Japanese Niche Games Deals & Discussion Thread 4.0

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shivan128

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Welcome to the Japanese niche games deals and discussion thread!  Feel free to talk about local and import Japanese games here.  Our goal is to maintain a thread dedicated to active deals on niche games including RPGs, Visual Novels (VN), Shoot'em ups (Shmups), Musou, etc.  Also maintained are pre-orders for standard, limited and collector's edition games with key release dates provided.

I've wikified the thread to make it more friendly and open to others that can actively update with important information. You can find the wiki post directly below this one.

NOTE:  Please, leave the censorship discussion away from this thread.  It's common for japanese games to have questionable content outside of the country.  We want to keep discussions to the game itself and not about cultural/societal tolerance.

A message from Thorbahn:

Our CAG Japanese Niche Games Thread also has a community on PS4, where you can interact and game with other members of the thread.

Our moderators are: Draekon, Las_Hole, and Waffleswanton

You can basically friend any of our members, or any moderator, and you will be able to request to join the community under "Communities friends are in" tab, and a mod will approve your request.

You can also leave your PSN ID in the thread, saying you want to join, and we can invite you directly as well.

As always, have fun and enjoy your stay!

 
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Hessler2 said:
Is there a reason some people refuse to buy versions of games that are not NTSC? If they're for your collection and you don't plan on trading them in or selling them (and you can still sell them anyway so that doesn't matter) then why does it matter? Many of them even have the same cover, the literal only difference is the rating logo in most cases. People complain about DLC but it's doubtful they even buy DLC for those games. I've saved tons of money just buying the PEGI or Asian versions or whatever and hell, I like when they have weird different covers because it makes my collection feel unique.
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I'm willing to stick my neck out there and answer you honestly: I hate the PEGI logo on game boxes. It's big and ugly. Sure, not being able to use DLC for a foreign copy is also a reason why I stick to NTSC, but I mostly just like to keep my collection consistent. I'll only purchase a foreign copy of a game if it was only released in that region, such as my Asian English copy of Gundam Breaker 3.

I just recently bought a Canadian copy of Story of Seasons: Trio of Towns on Amazon, but since it's still NTSC, I didn't care that the cover is full of French. You getting a lot of value out of your international collection is great, and congrats on all the deals you've gotten over the years. I just prefer NTSC. To each his own ;)

 
I prefer my collection to be NTSC as well unless a game I want only came out in another region. Examples would be Aggelos, Alienation, Matterfall, etc.

 
Hessler2 said:
Is there a reason some people refuse to buy versions of games that are not NTSC? If they're for your collection and you don't plan on trading them in or selling them (and you can still sell them anyway so that doesn't matter) then why does it matter? Many of them even have the same cover, the literal only difference is the rating logo in most cases. People complain about DLC but it's doubtful they even buy DLC for those games. I've saved tons of money just buying the PEGI or Asian versions or whatever and hell, I like when they have weird different covers because it makes my collection feel unique.
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There are various legitimate issues that one can run into like save games and DLC compatibility. But, beyond that, I live in America. I want the version that was released for my region for my collection. I have absolutely no problem with imports if there is no North American release, but it just feels dissonant with the rest of my collection and where I live to have random European or Asian games when we have a release here.

 
I have a couple of European DS games (Inazuma Eleven and Hotel Dusk's sequel) and the cases for those are so thick compared to ours.

For the most part, it's a lot harder to get rid of foreign copies. You can't trade them in, for one.

Like everyone else, I pretty much only buy other regions when we don't have it here.

 
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I buy Asian English releases, but they have to be exclusive physical such as Gundam Breakers 3 (Think that may be exclusive over there as well), or only digital in the west like Moero Crystal H. I also buy Japanese releases with English subtitles such as The Fox Awaits Me. Generally prefer NTSC releases though.

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j22ip4MWyHE

Mysterious Trilogy DX Trailer 

2x battle speed

Digital Art book

Photo Mode

Sophie has a new event and costume

Firis has a bulldozer

Lydie & Suelle visit Nelke in a painting.

 
Dragon138 said:
Atelier Ryza 2 for PS4 is part of the Target B2G1.
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I'm really surprised how popular Ryza's made the series.It's always been super niche.

 
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Received an email from Best Buy yesterday about Digimon Survive:

We have some good news to share about your canceled order of Digimon Survive Nintendo Switch.
 
We are excited to let you know that we are able to start taking pre-orders again and wanted you to be one of the first people to know. If you would like to place a pre-order you can do so now on BestBuy.com.
 
