News roundup: Catching up on some previous announcements - watches, manga and CDs

The preorders are finally open for those Sengoku Basara wristwatches

It's taken a while since they were originally announced but Sunday's fan meeting event revealed that the INDEPENDENT x Sengoku Basara Citizen watches are now available for preorder. The Masamune, Yukimura, Mitsunari, Sakon, Motonari and Motochika watches will all go on sale in February 2016 for ¥23,000 (before tax).

Customers who purchase through the e-Capcom store will receive a unique 'maki-e'-style box for their watch, as shown at the links above.

A small update about the new Sengoku Basara drama CDs

The three upcoming drama CDs are to receive special edition releases for customers who purchase through Animate. Character CD Sengoku Basara -Masamune & Yukimura- comes with an acrylic keychain of Masamune, Character CD Sengoku Basara -Ieyasu & Mitsunari- comes with an acrylic keychain of Mitsunari, and Character CD Sengoku Basara -Sen No Rikyuu- comes with an acrylic keychain of Rikyuu. The pricing is ¥2,500 per CD before tax (¥2,000 if you choose the standard edition) and the release dates are still unconfirmed.

Manga artist Yoshihara Motoki has a small request for fans

The Sengoku Basara 4 Bontenmaru-hen manga has just been released as a standalone volume collecting all of the individual chapters, and its creator Yoshihara has asked fans on Twitter whether they can keep information circulating about which stores are stocking the book and how long their copy took to arrive. It might be fun if some foreign buyers can respond too to let him know how we're purchasing his book too, right?

In other manga-related news, Yoshihara's Sengoku Basara 4 manga adaptation is getting a third volume on 27th November 2015, and it's supposedly publishing its final chapter in next month's Dengeki Maoh magazine. I hope that the oft-teased Benmaru-hen manga will follow...

SHARP formally announces their new Cocorobo with a video

Last but not least, there's also an official announcement trailer for the Date Masamune 'Cocorobo' vacuum cleaner from SHARP. I'm sure that I won't be able to afford one but it doesn't make it any less fun to follow the publicity.

News roundup: The Sengoku Basara stage presentation from Tokyo Game Show 2015 - and much, much more

I've been too busy to post frequently lately so here's a bumper roundup of everything that's been happening, including the news from today's stage presentation at Tokyo Game Show 2015. It was a long post even before the stream began; there's been a lot going on, from tickets going on sale for Butai Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi to various new difficult-to-obtain merchandise being announced!

A brief summary of the TGS 2015 stage presentation with KobaP

The presentation began with producer KobaP coming on stage and modelling the pricey Sanada Yukimura jacket from Premium Bandai (more on that below).

They showed a bunch of promotional videos to introduce Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi and the tenth anniversary of Sengoku Basara then launched invited members of the audience onstage to try the live Tenka Medal Challenge in Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi.

Depending on the total number of medals the fans collected, they could win various prizes. Less than a thousand medals awarded a scrubbing brush, 2,000 meant bags of Sengoku Basara prizes for the three players at the event, 5,000 medals earned a special anniversary wallpaper for everyone (it will be posted on the official website) while 10,000 medals was enough to win a prototype Ashigaru-kun mascot reward.

The first player collected over a thousand medals with a Sasuke/Yukimura team, while the second had never played Sengoku Basara before and only managed a hundred with the same characters. The third player picked Mitsunari and Gyoubu and didn't quite manage to accumulate a thousand. After the guests were done, Ashigaru-kun himself started playing (with Ieyasu/Tadakatsu) on the Kawanakajima Intrusion stage to show the audience how it was done and did even worse than the new player. There was a lot of apologising.

Once the gameplay was over, KobaP launched into his announcements by describing the recent Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi patch to the audience. The rest of the announcements will be in their own sections below (I skipped the ones which have already been mentioned before).

The next big Sengoku Basara event is announced

It's not a regular Basara Matsuri this time, but instead Sengoku Basara 10th Anniversary Matsuri ~Feast of Ten Years, Ten Shades~. The event will be held in Hall A of the Tokyo International Forum on Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th March 2016.

The guests for the Saturday will be seiyuu Hoshi Souichirou (Sanada Yukimura), Morita Masakazu (Maeda Keiji), Ookawa Tooru (Tokugawa Ieyasu), Genda Tesshou (Takeda Shingen), Ishino Ryuuzou (Chousokabe Motochika), Nakahara Shigeru (Mouri Motonari) and Hayami Shou (Akechi Mitsuhide/Tenkai).

