BANDAI official Ultraman toy information site

It's been a while, everyone.
I'm Nno, in charge of Ultraman toy development.

It's been a while since I last updated the blog, but just the other day, we started shipping out the "Trigger Key Set" and "Three Titans of Darkness Key Set," which are the culmination of the "Guts Hyper Key" we worked so hard on last year, and I personally feel quite emotional about this. We would be extremely grateful if everyone who has purchased the product could also fill out the survey on the product packaging, as we would like to use this information as a reference for future product development!
Thanks to you all, Ultraman toys have been very well received, and with your support we are able to offer a wider range of products than ever before.


Today, we would like to introduce the following item from the previously announced items, which will finish accepting pre-orders at the end of this month!

ULTRA REPLICA Beta Capsule 55th anniversary ver.


We will explain some points that are not covered on the product reservation page.
At the end of the article, we will briefly touch on other products and future developments, so please read to the end.


■ The "origin" reborn in celebration of the 55th anniversary
Now, this Beta Capsule is a renewed version of the Beta Capsule from the first "ULTRA REPLICA" product released in 2016.

In fact, the inspiration behind this item was that Friday, May 13th.
I left work before the scheduled time and rushed to the nearest movie theater to watch "SHIN ULTRAMAN". As you can imagine, I was hit with first man fever, and while reviewing the original episodes, I put together a proposal on Saturday and Sunday and slipped it into a meeting at the beginning of the week.

The exterior has only been slightly redesigned using the mold from the previous product, but the internal sound gimmick has been completely renewed.

I also purchased the previous product as a user, so I was able to identify areas for improvement based on how it felt to play with, and then use the know-how I've cultivated in the recent ULTRA REPLICA Series to create a product that will show you how far we've come in six years!

Below are some specific points (although they may be a bit obscure).

■The number of transformation sound patterns available has been greatly increased!
As previously reported, the transformation and entrance sounds are recorded from the TV series and subsequent guest appearances, but there is not just one pattern recorded from the original "TV series."
When creating this product, we reviewed all 39 episodes again and, in addition to the most popular "basic transformation sounds," we carefully selected the sounds from several episodes where there were distinctive changes in the transformation scenes.

The breakdown is as follows:


It may seem like a deliberate move to pick out many of the monster episodes that appear in "SHIN ULTRAMAN," but there's also a large coincidence aspect to it in that the differences were quite noticeable when listening to the transformation sounds in all the episodes calmly and comparing them.

As for the recordings from other guest performances, I think there are mixed opinions about this, since many of the performances do not even use Beta Capsules, but we have included almost all of the audio that is currently possible to record, so we hope you will enjoy it as a substantial bonus track.

■ Evolution of the post-transformation mode part 1: BGM and color timer
Now, the gameplay in the "post-transformation mode" that you enter after playing the transformation sound mentioned above has also evolved considerably.
First of all, the background music has been improved so that it can be played, stopped, or transitioned to the next song at any time.

As for the songs included, "Victory (M-5)", which was also included in the previous product, has been changed to the full length without editing, and three new songs have been added: "Battle (M number unknown)", which is used heavily in the early stories, and "Air Battle (A-2)", which is literally memorable for its use in aerial combat.

In addition, by pressing and holding the BGM playback button, the "color timer sound" will begin to play, and this color timer sound can be played simultaneously with the BGM and the sounds of shouts and special moves.

This was the only feature that was not possible with the Guts Hyper Key Premium, but my wish to be able to play three different sounds simultaneously has finally come true.
With the terrifying background music playing in the background, the "beep... beep..." sounds, and the "swoosh!" and Specium ray sound effects, you can experience a sense of realism that is just like watching the actual film.

What's more, the pitch of the flashing color timer sound accelerates as time passes.
As the energy decreases, the beat gets faster, making your heart race as you watch...I believe it was the original Man who vividly imprinted this brilliant performance on my mind, so being able to recreate it with the toy is a great feeling.

