GUILD-02, the second season of left-field downloadable 3DS games from LEVEL-5 and legendary Japanese developers, kicks off today with the release of Starship Damrey. This atmospheric title brings survival horror to the eShop, plunging players into a nightmarish abandoned vessel with no memories and an "inconceivable truth" to discover.

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Game Collection
• Current Price: £29.95
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Price Comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Review / Video Review

This is the first time I've seen the much-loved JRPG under £30 and I wouldn't expect to see it drop much further any time soon. This offer is only for the weekend, so it'll be back up to £33 by Monday. On the plus side, for your money you're getting one of the best RPGs we've seen on this generation of consoles. Do you really want to be burned by the next Final Fantasy game again? Thought not. Don't forget to check out our reviews in the links above for more information on the game.

Thanks to dibz10 at HotUkDeals.

GUILD-01 Games On Sale Until May 30th

Level-5 have announced that they'll be publishing three more left-field downloadable games on the 3DS eShop from big-name developers. From atmospheric horror to insane tank-on-insect action, there's certainly going to be plenty of variety on show for "GUILD02."

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Simply Games
• Current Price: £33.85
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch PS3 price comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Review / Video Review

It’s not quite as good as their previous deal, but Simply Games are yet again providing the best price for Level 5’s epic RPG. A saving of £4 separates it from the next best offers elsewhere.

The dream collaboration between Level 5 and Studio Ghibli ended up delivering everything we had hoped for and more, with Matt declaring that Ni No Kuni is “one of the best JRPGs of the last decade” in his review. Even if you only have a passing interest in the genre, you really should give this a go. Thanks to morg106 @ HUKD!

Level-5, the developer behind such gems as Ni No Kuni and the Professor Layton series, have revealed that they're hard at work on a PlayStation 4 game.

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Zavvi
• Current Price: £34.98
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch PS3 price comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Review / Video Review

It's unusual for us to be posting a game deal at a price this high, but demand has been so high that Namco Bandai have been struggling to meet it. This price beats the competition by over a fiver though and is still considerably cheaper than the £49.99 PSN version. If you're willing to take the plunge at Zavvi, you'll find the game has plenty of value for money. It's RPG masters Level 5 working with Studio Ghibli, of course it was going to sell.

Thanks to notorious91 at HotUkDeals.

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Zavvi
• Current Price: £34.98
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch PS3 price comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Review / Video Review

With stock once again reaching retailers, it appears Zavvi are hoping to tempt a buyer or 50 into taking their £35 offer. Overall it provides a saving of £3 over the next best deal from Asda.

The dream collaboration between Level 5 and Studio Ghibli ended up delivering everything we had hoped for and more, with Matt declaring that Ni No Kuni is “one of the best JRPGs of the last decade” in his review. If you even have a passing interest in the genre, you really should give this a go. Thanks to olioli86 @ HUKD!

Been struggling to nab a copy of the JRPG extravaganza that is Level-5 and Studio Ghibli's Ni No Kuni? Well fret not, as Namco Bandai have announced that UK stock is due to be replenished this week.

Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is out on Friday and, as we've discussed in a rather long and deeply involved review, it's pretty damn fantastic!

Here's a little summary:

Ni No Kuni is more than the sum of its parts, more than Level-5 doing an impression of Studio Ghibli. The story might not quite be in the same league as Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, but there's something that resonates all the same. There were moments that brought tears to the eye, others that brought the biggest smile to my face, and innumerable little vignettes that made me audibly chuckle, and all this amplified by visuals that dazzle and delight, a score that floods your ears with magnificence, and Familiar-based combat that proves rich and deep and engrossing. A triumph in roleplaying escapism.

Anywy, the video review is ready, so you can hear the mellifluous tones of my voice while sinking into a game so pretty it would probably make John McClane swoon.

Platforms: PS3

Developers: Level-5 | Studio Ghibli

Publishers: Namco Bandai

NB. There are some light story spoilers in terms of the set up and Oliver's motivations, but that's it.

There's a reason why I love RPGs - perhaps the greatest being that it's such a rich and varied genre. Sometimes I want to forge my own path and write my own stories in a world of fantasy and adventure. Other times, I want to dive into a narrative-rich experience that sucks me in like my favourite books might, and lets me fill in the gaps between plot points. There's a sense of immersion with which I've always connected, from tabletop to page-turner to PC to Game Boy to Xbox to iPad. Much of it has to do with investment, and the time and careful consideration that goes into setting things up the way we want them and developing characters in certain ways. But more often than not, it has to do with exceptional world building, and the sheer thrill of escapism.

Level-5 and Studio Ghibli know more than most about weaving fantastical webs designed to captivate the mind and warm the heart.

