Football Frenzy, The King of Fighters ’98, The Last Blade 2, Over Top, Real Bout Fatal Fury Special, Samurai Shodown IV: Amakusa’s Revenge, Sengoku 3, The Ultimate 11: SNK Football Championship, and Zed Blade.

ACA Neo Geo Selection Volume 7 includes Fatal Fury Special, The King of Fighters 2003, King of the Monsters 2, Metal Slug 5, Pleasure Goal: 5 on 5 Mini Soccer, Power Spikes II, Prehistoric Isle 2, Puzzle Bobble, World Heroes 2, and ZuPaPa!

ACA Neo Geo Selection Volume 8 includes Art of Fighting, Blue’s Journey, Crossed Swords, The King of Fighters ’99: Millennium Battle, Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle, Metal Slug 2, NAM-1975, Puzzle Bobble 2, Super Sidekicks 2, and World Heroes 2 Jet.

There’s two volumes remaining for me to collect as there’s 10 in total. The ACA collection is considered among the best versions to play for a lot of classic retro games, and Hamster have done work bringing other games including Arcade versions onto modern platforms as part of the Arcade Archives series and Console Archives.

Magnificent Bodyguards 3D

One of the most delayed and anticipated Asian Cinema releases has finally made its appearance. 88 Films have spent a long time sorting out their UK Blu-ray release for Lo Wei’s 1973 film Magnificent Bodyguards (飛渡捲雲山) starring Jackie Chan. Originally slated for a release in September 2024, the film was delayed and stuck in production hell due to the work and effort in restoring not only the film itself but also the 3D effect, which is why this release is also a collaboration with the folks at 3-D Film Archive.

The deluxe limited edition release includes three Blu-ray discs; one for 2D, another for 3D using the Blu-ray 3D format, and exclusive to this release is a third disc for the Anaglyph 3D version that allows you to watch the film using the classic Red/Blue glasses. While my multi-region Panasonic player does support Blu-ray 3D playback, the LG C1 TV does not so having an alternate version available for 3D is handy. Also included in this release is a booklet and a 3D art card.

Tokyo Xtreme Racer

Continuing the Japanese import line-up is another PlayStation 5 release and a relatively recent one from developer Genki. The classic Tokyo Xtreme Racer series, known in Japan as Shutokō Battle and in Europe as Tokyo Highway Challenge for the original release on SEGA Dreamcast, came back with a brand new instalment for modern platforms. Originally started on Steam, the game eventually made its way onto PlayStation 5 and a physical version was made available in Japan with English support.

One of the reasons I wanted to get this game is because modern platforms were missing the retro Japanese racing franchises that were prominent on PlayStation and PlayStation 2 era like Initial D, Bandai Namco’s Ridge Racer, Capcom’s Auto Modellista, Konami’s Enthusia Professional Racing, and Atlus’ High Velocity/Touge series, and while I liked Gran Turismo I wanted more of that era so this game coming back from Genki was a nice welcome. Of course there’s also Screamer also coming back from Italian developer Milestone but let’s just say you’ll be seeing that appear pretty soon.

The Dangers in My Heart Season 2

The second season for The Dangers in My Heart has now landed in the UK. Sentai Filmworks did eventually reveal their steelbook release not long after I received my UK copy but it looks like the booklet assets are identical so that works out. I was worried when Anime Limited jumped the gun as their track record of doing that hasn’t been particularly great, but here it’s as faithful as the first season’s release which is good. I will say if you’re conscious of shelf-space it may be worth opting for Sentai’s steelbooks instead as the booklet is included within the slipcase itself.

31st Birthday Haul

I have now reached the 31st anniversary of my existence. So that means more stuff for the collection. Like the past few years I focused more on the ‘less is more’ approach.

Starting off with the surprise item of the haul which I was not expecting at all. This is the LEGO Tuxedo Cat set from the LEGO Ideas range. LEGO has been part of my childhood and I’ve enjoyed building them whenever possible so while I’ve gotten my Mum the Botanical plant sets I was aware of this one for a while and figured it would be pretty funny to own considering my sister’s cat looked similar to the design. And my parents literally picked it up which was generous of them. I built it before my sister paid a visit and they liked it too.