Sunday's guest list is very similar with seiyuu Nakai Kazuya (Date Masamune), Hoshi Souichirou (Sanada Yukimura), Morita Masakazu (Maeda Keiji), Ookawa Tooru (Tokugawa Ieyasu), Ishino Ryuuzou (Chousokabe Motochika), Nakahara Shigeru (Mouri Motonari) and Hayami Shou (Akechi Mitsuhide/Tenkai).

Additional guests and musical performers for both dates will be confirmed later, and of course KobaP will be there as usual.

Tickets will go on sale from 15th October 2015 for fan club members or 6th December 2015 for general customers.

For the first time in a few years, I won't be able to attend! Aww...

Sengoku Basara-themed alcohol is back on the menu

The next new product in the Sengoku Basara merchandise range is Sengoku Basara 10th Anniversary Sparkling Sake. The bottles will come with decorated labels and there will be a total of six designs: Masamune/Yukimura, Maria/Yoshiteru, Wabisuke/Sabisuke, Mitsunari/Ieyasu, Hideyoshi/Hanbee/Keiji and Motochika/Motonari.

More details have been posted here. The sake will cost ¥3,519 and it's available from select venues starting today.

The Kofu x Sengoku Basara collaboration moves into its second phase

The Kofu x Sengoku Basara project is continuing to attract visitors to the Yamanashi region and the latest announcement is that they will be hosting a Sengoku Treasure Hunting Game starting from 5th December 2015. More details will posted on their tie-in website here.

Release information for the upcoming Sengoku Basara Dokugan manga

Nekoi Yasuyuki's new modern day Sengoku Basara Dokugan manga is scheduled to begin this winter and a new illustration has been released to draw attention to it. The manga will be serialised in Akita Shoten's Young Champion magazine which is released on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month.

You can see the artwork up close here.

New Sengoku Basara drama CDs are on the way

A new series of three drama CDs are coming soon from Frontier Works. Their plots all sound quite similar and it's an interesting formula to set up some character interactions.

The first volume will be about Masamune and Yukimura and the cast will be Nakai Kazuya (Date Masamune), Hoshi Souichirou (Sanada Yukimura), Morikawa Toshiyuki (Katakura Kojuurou) and Koyasu Takehito (Sarutobi Sasuke). The plot is about Yukimura and Sasuke coming across the Date army while roaming in the mountains, and turning what began as a cooking battle into an all-out azure-crimson battle.

The second is about Ieyasu and Mitsunari starring Ookawa Tooru (Tokugawa Ieyasu), Seki Tomokazu (Ishida Mitsunari), Nakamura Yuuichi (Shima Sakon) and Okamoto Nobuhiko (Shibata Katsuie). The four men take shelter from a storm in an empty house, which forces them together unexpectedly under a cloak of darkness.

The third CD is just about Sen No Rikyuu and the cast list is Sakurai Takahiro (Sen No Rikyuu), Ishino Ryuuzou (Chousokabe Motochika), Nakahara Shigeru (Mouri Motonari) and Morita Masakazu (Maeda Keiji). That's an interesting selection of characters. Motonari and Motochika chance upon one another in a Kyoto teahouse. The tense situation develops further when Keiji is called upon to mediate.

In addition, there's going to be a new Animate TV radio show tentatively titled Sengoku Basara 10th Anniversary Radio to celebrate the release of the CDs. Further details will be available at a later date.

Electronics brand Cocorobo will be collaborating with the Sengoku Basara series

Details are sketchy but it seems that Date Masamune is going to be the inspiration for a premium voiced roomba vacuum cleaner in Sharp's Cocorobo line in the near future. It's CLEAN TIME! Let's COCOROBO Party!

The Sengoku Basara Pia mook will be released at the end of September

I'm not sure whether I blogged about this before since I originally mixed it up with the delayed Sengoku Basara Seishi ("The Official History of Sengoku Basara") book, but there's a new publication in the Pia Mook series called Sengoku Basara Pia ~10th Anniversary~ which is coming out on 30th September 2015 priced at ¥1,400. Naturally, the theme is the series' tenth anniversary and the cover illustration is a tribute to the very first game's box art.

