News roundup: Comments on the Sengoku Basara Series 10th Anniversary Special Live Broadcast

I'm a little bit overexcited right now as I've just finished watching the full Sengoku Basara Series 10th Anniversary Special Live Broadcast for the last two and a half hours.

It was set up like a mini Basara Matsuri with boisterous guests and lots of silly announcements. The video is still available for people who have access to the timeshift feature on Nico Nico; the stream seems to have been a success, attracting 64,722 viewers and 77,420 live comments (many of which were used on screaming and applause whenever the guests came on camera).

I've put the rest of this post under a link because it contains a lot of screenshots and I don't want to be responsible for making anyone's computer explode if they make the mistake of reading further.

The stream started off with KobaP introducing himself and YamamotoD, then the first set of guests arrived: Nishikawa Takanori (of T.M.Revolution), Hoshi Souichirou (Sanada Yukimura), Morita Masakazu (Maeda Keiji) and Noto Mamiko (Oichi).

It wasn't long before we were treated to a special anniversary video played showing cuts from some of the previous games while the series' theme music Sengoku Basara played in the background. There were plenty of nostalgic moments.

It was then time for some serious nostalgia as KobaP led a discussion about all of the previous games in the series, one by one. The actors shared their memories about their characters' stories and the highlights of each game.

Nishikawa joked about how huge and unwieldy his special edition boxes were for the Utage CD single.

Sorry about the unflattering snapshot, Nishikawa!

After a generous helping of discussion, the cast brought the old games back to life with a set of Sengoku Drama Emaki live dialogue performances. The first was a memorable scene with Yukimura and Keiji from Sengoku Basara 2; Keiji's overly familiar questions had poor Yukimura as flustered as ever.

I love how the actors' faces reflect their characters' emotions even though they're voice performers. These two are particularly fun to watch in that respect.

There was also a reading of Oichi versus Yukimura from Oichi's story in Sengoku Basara 2 Eiyuu Gaiden (Heroes). Noto is so sweet in person that it almost makes me forget that she has played a few chilling roles over the years. She should really come to the Basara Matsuri events.

The Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi news updates opened with another video treat.

They played another special video which appeared to be a voiced version of the game's opening sequence set to instrumental BGM. This was my first time seeing the animation in reasonable quality and I thought it looked great.

I love Nagamasa's body language in that shot.

Another video swiftly followed; an extended version of one which has been shown before, this time highlighting all six of the DLC costume tie-ins.

Then came the first of many announcements. The only new game-related update was that a selection of classic Sengoku Basara vocal tracks will be released as music play books for Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi, allowing you to set the previous theme songs as your background music in battle. The music will go on sale on 30th July 2015 priced at ¥400 per song.

The tracks are crosswise, FLAGS, Naked arms, SWORD SUMMIT, The party must go on, UTAGE and Count ZERO from T.M.Revolution, BLADE CHORD, JAP and WE aRE from abingdon boys school, and Rakurui 2015 ~Ubawareshi Senaka~, Gyakkou 2015 ~Yurusarezarumono Koko Ni Ari~, Ruisen 2015 ~Tanpopo Jouka~, Ao No Naka No Ao, Zenya and Tír na nÓg from Ishikawa Chiaki. Three of the Ishikawa songs are new versions from her upcoming album and it's the first time we have the chance to hear the stage play themes in-game.

In the following segment, Aoki Shiki (Maou) showed up to demonstrate some Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi gameplay live. The other guests teased that she resembled a real-life Oichi.

The viewers had to guess how many Tenka Medals she'd manage to gather playing as Rikyuu and Maria on the Battle of Kawanakajima Intrusion stage. The results of the survey were shown before the challenge began.

She surpassed most expectations and easily cleared the challenge with plenty of medals. Aoki was one of the players at the live demonstrations back when Sengoku Basara 4 was first being promoted too, so she knew her way around the game.

Next came a batch of new anniversary announcements. There are a lot of them, and many are with companies who have previously teamed up with Capcom to promote the series in the past.

The Sengoku Buyuuden samurai-themed bar in Shinjuku is going to be selling food and drink based on the characters of Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi. The campaign will run until 31st August 2015.

The BAGUS Internet cafe chain will also be celebrating the series in its sixteen branches across Japan until 31st August 2015. Customers can collect one of three randomly-selected Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi stickers when they purchase the three hour bundle. There's also an original mousepad on offer.

Karaoke Pasela is next up. They have a tie-in scheduled at the Ueno Three Monkeys Cafe and Osaka Three Monkeys Cafe venues until 31st August 2015. Original ceiling-hangings are on offer as well as a large banner.

Densetsu No Sutadonya is a donburi chain and unlike the others, they already have their tie-in page online. There's a complex schedule of dates where you can order these special dishes up until 30th November 2015:

There's a choice of Date Masamune's Deluxe Beef Tongue Bowl, Blazing Sanada Yukimura's Roast Beef Bowl, Kyougoku Maria's Magnificent Curry-don, Ashikaga Yoshiteru's Rich Meaty Miso-Itame Bowl, or Mouri And Chousokabe's Exquisite Sticky Pork Bowl. Ordering from the Sengoku Basara menu rewards you with a stamp, and after collecting five you can enter a prize draw for exclusive Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi goodies such as chopsticks, a towel, a clear file or a monitor cleaner.

Apparently they have a branch in Chicago! Someone should go and ask whether they're running the campaign there too (even though I know they aren't).