Next we have a film joining the 4K Ultra HD collection with the Wachowskis’ 2008 live-action adaptation of Speed Racer. Based on the classic anime and manga series, this film flopped when it was first released but later became a cult classic and has aged well over time. I’ve not seen the film in a very long time so this 4K HDR release by Warner Bros is a nice treat to explore.

In the anime world we have Konosuba: God’s Blessing on this Wonderful World! Season 3 distributed by Crunchyroll UK on Blu-ray. I am a big Konosuba fan but didn’t get around to watching the third season when it first aired so this is a good opportunity for me to catch up on Kazuma, Darkness, Megumi and the Aqua thing. While Anime Limited and Discotek Media distributed the first two seasons using Crunchyroll’s license, Crunchyroll took over for this season like they did with the film and spin-off.

In the Asian Cinema scene I finally have the very first Godzilla (ゴジラ) film from Ishirō Honda, released in Japan back in 1954. Criterion did release that big book box set but I wasn’t fan of its design and they eventually re-released the first film for the 4K Ultra HD format which is what we have here. It’s one of their digipack type releases and also comes included with a small booklet. This release also includes Godzilla, King of the Monsters, Terry O. Morse’s 1956 version that was made for US audiences.

And last but not the least is a brand new 2026 racing video game with Screamer, developed by Italian studio Milestone. This is a reboot of their 1995 MS-DOS video game when they were originally known as Graffiti (which is available on GOG for those interested). Now on paper you’re probably not familiar with Milestone, but they are in fact the developers behind Hot Wheels Unleashed which was a super fun racing game. The anime style we have here is also from Japanese anime studio Polygon Pictures, the folks behind HUMAN LOST, Knights of Sidonia, and the 3DCG animation for Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence and The Sky Crawlers with Production I.G, so it’s interesting to see how it holds up with this release.

Play-Asia Nintendo Switch Japanese Imports Haul

Similar to the ACA Neo Geo Selection haul, I’ve wanted to continue building up the Japanese import collection for the Nintendo Switch and after watching Sean Seanson’s Taito video which included a few shoot ’em ups, it gave me the motivation to start another order from Play-Asia. Here’s the games I picked up:

Cotton Guardian Force Saturn Tribute, a collection of three classic SEGA Saturn versions for Cotton 2: Magical Night Dreams, Cotton Boomerang: Magical Night Dreams & Guardian Force by Japanese developer Success.

DRAINUS, a newer shoot em up from the developer of Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth. I’ve heard this was very good and been wanting to check this one out for a while.

Ray’z Arcade Chronology, a collection of shoot em ups by TAITO with the Arcade game RayForce as well as RayStorm & RayCrisis that originated from the Arcade and PlayStation. These were the ones featured in the Taito video that I mentioned earlier.

Shanghai Legends, a Mahjong Solitaire puzzle game by SUNSOFT and one of the games from the Shanghai franchise. This was also featured in the Taito video so having learned there’s a newer instalment on Switch and also on sale on the Play-Asia site, it was a no-brainer to pickup.

Now funny enough, the first three games I mentioned here were already released in Europe physically by Strictly Limited Games, but not only were they fairly limited, the publisher has a messy track record that I personally do not want to support, so it’s fortunate that all four of the games in this haul have English support on the game cart itself.

BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 3: The Conflict

More shonen. BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 3: The Conflict manages to make its appearance in time before the simulcast launch of the series’ final part. There are rumours that the story will continue with a brand new arc but for now we’re one cour closer to the completion of the anime. Granted Anime Limited have yet to release Parts 10-13 of the original series.

Like the previous cours, this release is very similar in design and yes the colour choice could have been better because the spine is almost non-existent but it is there just subtle.

Arrow Video June Pre-Orders Haul

Probably the biggest releases of the year for me has come from Arrow Video and a few titles from their June 2026 line-up. Like before I ordered them from Terracotta because it’s the best chances of grabbing a copy in case they sell out and also be in better condition.