The main feature article will be about Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi and it will contain comments from seiyuu Sakurai Takahiro (Sen No Rikyuu). The other content inside the mook includes:

1. Introductions for the various playable characters who appear over the course of the series.
2. Explanations of the stories covered in each game.
3. Special interviews and messages. There will be a pair of joint interviews with Nakai Kazuya (Date Masamune)/Hoshi Souichirou (Sanada Yukimura) and Koyasu Takehito (Sarutobi Sasuke)/Kobayashi 'KobaP' Hiroyuki (series producer). These will be accompanied by messages from T.M.Revolution and the very popular former Butai Sengoku Basara actors Kubota Yuuki (Date Masamune) and Hosogai Kei (Sanada Yukimura).
4. A look back at the series' various adaptations and tie-ins, including the anime spin-offs, stage plays and live events. There will be messages from some of the anime staff too.
5. A guide to the actual historical ties the popular warriors had with various locations.
6. An illustration gallery.

There will also be a desktop calendar included with the mook as a bonus item and covers the 14 months between November 2015 and December 2016.

For those unfamiliar with the terminology, a mook is a blend of a magazine and a book. If you think of the way that most gaming strategy guides are published, you can expect something similar - a sturdy magazine intended to be kept and treasured for a while.

A few extra tickets for the Fan Meeting 2015 Autumn events will be sold at the door

The two Basara Club Fan Meeting 2015 Autumn events will be happening in a few weeks' time, and the fan club has just announced that a small number of ¥5,500 tickets would be available at the venue on the day. If you happen to be (or know) a member of the fan club who is close enough to Tokyo or Osaka to be able to check the venue, you might get lucky and be able to attend one of the shows.

More exclusive merchandise is on the way for hardcore fans in Japan

The official Sengoku Basara qualification exam is drawing closer and its website has updated to reveal the existence of some special merchandise for participants to buy - except that the pictures won't be ready until closer to the late November date of the exam. The illustrations being used have been created exclusively for the event and there will be an acrylic key holder (¥1,000), a set of two original clear files (¥1,000), a set of five original postcards (¥1,000) and a pouch/hand mirror set (¥2,500).

Capcom announces a 'Silver Week' deal for Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi

A special offer will be running until 23rd September 2015 whereby customers who purchase the digital version of Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi from PSN will receive an exclusive limited edition bundle along with it. For the standard price of ¥5,990 (PS3) or ¥6,990 (PS4), customers will receive the Sumeragi Starter Pack (large) and the full moveset unlock DLC. The Sumeragi Starter Pack (large) contains 100 pieces of tamahagane steel, 10,000 whetstones, 75,000 Tenka Medals, 750,000 ryou in cash and 450,000 xp for your Inrou box. That's a saving of ¥800 if you were planning on purchasing those items anyway.

Gift posts proper pictures of the newest Sengoku Basara 4 plushies

Those who have been eagerly looking forward to the new Sengoku Basara 4 plushies from Gift x Algernon can take a closer look at Shibata Katsuie and Date Masamune (Hakama & Wooden Sword Ver.) as the official product pages are now ready for viewing. They look just as high quality as the rest of the Gift product line.

The first batch of these new plushies will be available on 25th October 2015 as part of the Gift Shop 2015 Autumn Plushie Day fair in Tokyo. They'll be made available via other shops after that, so keep checking AmiAmi and other reliable toy specialists if you want to order either of these plushies before they sell out.

Preorders open for the newest Mame Sengoku Basara goods

The Mame Sengoku Basara 4 Trading Rubber Strap Collection mentioned previously is now available for preorder ahead of its release on 27th November 2015, and Dengekiya has posted a sample showing how the individual straps in this ¥9,072 pack are expected to look. AmiAmi have opened preorders for overseas customers.

The matching Mame Sengoku Basara 4 Trading Can Badges are also online at Dengekiya with the same release date and a price tag of ¥4,536. AmiAmi have listed the badges too.

The deluxe Yukimura jacket will be made available again

Remember the extremely expensive Premium Bandai Sanada Yukimura Jacket?

It seems to have been successful enough that it's being made available for order a second time. The preorder period will close on 19th October 2015 with delivery expected for December. If you have a spare ¥100,000 lying around, this is another chance to purchase a very exclusive piece of merchandise.

Visit a Japanese arcade to win Sengoku Basara prizes

Participating amusement arcades in Japan are going to be offering fourteen different 15cm Kyun Chara Illustrations: Sengoku Basara Character-Style Big Tags as prizes from 15th October 2015. The unwieldy name appears to be a fancy way of saying 'keychains'. The art style matches previous goodies released by Banpresto and there's a reasonable selection of characters - so long as you're not a fan of the ladies of the series who are completely absent...