It's one of those collaborations that you dream of, really, and one that fans might never have thought would genuinely occur given Ghibli's famed director Hayao Miyazaki's apprehension over video games as a worthwhile medium. But although he might have little to do with Ni No Kuni himself, the strong sense of morality and strength of character that oozes from the works of his such as Ponyo, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, and Spirited Away, are clearly evident in Ni No Kuni. It's clearly been a labour of love, enormous in scale and yet rich in detail. The name gives it away: Ni No Kuni, roughly translated, means 'second country', stirring up connotations of another world, a concept that works on a number of levels.

The dream, of  course, is that playing Ni No Kuni is like virtually living out a Studio Ghibli film - one in which you play a more direct role. But have Level-5 pulled it off?

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Tesco Direct
• Current Price: £30.99
• Voucher Code: TD-KFPW
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Price Comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Preview

It seems like we've been waiting forever for this Studio Ghibli / Level 5 JRPG, but there's not long to go now before the February 1st release. Zavvi's deal that I posted last week was a marginally more expensive and his since sold out, making this the best choice for anyone who still hasn't pre-ordered. There's a demo on the PSN store if you're still not sure, or you can check out Matt's video of the game's opening half hour.

Thanks to TanyaSpace at HotUkDeals.

Ni No Kuni is nearly here. Next Friday, PS3s will be overrun with delightful whimsy, masterful RPGing, astounding aesthetics, and floods of tears. Our review - both text and video - will be arriving on Monday, but in the meantime stick the new launch trailer in your face and, if that's not enough to suffice, you can watch the entire first half hour of the game right here.

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Zavvi
• Current Price: £31.46
• Voucher Code: 10POG
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Price Comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Preview

We've ran Zavvi's deal at this price twice in recent weeks, but the discount code keeps changing. This time entering '10POG' gives you the 10% discount required to get the cheapest pre-order price of £31.46. We'll have a full review of the Studio Ghibli / Level 5 anime/RPG hybrid for you very soon. In the meantime, have a look at the playthrough video of the first 30 minutes of the game that Matt's captured for your eager eyes.

Now we've invested in some nifty video capture hardware, we figured it's about time we started bringing you some more video goodness. For a number of games that we review, we're going to look to provide Opening Scenes videos to supplement our review material. In this series of videos, we'll simply present the first 15-30 minutes of the game in question - no voiceovers, no waffle, no edits, just pure, unadulterated gameplay footage!

First up, it's Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch.

Level-5 don't just do amazing collaborations with Studio Ghibli, or those criminally addictive Prof. Layton  games, you know! But we've been so utterly psyched for the former (the review is coming, we promise) that we barely noticed Ghost Watch, until now. The latest colourful JRPG from Level-5 gets a new, suitably bonkers trailer. We have no idea what the hell is going on, except that it looks a bit like Animal Crossing-meets-Ghost Trick, the battle mechanics seem to cross Pokemon with a Lazy Susan, and we now covet this game.

Ni No Kuni's European Wizard Edition is set to include an adorable Drippy plush toy, an enormous 300-page art book and some exclusive DLC... but if you really want to torture yourself, this new unboxing video also shows off the extras included in the US version. American customers will net a bonus soundtrack CD, wizard coin and art cards thanks to the region-specific 'Ninostarter' swag campaign, so prepare to hold back a few tears or epithets.

Just focus on cuddly Drippy. Lovely Drippy. Nice, CALMING Drippy.

Either way, Matt is hard at work on our Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch review in advance of its February 1st release date.

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Zavvi
• Current Price: £31.46
• Voucher Code: HOT2013
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Price Comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Preview

Yes, you are seeing double. We've run this deal before. However, since Zavvi keep rotating their 10% off voucher codes, here's an update for the latest one: HOT2013.

Just in case you didn't know, the gorgeous Ni No Kuni has been delayed another week - but we're willing to wait. What's another seven days after months of torturous trailers, screenshots and demos?

Ni No Kuni may have been delayed by another week, but the latest trailer explains why it's almost certainly going to be worth the wait. Veteran Studio Ghibli composer Joe Hisashi (Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle) waxes lyrical about how he transitioned from animated films into videogames, and how the fantasy setting inspired him to create original music that "everyone can enjoy."

As previously reported, Ni No Kuni will release on February 1st for PS3.

Namco Offer Free Familiar DLC By Way Of Apology

Curse you logistics! Namco Bandai apologised today, saying that Level-5 and Studio Ghibl's phenomenal-looking JRPG Ni No Kuni has been delayed by a week.

• What: Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch
• Where: Zavvi
• Current Price: £31.46 (use code PRE2013)
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Price Comparison
• Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch Preview

Its so close we can almost taste the sweet tears that'll be shed over this heartwarming collaboration between Studio Ghibli and Level-5. Excited doesn't even begin to cover it. Zavvi are running a host of pre-order deals right now, so make sure you punch in PRE2013 to undercut Gameseek.

Being The Hut Group, though, I wouldn't hold your breath for it on launch day.