We start off with a re-release for the 4K Ultra HD format. Takashi Miike’s 1999 film Audition (オーディション) was one of the first Arrow Video Blu-rays I acquired – back in October 2018 in fact, and it’s a very interesting film with the horror mainly coming from its final act but still a solid entry in his catalogue. The film stars Ryo Ishibashi (Suicide Club), Eihi Shiina (Tokyo Gore Police), Jun Kunimura (The Wailing), Tetsu Sawaki (Hush!) and Renji Ishibashi (Cowboy Bebop the Movie).

Next we have the latest addition in the Golden Princess catalogue. John Woo’s 1990 film Bullet in the Head (喋血街頭) is another Hong Kong classic for many and this release includes both the theatrical cut on 4K Ultra HD and the festival cut on Blu-ray. Like the previous sets, this one has been improved from the North American Shout! Factory release so waiting pays off. The film stars Tony Leung Chiu-wai (In the Mood for Love), Jacky Cheung Hok-Yau (Ashes of Time), Waise Lee Chi-Hung (The Cat), Simon Yam (Ip Man) and Fennie Yuen Kit-Ying (Pedicab Driver).

And the big release of the year from the Warner Bros catalogue. Jackie Chan’s Breakout Hits! features six films starring Jackie Chan that were distributed internationally by Warner Bros but are part of the Golden Harvest catalogue as well. With this box set, that’s pretty much a majority of the films that star the famous actor now available either on Blu-ray or in 4K, with his Hollywood films and China/Hong Kong films post 2000 left now to be released. The films included are as follows:

Lau Kar-leung’s 1994 film Drunken Master II (醉拳二) – Also starring Ti Lung (A Better Tomorrow), Anita Mui Yim-Fong (The Heroic Trio), Ram Chiang Chi-Kwong (Fight Back to School II), Lau Kar-leung (8 Diagram Pole Fighter), and Ken Lo Wai-Kwong (Police Story 3: Supercop). Arrow’s release includes the uncut 102-minute Hong Kung Cut, the 100-minute International Cut, and the 102-minute American Cut re-titled ‘The Legend of Drunken Master’.

Stanley Tong Gwai-Lai’s 1995 film Rumble in the Bronx (紅番區) – Also starring Anita Mui Yim-Fong (Miracles: The Canton Godfather), Françoise Yip (Black Mask), Bill Tung Biu (Police Story), Marc Akerstream, and Garvin Cross. Arrow’s release includes the uncut 106-minute Hong Kong Cut and the 90-minute International Cut across two discs.

Gordon Chan’s 1995 film Thunderbolt (霹靂火) – Also starring Anita Yuen Wing-Yee (From Beijing With Love), Michael Wong (City Hunter), Dayo Wong Chi-Wah (The Last Dance), Thorsten Nickel, Ken Lo Wai-Kwong (Naked Killer) and Kenya Sawada (Shinjuku Incident). Arrow’s release includes the uncut 110-minute International Cut and the 97-minute Japanese Cut.

Stanley Tong Gwai-Lai’s 1996 film Police Story 4: First Strike (警察故事4之簡單任務) – Also starring Jackson Liu (Fist of Legend), Annie Wu (Gorgeous), Bill Tung Biu (Project A Part II), Yuri Petrov, Nonna Grishaeva, and Ailen Sit Chun-Wai (Seeding of a Ghost). Arrow’s release includes the uncut 107-minute Hong Kong Cut and the 84-minute International Cut across two discs.

Sammo Hung Kam-Bo’s 1997 film Mr. Nice Guy (一個好人) – Also starring Richard Norton (China O’Brien), Miki Lee (Haunted School), Karen McLymont, Gabrielle Fitzpatrick (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers the Movie), Vince Poletto, and Barry Otto (Strictly Ballroom). Arrow’s release includes the uncut 97-minute Japanese Cut, the 96-minute Hong Kong Cut and the 88-minute International Cut across two discs.

Benny Chan & Jackie Chan’s 1998 film Who Am I? (我是誰) – Also starring Michelle Ferre, Mirai Yamamoto (Voices in the Wind), Ron Smerczak, Ed Nelson, and Ton Pompert. Arrow’s release includes the uncut 120-minute Hong Kong cut and the 107-minute International Cut across two discs.