As different arcades will change their prize offerings from time to time, fans will have to keep checking their local facilities to find out when they will be available. I'm encouraged by the fact that Banpresto have created a website specifically for Sengoku Basara prizes. Perhaps there will be more in future, even if it's always hideously difficult to collect them from outside Japan.

Fan report: Pictures from the 'top secret mission' event in Osaka

Fans tacotits and kleptoyade have posted a great picture report from the Osaka: Mysterious Rebellion ~Escape From Namba's Hidden Castle Town~ (Side Story) event starring Sengoku Basara's Sasuke, which has been running intermittently in the Namba Walk complex this year. The post gives a good idea of how fun these historically-themed events are to attend!

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Finally, I want to share some pictures of two of the clear files that were given to Keikyu railway passengers who participated in the Showdown! The Way of Battle Leading to Haneda! Stamp Rally campaign. I wasn't able to take part myself, but my wonderful father and little brother happened to be visiting Japan at the right time so they hopped on a train to Kamata on my behalf. The staff at the station were thrilled to meet two very confused foreigners who kept mumbling about Sengoku Basara tickets and really helped them out.

They had only been intending to pick up the clear files and leave since an untranslated stamp rally isn't that fun for people who aren't interested in the series, but one thing led to another and they ended up taking a ride on the Keikyu trains as well. Thanks, Dad!

News roundup: Patch notes, stamps and seals

A software update is released for Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi

Today (11th September 2015), a software update was made available for Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi with a few small enhancements. The official patch notes list the changes as follows.

For PlayStation 4:

• Battle Roulette can now be toggled ON/OFF on the stage selection screen in Sengoku Creation: Extreme mode.
• The Bomb Soldier and Akatsukimaru transformations can be cancelled with the Circle button.
• A fix for a bug when Shibata Katsuie's eighth weapon (the Neckchopper from V Jump magazine) was equipped at the same time as his Absolute Justice DLC costume.
• Various other bug fixes to improve stability.

For PlayStation 3:

• Battle Roulette can now be toggled ON/OFF on the stage selection screen in Sengoku Creation: Extreme mode.
• The Bomb Soldier and Akatsukimaru transformations can be cancelled with the Circle button.
• Various other bug fixes to improve stability.

I wonder which other bugs were fixed? It's possible that the sound issue on PS3 might have been addressed, or that the glitch fan OneSanitarium found to travel to inaccessible parts of stages could have been removed. In any case, I'm happy to see that Capcom has taken fan feedback on board and made these small, yet significant adjustments.

The next wave of Sengoku Basara merchandise is confirmed

It's rare that I post some gaming information without there also being new merchandise to reveal at the same time, and today is no different. The following items will be available across Japan from 24th September 2015.

First there's a selection of twelve Sengoku Basara stamps priced at ¥500 each. There will be designs for Masamune, Kojuurou, Yukimura, Shingen, Sasuke, Ieyasu, Mitsunari, Sakon, Katsuie, Keiji, Motochika and Motonari:

A choice of four different Sengoku Basara chrome cases intended for storing inkan seals. These are priced at ¥1,000 each and the available designs are Masamune/Yukimura, Ieyasu/Mitsunari, Sakon/Katsuie and Motochika/Motonari:

A seelction of five pouches priced at ¥1,200 available in Masamune, Yukimura, Shingen, Ieyasu and Mitsunari designs:

Finally, there are five different inkan seal sets priced at ¥4,500 and available in Masamune, Yukimura, Shingen, Ieyasu and Mitsunari designs:

I'm pleasantly surprised to see Shingen is featuring prominently in this range of merchandise.

News roundup: Capcom's TGS 2015 plans (including streaming details)

Capcom confirm their plans for the Tokyo Game Show 2015

Capcom's dedicated Tokyo Game Show 2015 web page has confirmed the schedule and streaming plans for next week's events. As previously mentioned, Sengoku Basara series producer KobaP will be giving a 45-minute Sengoku Basara Series Special Stage presentation at 16:00 on 19th September 2015 with a look back at the ten year anniversary, a Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi gameplay challenge for members of the audience and the latest merchandise/event announcements.

The Capcom TV team will be covering the stage presentation on the 19th but they'll also be presenting a show about the event on the 17th September from 20:00 local time, which is the day TGS officially opens to business customers. Their weekend streams will run between 10:00 and 17:00 Japan time.

