Tom

I used to not be terribly interested in getting higher end statues than the stuff you can win from UFO catchers, if mainly because they're, y'know, so damn pricey. But I resolved to get at least the Shionne one when I found out about it earlier this year because: 1. she kinda sorta means a lot to me for obvious reasons and I want some form of her in my office and 2. it's the first such figure since Arise came out that isn't one of those gawdy ass Qposket ones that seem to exist mainly to make you think, "be grateful this character wasn't Funko'd." Anyway, fast forward to September right before TGS and I dunno what it was, but I got it in my head I wanted to grab one for Selvaria from Valkyria Chronicles given my profound love of that series and now, a few months' worth of hunting for the exact one I wanted at a fair price later, here those two are, as well as Rinwell, who I obviously also hold dear as one of her English parents, and Daiwa Scarlet because I'll forever love the eternal horsey brat. I've gotta buy another showcase to house them in because my existing one is mostly full of games, but in the meantime, it's fun to learn that Selvaria is canonically taller than Daiwa Scarlet, which, knowing how Raita likes to draw women, yeah, that checks out.

Hey folks,

As some of you might be aware, Tales of Arise's surprise story DLC releases today, I believe globally. (It's the 9th here in Japan, already available for download, and, AFAIK, that version includes English, too, so, good enough for me.) I debated whether this was a post even worth writing when I wouldn't do so for most any other case like it, but given my deep association with the base game as its lead translator, I decided it was best to just be upfront and say that I had no involvement with Beyond the Dawn's localization in any capacity whatsoever.

This isn't to cast any aspersions on the quality of the work that's been put into that content or anybody involved with the project whatsoever, or obviously to discourage anyone from buying the DLC by any means. I want to be 100% clear when I say that nothing nefarious has taken place and there's genuinely no ill will among any sides. Sometimes the stars just don't end up aligning and maintaining that translator continuity between projects in a series isn't always logistically feasible; indeed, Tales itself has changed hands plenty of times on that end over the years and isn't any worse for wear for it. As many of my followers are probably aware, since Arise's initial release, I've been knee-deep in some other big, hefty localization projects the last couple of years, some known such as Trails into Reverie with Nihon Falcom and NIS America, while others remain under wraps.

Suffice it to say, while I would've loved to reunite with my kiddos for an encore had things worked out, I'm perfectly content with how things have gone on my end since then and wish the developers and localizers for Beyond the Dawn nothing but the best. If you enjoyed my work in the original game, sincerely, please don't let my absence this time discourage you from playing this if you were otherwise planning to do so anyway. For my part, it's simply nice to see a cast my team and I helped birth into English get another moment in the spotlight, something that series fans will know is remarkably rare within the mainline games in and of itself. This will therefore probably be the only time I ever speak publicly on the matter simply because... well, I can only say so much about a game I didn't work on! So if I don't respond to any comments or questions about it, please understand, the reason is likely a mixture of professional propriety and just straight up not knowing the content or what went into its production and localization!

In any case, thanks for your understanding, as well as your continued support since Arise's original release. To those of you making the dive into this new content, whether you're taking this opportunity to revisit the characters as an existing fan or experiencing Arise for the very first time, I hope your stay in the world of Dahna is a fruitful one. If you're looking for my actual next big thing, keep an eye on this space; I've got more cool stuff in the works I can't wait to talk about eventually when the time is right.

See you in the next game,

-Tom