Included in this big box set we have a flimsy o-ring slipcase which has some minor damage, a rigid box which has a small dent on the corner, six slim 4K Amaray cases (one for each film), a cardboard that contains 24 art cards (four per film), a fold-out poster featuring Drunken Master II and Rumble in the Bronx, and a big 160-page book with various essays though my copy did end up with a couple pages falling out as it wasn’t designed to be held like you’re reading a book funny enough so perhaps the glue chosen wasn’t strong enough.

Red Art Games Haul

Arriving at the very last minute was a sale haul from publisher Red Art Games that I ordered a few weeks prior. I’ve been meaning to pick up a couple of their games for a while and this sale was a good opportunity. Because they’re located in Europe there were shipping fees but no customs and I didn’t even get a shipping notification, just ones from Royal Mail which was random.

Croixleur Sigma, an action hack ‘n slash game by developer souvenir circ. (Touhou Project! Azure Reflections). Originally released for PlayStation 4 and Vita, the game was brought over to PC and eventually the Nintendo Switch. Limited Run Games did the physical releases for PlayStation but Red Art Games handled the Switch release.

Demon Gaze Extra, a dungeon RPG by developer Experience Inc. (Stranger of Sword City) which originally released on PlayStation Vita (and I do own that version but didn’t get around to playing it as this remaster came along). While the game was also released on PlayStation 4 it’s gameplay style I felt was better suited for the Switch platform.

Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer: Nightmare Feast, a tactical RPG by developer Apollosoft (Langrisser I & II) based on the popular light novel/anime franchise. I was surprised when I saw that a tactical RPG was being made since most anime games tend to be action, fighting or visual novels.

Sonic Wings Reunion, an arcade shoot ’em up also known outside Japan as Aero Fighters Reunion is a brand new instalment in the niche franchise by developer Hamster Corporation (ACA Arcade Archives games). The version I have is the ‘Deluxe Edition’ which comes with an o-card slipcase and booster pack cards. The standard edition was what I was going to go for but that edition sold out during the sale.

Unboxing Links

You can view more photos & specs for the titles below:

Also have plans to sort out an unboxing for Bullet in the Head and Jackie Chan’s Breakout Hits! at a later date.

What’s to Come for the Hauls

There’s quite a lot arriving in the coming months. I’ve done some more orders, both regular and pre-orders in anime and Asian Cinema. The arrival times will differ but they’re coming. More importantly we have the Summer sales to keep an eye out for as I want to grab more Sentai Filmworks releases if they do go on offer.

July 2026

  • AnimEigo & Discotek Media Haul:
    • Alien Nine (Blu-ray)
    • The Dagger of Kamui (Blu-ray)
    • Dancouga: Super Beast Machine God (Blu-ray)
    • Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior: Legend of Kenshiro (Blu-ray)
    • Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior: Legend of Raoh: Chapter of Death in Love (Blu-ray)
    • Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior: Legend of Raoh: Chapter of Fierce Fighting (Blu-ray)
    • Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior: Legend of Yuria & Legend of Toki (Blu-ray)
    • Hotori: Simply Wishing for Hope (Blu-ray)
    • Legendary Armor Samurai Troopers (Blu-ray)
    • Osamu Tezuka’s A Thousand and One Nights (Blu-ray)
    • Space Pirate Captain Harlock (Blu-ray)
  • Radiance Films July Pre-Order Bundle:
    • The Boxer (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • The Double (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • Histoire(s) du cinéma and other works (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • The Hourglass Sanatorium (Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray)
  • Terracotta June Pre-Orders Haul:
    • Painted Faces (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • The Pornographers (Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray)
    • Sex and Zen II (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • Warm Water Under a Red Bridge (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
  • Terracotta July Pre-Orders Haul:
    • Chūsei Sone Double Feature: Scars of the Sun / Blow the Night (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • Ping Pong (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky (Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray)
    • Sex & Fury / Female Yakuza Tale (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • Shawscope Triple Feature (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
  • Other Pickups:
    • Armour of God (Deluxe Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray)
    • Mobile Suit Gundam SEED FREEDOM (Collector’s Edition 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray)