■ Evolution of the transformed mode, part 2: shouts and special move sounds
Another function in the transformed mode is sound effects such as shouts and special move sounds.
After transforming, if you press the transformation button briefly, a "call" will be heard, and if you press and hold it, a "skill sound" will be heard.

We also included a significant amount of sound effects in the "Guts Hyper Key Glorious Ultra Brothers Key Set," but this time we've increased the number even further.

The sound effects for moves from that time were often nearly identical even though the moves looked different on screen, so it can't be said that "all the move sounds are included," but the most maniacal one even includes the sound effect for the "Ultra Kasumi Slash" used against Jigglypuff.
Also, the "Transformation Release Sound," which can be used to return to the pre-transformation state with certain operations, is the sound used in some episodes for the scene where Ultraman emits a ring-shaped beam of light while flying and separating from Hayata.

■ A little surprising? The addition of "Super Simple Mode"
Now, this is a bit of a digression, but recently when developing toys for adults I sometimes feel that "there are too many things to do, which makes them actually harder to play with."​

Of course, we believe that the addition of various functions and greater reproduction of in-game scenes are clear values that can be achieved through technological advances, and we have also incorporated every effort possible to make the game easy to play.
On the other hand, I sometimes think that the playability of the simple and straightforward DX toys that we played with as kids was in no way inferior.

So, as an experimental step, we have added a "super simple mode" that can be accessed by performing specific operations.
To be honest, there are only two things you can do in this mode:
① Press the transformation button to hear the transformation sound.
② Press the BGM button to play background music.
that's all.

Even if you play the transformation sound once, you can play the sound repeatedly without having to cancel the transformation.
The transformation sounds also have no particular variation and are simply a repetition of the "basic transformation sounds."

This is the perfect mode for when you're feeling tired and don't want to think about playing while doing other things.
If it is well received, we will consider adding it in the future, so we would appreciate your feedback.

This concludes the additional information regarding the Beta Capsule currently under development.
We will continue to refine the product, but pre-orders will soon be accepted until 11pm on Wednesday, August 31st!
I believe that this is an item that anyone who had their first man experience will not regret buying, so I recommend that anyone who is unsure about purchasing it should go ahead and buy it.


【bonus】
Below are announcements about items currently in development and upcoming releases.

● "ULTRA REPLICA Replica Reeflasher 25th Anniversary ver."
Development is progressing smoothly, and mass production is currently underway for delivery in October.
We continued to refine the specifications even after the information was released, and as a result, we believe we have created an item that is quite fun to play with.

For example, the background music has been further improved from what was previously announced.
This includes the ending theme, which has become Dyna's signature song, and the theme song from the movie, which still enjoys strong popularity.
The recording was made possible thanks to the cooperation of everyone involved.

We have also added an additional feature that is not mentioned on the reservation page: the ability to transform into Saga.
Looking back at the scene where Saga is born in "Ultraman Saga," not only does Taiga hold up his Ultimate Bracelet, but Musashi and Asuka, who are on either side of him, also hold up their respective transformation items and fuse together at the same time, leading to the birth of Saga.
For this reason, we have prepared a special mode where you can use the Leaf Flasher to transform into Saga with specific operations.
Please enjoy it as one of the bonuses.

-ULTRA REPLICA Dark Ring
Since it was developed later than the Orb Ring, only a few card loading sounds have been added that "could not be included in the Orb Ring but were made in time for this one."​
For example, "Ultraman Decker"... Please look forward to it.

●NEXT　ITEM
We are currently preparing two new large items.
One of them is an item that boasts even more amazing technology and specifications than the Ultra Eye.
The other is a set product from a certain work that includes items being made into three-dimensional figures for the first time.

At this point, we don't think many people will be able to correctly predict what will happen, but we hope you will look forward to the official release.
That's all for today.

Until the end Thank you for reading!

N