The Nico Nico Live streaming links are here: 17th September, 19th September.

If you don't like Nico Nico, it's possible that the Capcom TV Twitch channel will also be covering the event along with the YouTube stream that is usually linked from the official website on the day of the broadcast.

There will also be merchandise available at the company's booths, but as far as Sengoku Basara is concerned there are no exclusives; it's just an opportunity to buy some items ahead of their official release date. Other series have some more creative offerings this time (like Street Fighter IV noodle bars)!

Listen to the tenth anniversary Sengoku Basara theme song

For some reason it's taking a long time for any online promotion of this song to take place outside of the crossover stage play where it debuted, but someone on Nico Nico has uploaded a recording of a television commercial which celebrates the series' tenth anniversary and has SOLIDEMO's Toki Wo Koete ('Beyond Time') playing in the background. Sadly embedding the video isn't permitted. I'm guessing the commercial will appear online in a more official capacity soon.

While a physical release has yet to be confirmed, the song is available on the Japanese iTunes store.

Lots of new Basara Club merchandise is announced for the upcoming fan meetings

The official Sengoku Basara fan club has announced details of the special merchandise which will be launched at the Basara Club Fan Meeting 2015 Autumn events in a few weeks. Some items will be available from the fan club store later, while others are completely exclusive to the event venue. The fans and badges were already announced but I'll mention them again anyway to keep everything in one place. Quantities are limited as always.

Seven different cushioned key holders for ¥1,200 each:

Four different uchiwa fans for ¥300 each (the fans have different designs on each side):

Eight different BIC ballpoint pens for ¥500 each:

Twenty-four 'favourite warrior' badges, of which nine are brand new, for ¥900 each:

Twenty different randomly-selected 'capsule' pins, divided into two different sets which also have a chance to include a sticker as a bonus. These pins will be exclusive to the event venues and cost ¥400 each:

They're also selling the existing B-shaped cushions, towel sets and a shopping bag.

Capcom launches a range of custom credit card designs

This next one is very much for Japanese fans only, but if you happen to live in Japan and qualify for an Epos credit card you will be able to choose from six Capcom-related designs from 17th September 2015. There are two Sengoku Basara options available.

Signing up for one of the Sengoku Basara cards as a new account holder earns you a special clutch purse too as a commemorative gift.

Applications will be accepted at the company's booth at the Tokyo Game Show 2015. Those who sign up at the event will get another bonus in the form of an exclusive tote bag.

To celebrate the launch of the credit card (and give people an excuse to use their new cards), there will be a lottery for those who use an Epos card to spend more than ¥3,000 at the special merchandise stores in three different Marui shopping complexes. The Marui Family Mizoguchi store in Kanagawa will be trading between 17th September and 27th September 2015, while Marui Kashiwa in Chiba will be open from 26th September to 5th October 2015. Finally, Shibuya Marui will host a pop-up store in Tokyo from 30th September until 13th October 2015.

You can see samples of the special merchandise in this older post about another recent pop-up store in a Marui building.

News: Cast details are announced for Butai Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi

The big news today is the formal cast announcement for next year's Butai Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi stage play!

The lineup is now on the official website so everything has been confirmed. Most surprisingly, Date Masamune has been recast again, while Shiina, who used to play Ranmaru, is now back as Sasuke. We have a new Kotarou, too, which is a shame as I loved the old one. Meanwhile Shiramata is going to be the fourth Motochika; he gets recast every single time - and we have the series' third Magoichi making her debut. I've put the newcomers' names in bold.

Shiono Akihisa (Date Masamune)
Matsumura Ryuunosuke (Sanada Yukimura)
Inoue Masahiro (Katakura Kojuurou)
Shiina Taizou (Sarutobi Sasuke)
Kotani Yoshikazu (Mouri Motonari)
Shiramata Atsushi (Chousokabe Motochika)
Sakurada Kousei (Azai Nagamasa)
Sueno Takuma (Fuuma Kotarou)
Kawamura Yukie (Tsuruhime)
Mamoru Asana (Saika Magoichi)
Fujita Ray (Shibata Katsuie)
Juri (Sen No Rikyuu)
Matsuda Kenji (Matsunaga Hisahide)

Huh, no Oichi? No Yoshiteru? No Maria? It's sort of strange seeing Katsuie without any of his Oda allies, though I'm happy he's back and won't complain. Given that two of the three Sumeragi leads are missing, I think it's likely we'll see further adaptations once this play has completed its run. Mitsunari and Sakon being absent despite their staggering popularity is also a surprise.