September 2026

  • AnimEigo & Discotek Media Haul:
    • Hana Yori Dango (SD-BD)
    • Monster – Collection 1 (Blu-ray)
    • Sgt. Frog: The Original Movies 1-5 Collection (Blu-ray)
    • Sketchbook ~full color’s~ (Blu-ray)
    • Vampire Princess Miyu (Blu-ray)
    • Zegapain (Blu-ray)
  • Arrow Video & Toy Robot Video Pre-Orders Haul:
    • A Better Tomorrow Trilogy (Limited Edition 4K Ultra HD)
    • Ninja Wars (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • Raging Fire (Limited Edition Blu-ray)
    • Wicked Priest Collection (Limited Edition Blu-ray)

Late Q3 to Early Q4 2026

  • Other Pickups:
    • Capcom Arcade Stadium Vol. 1 (Nintendo Switch)
    • Capcom Arcade Stadium Vol. 2 (Nintendo Switch)
    • Deadlink (PlayStation 5)
    • Earnest Evans Collection (Nintendo Switch)
    • Fighting Force Collection (PlayStation 5)
    • Hi-Fi Rush (PlayStation 5)
    • Macross II: Lovers Again (Premium Edition 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray)
    • Puzzle Quest: Immortal Edition (Nintendo Switch)
    • Tenshi no Uta: The Angel Verse Collection (Nintendo Switch)

Other Tidbits

So after months of delay, I finally got my pay raise which is good. Pretty much the range I requested at the start of the year and while I wish I had more considering recent events, I’ll just have to keep up the pace of making sure our systems and content improves and see if I can get another increase next year. As a recap, there’s much less staff than before so the responsibilities on my part is greater than before. June in general looked pretty positive in terms of our direction and I even had a week off work because I had dozens of hours related to Claim Time Back and there’s still more left which I plan to take another week off in August to get them all out of the way. The overtime is going to keep happening until the systems are all sorted with our new structure.

Anime Updates

I have once again discontinued a couple anime releases from my collection. It’s a decision that I had in mind for a long time, and there are dozens more that I also want to remove but don’t have the solution yet to sort that out yet (as I can’t rely on CeX for those items). For those wondering, I no longer have Akira Collector’s Edition, GOD EATER Parts 1 & 2, Gurren Lagann Ultimate Edition and Paranoia Agent Collector’s Edition in my collection.

The Blu-ray release for Akira is a duplicate since I own the 4K Ultra HD release. GOD EATER was a fun show but I didn’t want to own a single cour series split into two parts on my shelf for a series that I likely won’t rewatch at this point. Gurren Lagann is a very good series, but the Ultimate Edition hasn’t age very well over time, because the box set has some issues, the discs weren’t authored as well as the Japanese & US releases, and on top of that we have the upcoming 4K Ultra HD release of the compilation films arriving later this year. On the plus side, I actually received almost as much as I had paid for the set so the investment was good. And as a last minute decision I also parted ways with Paranoia Agent to go for the steelbook version that I haven’t ordered yet but would be a better fit for my collection.

Anime Limited have revealed more updates for their pre-order schedule. They have The Girl Who Leapt Through Time pre-orders already happening, but I won’t be pre-ordering the film (as much as I do like it) because the Deluxe Edition isn’t as good as I had hoped and I plan to remove the previous two sets from my collection for better releases. Also coming up are DAN DA DAN Season 2 which I definitely will pre-order when it goes live, is scheduled for 27th July, the first half of Sakamoto Days Season 1, which is a cool reveal but similarly to Undead Unluck I will be opting for the standard edition instead later down the line, is scheduled for 7th September, and Gurren Lagann the Movies in 4K Ultra HD that I just mentioned earlier is scheduled for 31st August for the collector’s edition and Blu-ray re-release, with the standard edition 4K scheduled for November, the latter of which is what I will be opting for.

They’ve teased some big news incoming, but I assume it’s probably going to be home video releases for either Angel’s Egg or Oshi no Ko or perhaps more theatrical news. Then again Anime Expo is nearby so we could get some Macross updates.

Crunchyroll UK finally revealed their Sailor Moon release plans with steelbooks for each series. The first series is scheduled for 24th August, Sailor Moon R for 28th September, Sailor Moon S for 26th October, Sailor Moon Super S for 30th November, and Sailor Moon Sailor Stars for 11th January 2027. The downside is that the discs are going to be stacked so there is a risk of potential damage long-term I feel based on people’s experiences with them (it’s also why I didn’t go for some of Sentai’s steelbooks they released very early on), so I’m hoping for standard editions.