Moving along, the next segment of the live broadcast was a quiz! The presenters paraded prizes of rare signed goods in front of the camera then introduced a special guest.

Ashigaru-kun is an anniversary-themed foot soldier puppet!

To cross-promote the upcoming Sengoku Basara qualification exam, the seiyuu were brought back into the room and a short quiz took place.

The viewers watching the stream were shown a question, then asked for their answer. Those who were watching live had the added excitement of knowing that one person would be selected from the audience each round as a winner.

All of the answers were then collated so the creators could see just how well people understood the series.

It got off to a rocky start when the first question asked people to identify the unique trait Masamune's speech exhibits. Most viewers figured out that they meant his use of foreign words, but a sizeable number answered that he spoke in baby talk instead. The second question about Yukimura's rokumonsen emblem went much more smoothly.

Though apparently 8.2% of viewers thought that Yumekichi's name was Pyonkichi...

...and apparently 3.7% of viewers thought that Oichi was Nagamasa's little sister.

The answers revealed a lot about the people watching, in a way. Once the quiz wrapped up it was time to bring out the last two seiyuu guests and settle down with another talk show.

The sea of comments when Nakai Kazuya (Date Masamune) appeared accurately mirrored the atmosphere of an actual Basara Matsuri event. Everyone was pleased to see Morikawa Toshiyuki (Katakura Kojuurou) as well.

The next items on the agenda were looks back at the series' anime adaptations and live events.

But more interesting still was the next round of insane collaboration announcements.

Reservations will open for this Premium Bandai Sanada Yukimura Jacket today. It costs ¥100,000. That's a lot of money.

However, it's a really nice jacket.

KobaP modelled it and I have to admit, it's probably the most beautiful piece of merchandise I've ever seen and the attention to detail is impressive. But it costs ¥100,000.

For people without that much money to spend, there will be a sheet of tenth anniversary stamps for ¥3,240. They'll be available in mid-October 2015.

This 10th Anniversary Medal Set will also be released in mid-October 2015, priced at ¥5,400.

A set of INDEPENDENT x Sengoku Basara Citizen watches will go on sale in February/March 2016. They cost ¥24,840 each, which is a lot except that compared to that jacket it seems like an incredible bargain. The designs are based on Masamune, Yukimura, Mitsunari, Sakon, Motochika and Motonari.

ARTEMIS KINGS is the next brand to participate in a tie-in, this time with seven character-themed silver rings. They will be released on 5th August 2015 for ¥10,800 each.

The rings are quite tasteful. They don't especially look like game merchandise, yet the designs are clearly influenced by the series' characters.

Next up is a live talk event in Shiroishi, Miyagi Prefecture, to take place on 3rd October 2015. The guests will be Nakai Kazuya, Morikawa Toshiyuki, Hoshi Souichirou, KobaP and the major of Shiroishi, Kazama Koujou. The event commemorates the 400 years since the Summer Siege of Osaka and 20 years since Shiroishi Castle was restored.

I really want to go to this. So jealous.

To tie in with the talk event, the Dategun Tour 2015 was announced. Fans can travel to Miyagi Prefecture on 3rd October 2015 for a two-day trip and soak up the local history alongside the presentation.

There were still more announcements to follow. The Taka No Tsume (Eagle Talon) series is getting involved with Sengoku Basara and creator Frogman has drawn the two leads dressed up as Masamune and Yukimura. There will be a free exhibition in the Shibuya Parco Part 1 basement between 3rd September and 28th September 2015. Further details are coming soon.

A new Sengoku Basara manga has been announced. Sengoku Basara Dokugan is illustrated by Nekoi Yasuyuki and has a modern day setting where Masamune apparently rides an actual motorbike. It starts running this winter in Akita Shoten's Young Champion magazine. An official present-day manga spin-off that isn't Gakuen Basara?!

Finally, PICTcake CHARA will be delivering Sengoku Basara cakes from tomorrow. Single cakes (5-10 servings) are ¥4,000 while doubles (10-20 servings) are ¥8,000.

A celebratory anniversary cake was shown close up, and it looked very tasty indeed.

After the barrage of announcements came a batch of video messages from the three leads of the upcoming Sengoku Basara VS Devil May Cry stage play.

A few more live drama performances followed. They started off with an emotionally-charged scene between Masamune and Kojuurou from Sengoku Basara 2 Eiyuu Gaiden (Heroes) which darkened the mood immediately.

This was followed by a Keiji/Kojuurou scene from Sengoku Basara 2.

The show ended with a scene with Masamune and Yukimura from Yukimura's story in Sengoku Basara 3. The two actors put so much energy in each of their lines!

After the broadcast finished, premium Nico Nico users were treated to ten minutes of bonus content where Nishikawa and KobaP had a rather informal chat about the series in general and Nishikawa's appreciation of Kasuga. He had been in his usual cheeky mood for the entire show so this was his chance to speak his mind.

I'm guessing we'll see some of the videos on the official website soon since they were set up like trailers - or perhaps they'll be in a special gallery within the game, like the videos in the HD Collection?

--

In other news, Weekly Famitsu has posted the usual preview of this week's magazine coverage, confirming its promised 12-page Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi article with battle tactics and a group interview. The separate article about the magazine's bundled DLC confirms that Maria's magazine weapon also gives her a cat's tail and collar to accompany the ears.

There are two magazines coming out tomorrow (Weekly Famitsu and Dengeki PlayStation) which I'll try to get translated on my usual schedule. I may get distracted by the reality of Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi being released at the exact same time, so I'll apologise in advance!