If you have questions, call us at 1-888-BEST BUY (1-888-237-8289). Thank you for being a loyal Best Buy customer. We appreciate your business.
 
You know what would be really great? If you could just reinstate my order, since it had a GCU discount I now can't get back. I doubt if I call them I'll be able to get the order reinstated, since these call center dumbasses can't really do much beyond cancel orders. I remember when the Elite/Elite Plus "dedicated phone number" was actually connected to a place in the US.
 
I love how these companies think a great way of showing a customer you "appreciate" them is to "invite" them to give you money.
 
Well anyway, looks like Digimon Survive isn't canceled (for now). Here's hoping for some news on it soon.
 
super1upqueen said:
Received an email from Best Buy yesterday about Digimon Survive:

We have some good news to share about your canceled order of Digimon Survive Nintendo Switch.

We are excited to let you know that we are able to start taking pre-orders again and wanted you to be one of the first people to know. If you would like to place a pre-order you can do so now on BestBuy.com.

If you have questions, call us at 1-888-BEST BUY (1-888-237-8289). Thank you for being a loyal Best Buy customer. We appreciate your business.

You know what would be really great? If you could just reinstate my order, since it had a GCU discount I now can't get back. I doubt if I call them I'll be able to get the order reinstated, since these call center dumbasses can't really do much beyond cancel orders. I remember when the Elite/Elite Plus "dedicated phone number" was actually connected to a place in the US.

I love how these companies think a great way of showing a customer you "appreciate" them is to "invite" them to give you money.

Well anyway, looks like Digimon Survive isn't canceled (for now). Here's hoping for some news on it soon.
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I thought it was just a reskinned version of Metal Gear Survive.
 
Am i out of luck at trying to locate a copy of Trails of Cold Steel Decisive edition for ps4 at non-scalper price? I can no longer find them anywhere other than Marvelous EU website... :(

Anyone know any place in Bay area california that still has copy available?
 
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flamerhino said:
Am i out of luck at trying to locate a copy of Trails of Cold Steel Decisive edition for ps4 at non-scalper price? I can’t no longer find them anywhere other than Marvelous EU website... :(

Anyone know any place in Bay area california that still has copy available?
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Damn, you weren't kidding on the prices. So glad I picked them up on launch even though I already had the Vita versions.

 
flamerhino said:
Am i out of luck at trying to locate a copy of Trails of Cold Steel Decisive edition for ps4 at non-scalper price? I can no longer find them anywhere other than Marvelous EU website... :(

Anyone know any place in Bay area california that still has copy available?
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Woooof! What caused the price hike? I picked up copies about two months ago so I guess I was lucky. Sorry buddy!
 
Re zero prophecy of the throne day one edition with the pins Nintendo Switch version is up on amazon for 59.99. I believe it was reduced from 79.99 but I might be mistaken. There's a coupon on there for 5$ off when I purchased it as well. But that may be one of those targeted offers.

Not sure if the ps4 version has the coupon.
 
shadowysea07 said:
Re zero prophecy of the throne day one edition with the pins Nintendo Switch version is up on amazon for 59.99. I believe it was reduced from 79.99 but I might be mistaken. There's a coupon on there for 5$ off when I purchased it as well. But that may be one of those targeted offers.

Not sure if the ps4 version has the coupon.
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Day 1 (with pins) MSRP is 60 as listed. The collectors version is what was 80, but I felt the pins were the best part of the CE, so day 1 is what I bought.
 
Ibacai said:
Woooof! What caused the price hike? I picked up copies about two months ago so I guess I was lucky. Sorry buddy!
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It's not unusual for special-edition versions of Japanese titles similar to this one to get limited print runs, and then become scarce once the supply has sold through. The limited nature of these runs is also usually not advertised or marketed, it just happens. It's common for these games to have "regular" versions released later that just include the game with no extras, so the game itself is not actually rare, just the limited special editions.

Being a bit of a fan of this series, I pre-ordered both the special editions with the steel books. This isn't the first or last time an acquisition of my mine has appreciated in this fashion. It's especially common with Japanese titles, due to the publishers not proclaiming the limited nature of the releases. With no hard deadlines, flippers and collectors alike frequently don't jump on these titles immediately, waiting for sales or price drops. I mainly pre-ordered them due to the extremely positive reputation of the series. (and the technical upgrades to the PS4 release) By the time that the initial run dries up, everyone suddenly realizes that second-hand is the only option, and the demand sharply spikes. This is why I often don't wait for bargain prices on some of the more obscure Japanese titles. I don't pre-order all of them, that would be crazy. But I also don't hold off for clearance-level bargains either. Especially in this day and age where those clearance prices seem so scarce.