AnimEigo scheduled Master of Martial Hearts for home video release, coming to Blu-ray from 13th October, and they have more to announce at Anime Expo and Otakon so hopefully for more license rescues from that old Funimation era as there were quite a number of titles that didn’t get HD upgrades.

Discotek Media revealed their August pre-order slate and I ordered most of the anime revealed in that batch, which funny enough wraps up all of the readily-known anime releases that were on their announcement panels. Which means by the time we get to their Otakon panel it’s going to be 100% brand new reveals, whether it be Blu-ray upgrades of their older titles or new releases in general. Very exciting stuff. The MediaOCD Store did release an extra batch for the Deep Dives list which included the long out of print release of Dancouga which I did order as it was one sci-fi mecha series that I regretted missing out on a few years back.

Asian Cinema Updates

In addition to the anime mentioned above that I discontinued from my collection, I also removed the Akira Kurosawa Samurai Collection and Cure Blu-ray releases, and both of these were because I own the 4K Ultra HD releases for these films so it made no sense to keep the older formats. This is something that I will try to sort more often but some releases have good value due to their booklets so it’s a case-by-case basis.

88 Films revealed their September release slate. The one that has my attention the most was another Category III release with Sherman Wong’s Sex and the Emperor which must be niche as I haven’t heard of this before and wasn’t on the Wiki list for the CATIII releases. Still good to see more titles for this line-up. We don’t know anything else for the remainder of the year but there’s definitely a few Shaw Brothers films since there’s a gap in the numbered list.

Arrow Video revealed their September slate as well, with A Better Tomorrow Trilogy finally scheduled for the UK. This took a while due to extra work being done to make the release as good as possible, and it’s also why A Chinese Ghost Story Trilogy hasn’t been released yet either. And also being scheduled is the Wicked Priest collection, featuring five films by directors Kiyoshi Saeki, Takashi Harada and Buichi Saitō. Other than Sammo Hung’s Pedicab Driver which was teased from their postcards, and the remainder of the Golden Princess catalogue (including the Aces Go Places collection, The Big Heat, Full Contact, I Love Maria, Prison on Fire I & II, Swordsman Trilogy & Tiger on the Beat I & II), I don’t know much else that’s on the way for Arrow at this point.

Eureka Entertainment revealed another Asian Cinema title and it’s an interesting one. Cruel Tales Of The Bohachi collection features both Bohachi Bushido films that were already released in North America prior. The first is Teruo Ishii’s Code of the Forgotten Eight on 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray which Mondo Macabro just recently released a few months ago, and Takashi Harada’s The Villain on Blu-ray which Discotek Media via their Nihon Nights label released a few years ago. Both are included as part of their Masters of Cinema range so I’m looking forward to owning this one, and also shows that it was worth holding off on specific titles from Nihon Nights since they eventually made their way into the UK.

Radiance Films revealed another Kon Ichikawa film with The Inugami Family on Blu-ray. I recall some folks were thinking it was going to be a box set but instead it was separate releases. On another note, it does look like they managed to get their hands on Takashi Miike’s Visitor Q in the end because their name was mentioned during a festival screening of the film instead of New Wave who own the Australian rights and released it not long ago.

Video Game Updates

In addition to the anime and Asian Cinema mentioned above that I discontinued from my collection, I also removed the Nintendo Switch versions for the Xenoblade Chronicles trilogy, and the simple reason is because Nintendo Switch 2 Editions were announced with physical versions planned for July, October & December respectively for each instalment. Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna – The Golden Country also received an upgrade but it’s a free patch which basically means there won’t be a physical version so I kept my copy in that case. As far as I’m aware, only the games that have paid upgrades are the ones getting the physical treatment.

My gaming collection surprisingly has plenty of room to continue building but it’s not as fast-paced as you might expect. The PlayStation 3 and 4 collection is pretty much just a title here and there as my focus is now on PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2.

Now my initial write-up on this portion was about next-gen but right at the last minute, Sony announced that physical disc production for PlayStation will conclude on January 2028 which means every new game released from that point will be digital only, meaning PlayStation 5 is now the last Sony console to support physical disc media which is an absolute shock and unfortunate outcome for this industry.