Video: A new Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi gameplay clip

I wasn't really expecting any more Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi videos so I was a little surprised when Capcom uploaded a gameplay demonstration with Yoshiteru and Rikyuu! The video comes from the development team and shows off the characters' moves better than some of the prerelease clips.

News roundup: TGS 2015 plans and a few updates

There will be a Sengoku Basara stage presentation at Tokyo Game Show 2015

I was getting a little concerned that the series was going to be completely overlooked this year! Fortunately, Capcom have now confirmed that series producer KobaP will be giving a 45-minute stage presentation at 16:00 on 19th September 2015. The Sengoku Basara Series Special Stage will take place on the main stage at the Capcom booth and promises to include a look back at the ten year anniversary, a Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi challenge for members of the audience and the latest merchandise/event announcements.

I hope that there will be some events scheduled over the winter to complement the new stage play and keep the series in the news.

CafeReo announces a range of Sengoku Basara fabric patches

The latest Sengoku Basara merchandise has been revealed to be a set of embroidered polyester patches. The six designs will be available from late November 2015 for ¥2,000 each.

I rather like these designs, they're tasteful but immediately recognisable at the same time.

The cover artwork for the series' new historical reference book is revealed

The delayed Sengoku Basara: Shijitsu De Wakaru Sengoku Basara No Sekai ('Discovering The World Of Sengoku Basara Through Actual History') reference book definitely looks as though it will meet its September release date this time, as Amazon have updated their listing to add the cover artwork. I'm looking forward to finally getting my hands on this after preordering back in March!

Photo reports from the Taka No Tsume crossover event in Shibuya

As previously mentioned, Frogman's Himitsu Kessha Taka No Tsume (Secret Society Eagle Talon) series is joining up with Sengoku Basara for an exhibition in Shibuya this month. A few news outlets have visited the venue of the Sengoku Basara x Himitsu Kessha Taka No Tsume: ~Sengoku Heroes And Castle Invasion~ exhibition and posted their impressions. The reports from 4Gamer and Famitsu give a good view of the crossover merchandise and props on display.

News roundup: The first gossip from Sengoku Basara Magazine vol. 10

The Sengoku Basara Magazine website has now updated along with a preview article on the Dengeki site. The correct reading of the name of the new scenario novel is apparently Sengoku Basara 4 Sumeragi Riten Daisakai ('The Grand Tea Ceremony Cast Out From Heaven').

My copy won't arrive in the UK for a few days so I'll summarise the information I've found about the new issue so far.

The website update formally confirms that Sengoku Basara 4 Bontenmaru-hen will be released in compiled book form on 26th September 2015, priced at ¥616. They also included the cover artwork, which is rather understated for a Sengoku Basara manga.

The previously-announced Showgeki Basara Talk! Vol. 5: Sakon & Katsuie No Maki Special-ban talk CD scheduled for 26th September 2015 now has its own cover artwork as well, drawn by Sumeragi. As a reminder, Sen No Rikyuu's seiyuu Sakurai Takahiro will appear as a guest and the BASARA CHALLENGE skits will be the family restaurant one from the last issue of the magazine, an episode about working as lifeguards at a pool and an exclusive bonus skit about a promise at an athletics meet.

Next, remember these cute designs which are being used for the upcoming Mame Sengoku Basara 4 Trading Rubber Strap Collection?

There will also be a set of Mame Sengoku Basara 4 Trading Can Badges available for the same characters priced at ¥324 each or ¥4,536 for a box. Preorders will open in late September ahead of their Autumn 2015 release date.

Finally, there's one sad piece of news, especially for those who had been eagerly waiting for their favourite characters to appear on the cover of the magazine. Twitter user @tobitaka626 posted a snapshot showing that the final page has a message for the fans instead of the usual preview of the next issue: "Thank you very much for reading up until volume 10! Sengoku Basara Magazine is certain to return, so until that time..."

I hope it really does come back someday. I was never expecting them to keep it going for this long, but it's been such a treat to get all of this Sengoku Basara content in a single place every few months that it will be sad to lose it. There's still a regular Sengoku Basara section in each month's issue of Dengeki Maoh, of course, but does this also mean that the Wan-Nyan Sengoku Basara manga and the scenario novel series have finished for now?

I'll try to work on translating the character background columns from Dengeki Maoh periodically to make the wait for more news about the magazine a little better.