 
NISA, XSEED, and Koei-Tecmo are all companies to keep an eye on with physical releases. KT has at least done some reprints, but stuff like Utawarerumono: Prelude from NISA is practically nonexistent. If any of the games they publish are must-haves for you, I'd strongly advise against waiting for a potential price drop.

 
Yeah people will start realizing, but it seems we're coming to the end of the PS4 lifetime for some games at least. Everyone is all for the new platforms, as am I, so yeah don't sleep too much on niche releases. Some of them might not have the physical stock like earlier in a system's life. That said I do get the ones I'm interested in near launch, otherwise I get it cheaper digital eventually.

 
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Lots of eroge releases lately. Sorry I'm a little late for some launch discounts. Was busy.

Sekai Project/Denpasoft released Slobbish Dragon Princess. It looks very basic, although it could be cute.

VNDB (NSFW)

Steam

Steam 18+ Patch (NSFW)

Denpasoft (NSFW)

JAST USA released Eiyuu*Senki Gold. Haven't played the first, but this is like an alternate somewhat expanded version with a lot more CGs.

VNBD (NSFW)

JAST Store (NSFW)

Mangagamer is getting set to release some games. First is Rance Magnum released 02-25-2021. It has a pre-order discount.

VNDB (NSFW)

Mangagamer (NSFW)

Mangagamer is also getting ready to release Clock Up's How to Live a Healthy Hentai Lifestyle! on 03-11-2021. I'm curious of this as Clock Up usually makes some pretty violent and hardcore eroge. I can only imagine the twists in this weird looking game. It has a pre-order discount.

VNDB (NSFW)

Mangagamer (NSFW)

Wizard's Climber now has an English translation. It was just dropped on Reddit.

VNDB (NSFW)

Reddit Patch Thread

Lots of interesting stuff. For now in the short time I will likely play that Clock Up game.

 
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nitrosmob said:
Yeah people will start realizing, but it seems we're coming to the end of the PS4 lifetime for some games at least. Everyone is all for the new platforms, as am I, so yeah don't sleep too much on niche releases. Some of them might not have the physical stock like earlier in a system's life. That said I do get the ones I'm interested in near launch, otherwise I get it cheaper digital eventually.
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I bought a few late life PS3 games and many of them ended up on the PS4 or NS (and in improved states/with more content)... having a hard time going through that again with the shift from PS4 to 5.

 
I think less games will get ported ps4 to ps5 because ps4 stuff (disc & digital) still works on ps5. Some ps4 stuff might get switch ports thou.
 
Vinny said:
I bought a few late life PS3 games and many of them ended up on the PS4 or NS (and in improved states/with more content)... having a hard time going through that again with the shift from PS4 to 5.
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I picked up Nioh and Nioh 2 for cheap from Best Buy at BF, and just started the first one this week on my PS5. I see no need to buy the new 70 dollar collection, my cheap copies are working just fine. I’m not interested in playing online much, so I don’t know if it’ll cross play between PS4 copies and PS5, but I would bet it does. I suspect that compatibility is applicable for most PS4 stuff.
 
Starcrest said:
I picked up Nioh and Nioh 2 for cheap from Best Buy at BF, and just started the first one this week on my PS5. I see no need to buy the new 70 dollar collection, my cheap copies are working just fine. I’m not interested in playing online much, so I don’t know if it’ll cross play between PS4 copies and PS5, but I would bet it does. I suspect that compatibility is applicable for most PS4 stuff.
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I waited on the Nioh collection and I might pick up the PS5 one later. What's sort of crummy with Nioh is that Team Ninja held back critical DLC on those games. I believe for Nioh 2, for example, the actual "ending" to the game is sold as DLC. Not that big a deal, but if it's all on-disc, that's always what I prefer.

From https://www.siliconera.com/nioh-2-the-first-samurai-dlc-expansion/

"Nioh 2‘s The First Samurai DLC will tie up the main story’s loose ends. This scenario will be set during the early Heian period, sending players back into the past. The hero will meet an important figure that resembles a character players will be more than familiar with, provided they beat the base game."

 
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G_x51 said:
I think less games will get ported ps4 to ps5 because ps4 stuff (disc & digital) still works on ps5. Some ps4 stuff might get switch ports thou.
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Agreed. Only thing I could see is publishers putting out ultimate editions, with all DLC and PS5 upgrades on a disc so as to convince folks who don't want to bother downloading PS5 assets, and/pr who didn't buy the original PS4 versions. Games coming to PS4 now are generally including the PS5 upgrades for free (see, e.g. Control Ultimate Ed.)

Otherwise, I do think publishers will have a harder time trying to resell past-gen games this go around. May be we'll see more older gen era games get the upgrade treatment this time around. I could see games like Dead Space and Sly Cooper making a leap forward. After all, we've already heard all those rumors about the overhauled Metal Gear Solid.

I still expect Sony to repackage some of their last-gen game as PS5 "remasters," but may be with PS5 exclusive DLC content. Who here doesn't think Last of Us 2 gets a short story DLC, packaged together with a PS5 re-release?

 
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Mattiful-Joe said:
"Nioh 2‘s The First Samurai DLC will tie up the main story’s loose ends.
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I just beat the story last night and I have no idea what this is talking about as there aren't any noteworthy loose ends at the end of the game. Actually it's quite the opposite where it has a very definitive ending that doesn't even sequel bait, they make it very clear the current adventure is over.

What is weird though is that the last few hours of the game tie into some of the Nioh 1 dlc which was confusing as I had not played the dlc for the first game, but once I just glanced at the wiki to see who one of the characters was that is really all I needed to know to understand what was going on.

Also in reference to not buying the new collection, remember Nioh 2 gets a free PS5 upgrade anyway. Just stick the PS4 disc in and you can start a download of the PS5 version. That is how I played it and the port is really fantastic, instant load screens are so great.

 
Zenax[zd] said:
I just beat the story last night and I have no idea what this is talking about as there aren't any noteworthy loose ends at the end of the game. Actually it's quite the opposite where it has a very definitive ending that doesn't even sequel bait, they make it very clear the current adventure is over.

What is weird though is that the last few hours of the game tie into some of the Nioh 1 dlc which was confusing as I had not played the dlc for the first game, but once I just glanced at the wiki to see who one of the characters was that is really all I needed to know to understand what was going on.

Also in reference to not buying the new collection, remember Nioh 2 gets a free PS5 upgrade anyway. Just stick the PS4 disc in and you can start a download of the PS5 version. That is how I played it and the port is really fantastic, instant load screens are so great.
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Thanks for the info. This Nioh collection is on my shortlist of PS5 game I'm interested in ... when I have a PS5, which won't be for a while (if ever). I only buy games on-disc (no DLC), which is why I like ultimate collections - at least when everything is on-disc.

That's the only reason this Nioh collection on PS5 interests me, as opposed to the "incomplete" ones on PS4. By the time I pick up a PS5, I figure games like this will be cheaper.

 
Nothing- said:
Nioh 1 & 2 are certainly not games that I would complain about lack of content...
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Yeah, both games are pretty insane bang for your buck. It's actually why I never got around to playing the dlc, the Nioh 1 plat trophy took me about 110 hours and the plat doesn't even require really doing any endgame stuff, you have to do like 1 mission on the first NG+ difficulty iirc but that is it. Just wanted to move on to something else after I finished that even though Nioh hard modes are the kind I really like where they actually add new mechanics, alter enemy behavior, and change up enemy placement in the levels.

Probably going to do a lot more in Nioh 2 though. I absolutely love the tonfas so much (didn't have them in the first game since I didn't have the dlc) and I just want to keep going with them. Plus I enjoy the faster combat speed the game has thanks to the yokai abilities giving you things to do in what would be down time in the first game.

 
I was thinking more niche releases when I said about buying PS4 games early with lower stock. I don't consider Nioh niche. We do sometimes get ports to newer consoles though, so anything is game though. Just play what you like and if you're lucky stock is good, otherwise play digitally sometime. Nioh 1/2 PS5 are on my radar mainly since I only played a bit of 1. Not much coming till Ratchet & Clank, so may pick it up sometime. I have Demon's Souls already, so that will go out of my backlog first. 

 
New Nintendo Direct announced, and aside from the obvious, non-niche stuff we're all looking forward to (Zelda, Metroid, MegaTen, Smash), I'm really hoping for some news on those Dragon Quest Monsters games with Erik and Mia that seem to have just disappeared. Also, there's a chance they could localize that Buddy Mission BOND visual novel they showed off in Japan back in October. I'm not a big visual novel fan, but that game looks dope.

Biggest want from the Direct: Xenoblade Chronicles X port. It would be my automatic GOTY.

 
Man, I just want Nintendo to make some new games instead of porting the Wii U library. Feels like my Switch is just a Smash Bros. machine at this point since I had a Wii U and go for crossplatform games on Playstation.

 
Tothoro said:
NISA, XSEED, and Koei-Tecmo are all companies to keep an eye on with physical releases. KT has at least done some reprints, but stuff like Utawarerumono: Prelude from NISA is practically nonexistent. If any of the games they publish are must-haves for you, I'd strongly advise against waiting for a potential price drop.
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Jesus I didn't realize that utawarerumono game was so much. I have the other titles in the series but I somehow missed that one. Speaking of, Disgaea 5 for the switch also spiked up in price for some reason. Really weird because thats the first disgaea title that I have seen actually be worth more than the retail and it happened so quickly as well.

 
super1upqueen said:
New Nintendo Direct announced, and aside from the obvious, non-niche stuff we're all looking forward to (Zelda, Metroid, MegaTen, Smash), I'm really hoping for some news on those Dragon Quest Monsters games with Erik and Mia that seem to have just disappeared. Also, there's a chance they could localize that Buddy Mission BOND visual novel they showed off in Japan back in October. I'm not a big visual novel fan, but that game looks dope.

Biggest want from the Direct: Xenoblade Chronicles X port. It would be my automatic GOTY.
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This would make a lot of people happy.

I'm playing Xenoblade Chronicles X for the first time right now, myself. It's really impressive what they pulled off on the Wii U.

My character, blueberry, just got her Skell and everyone loves her!

EuPDXolVEAIVCPu.jpg
EuPGJJrUYAEe0vy.jpg
EuOTcgUVkAEF3jV.jpg


We still never found her pants..

Eto_y96VIAIglYq.jpg

 
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BoxPizzaBox said:
I'm playing Xenoblade Chronicles X for the first time right now, myself. It's really impressive what they pulled off on the Wii U.

My character, blueberry, just got her Skell and everyone loves her!

EuPDXolVEAIVCPu.jpg
EuPGJJrUYAEe0vy.jpg
EuOTcgUVkAEF3jV.jpg



We still never found her pants..

Eto_y96VIAIglYq.jpg
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Well, let's be honest, the Switch is basically a wee bit more powerful than the Wii U (I know, horrible pun).
 
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Mattiful-Joe said:
Well, let's be honest, the Switch is basically a wee bit more powerful than the Wii U (I know, horrible pun).
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Yeah, I wouldn't expect much improvement graphically, but really just being able to turn on a Switch instead of a Wii U to play is improvement enough.

I'm sure it could look stunning on a rumored Switch Pro in higher res, though, too.

 
Switch is a great 2nd system and I play handheld a lot. I really am not crazy for the exclusives, but it makes a great system for indie games and picross and such type games. I like it quite a bit, but I know it's lacking power and something else for the oomph factor. My switch generally is an indie, picross, Slay the Spire, and for now Atelier Ryza machine. I like that the Switch has all the Atelier games since I haven't kept up with the series. I will play the newest on through the PS5 (Ryza 2), but I like the DX versions and will get the trilogy coming out later this year. Once PS5 becomes a niche machine I will be happy though. Otherwise most of the niche games are played on PC and PS4 for me.

 
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Fanatical has a Build Your Own Anime Bundle.

Pick any combination of

2 for $9.99

3 for $13.99

5 for $19.99

Titles include:

Tokyo Xanadu eX+

Spirit Hunter:Death Mark

The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories

Little Dragons Cafe

Alternate Jake Hunter: DAEDALUS The Awakening of Golden Jazz

Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of Fujisawa

GalGun Double Peace

Synergia

White Day: A Labyrinth Named School

Ara Fell

Richman10

Damascus Gear Operation Osaka HD Edition

The Letter - Horror Visual Novel

UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH Exe:Late

Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code

AWAY: Journey to the Unexpected

The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters

CHAOS CODE -NEW SIGN OF CATASTROPHE-

 
gospelman said:
Hm. Tokyo Xanadu eX+ would be the only thing I'd want. So if someone happens to be buying a bundle without it, I'd send a $5 eshop code for the key.

UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH Exe:Late isn't the most recent version of the game, correct?
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Correct.Late -> Latest -> [cl=r]. We might get another one with an even more absurd name for the new consoles.

 
my dad the other day preordered me bravely default 2 from best buy for my bday 3/24 so i could get the preorder bonus and he had $20 rewards coupon he forgot about and used it so got game for $40 not bad 

 
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