I’ve bought physical games because they hold good value; from looking great on the shelf, being able to install games at ease (a recap that a majority of physical games are complete and playable on the disc itself) than waiting on downloads for ages on the console, the ability to re-sell the game if needed for someone else to have ownership of the game, and if something happened to my account I will still be able to access my entire physical library on a new account – because losing your account also means losing your entire digital library.

Plus digital, whilst it has its benefits in terms of quick accessibility for a few more seconds, is a license which means you do not technically own that game at all for your account, so the publisher and Sony themselves have the right to take that access away from you at any point. For now a vast majority will still be accessible for the foreseeable future but it can happen – heck the recent news that Studio Canal’s deal with Sony expired and that anyone who bought the films digitally will not only lose access to their license but also no refund process whatsoever is a conveniently timed reminder of that scenario.

At the end of the day, many consumers prefer the digital route and that’s fine for them, but what this means moving forward for me is that I’ll continue to pickup physical games for what’s left for the next 18 months and depending on Nintendo’s response many physical owners will either shift to them or just wait for massive sales from this point. Digital is pretty pricey anyway so if you want my attention you’ll have to drop the price by a lot.

I forgot to mention that digital can work in terms of ownership. In the PC world, there are multiple storefronts to purchase digital games on that platform and one of them is GOG, who offer DRM-free versions of games which means that if you purchase any of their titles, whether it be the Resident Evil Classic Trilogy, Baldur’s Gate III or the recently added No More Heroes games, you keep it and can put it on as many devices as you want without any extra cost. Sony definitely won’t be doing that, which also begs the question of whether or not there’s even a future for digital only PlayStation and Xbox when most consumers will probably be better off owning the PC versions or even Steam’s Machine console (once the prices calm down in a few years of course). Any who it is what it is.

Going back to the topic of what to grab next on each platform then? Well there are tons.

PlayStation 5 on my list has around almost 100 games that I could get which includes upcoming releases. May as well mention the upcoming releases to start with that are on my radar – Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, BloodRayne Collection, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, CONTROL Resonant, Disgaea Mayhem, Dynasty Warriors 3 Remastered, Final Fantasy Resonance, Onimusha: Way of the Sword, and Toy Story Retro Round-up Collection are all scheduled for release this year with most of these I’ll likely pre-order in advance.

In terms of the older backlog we have The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales, Atelier Resleriana, Atelier Yumia, Black Myth Wukong, Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D, Dragon Quest III HD-2D, Dragon Quest VII Reimagined, Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake, LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater, PAC-MAN WORLD 2 RE-PAC, Returnal, Saros, Scarlet Nexus, Silent Hill 2, Silent Hill f, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4, and Turok Trilogy Bundle that are all on my list to get but timing depends on pricing and a good opportunity.

For the Nintendo Switch, if there’s a Switch 2 version that’s complete on-cart and runs just as well then I’ll be getting that version, and if not it’ll likely be on PlayStation 5. Game Key Cards is not on my priority list at least until we reach a point where it’s the only option left but because I consider them as digital games it feels like wasted space on the shelf. Again I’m not saying people shouldn’t go for them but it’s down to preference and my preference is to prioritise the full-cart versions for my shelf.

What’s incoming that’s on my radar for the Switch 2 are the NS2 Edition re-releases for the Xenoblade Chronicles trilogy, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Bros. Wonder and the new releases including Culdcept Begins, Danganronpa 2×2, Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake, and Super Bomberman Collection.

For the Nintendo Switch 1, we have Baten Kaitos 1 & 2 HD Remaster, Culdcept The First Saturn Tribute, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD, Earthion, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD, Mario vs Donkey Kong, Overlord: Escape from Nazarick, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, Pocky & Rocky Reshrined, Super Mario RPG, Toaplan Arcade Collection, and many more.

That concludes this month’s haul. Don’t expect my pay increase to make any positive changes as I need to know the exact amount I’ll get after the deductions like tax and student loans, but long-term it should be pretty handy.

Tags for this post:

,

Comments

Leave a Reply

Discover more from The Normanic Vault

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading