Already funded on Kickstarter, MiKandi Japan and XERO show no sign of slowing down their goal to bring new visual novels to the West
There are less than 36 hours remaining for the Libra of the Vampire Princess Kickstarter. Even though it has already succeeded in reaching its minimum funding of $125,000, MiKandi Japan and XERO remain sharply focused on achieving as many of the four stretch goals as possible… and beyond!
As of this writing, the second stretch goal, “Music To My Eyes,” which adds a new theme song in English sung by Mayumi Shindo, has been unlocked. While the third goal, an additional mini-episode, is also expected to be reached, it is the final stretch goal, a PS Vita and Android port, that is making the most buzz. When it was announced a few days ago that (pending SONY’s approval) physical and digital editions of Libra were planned, the Vita community quickly turned their attention to the project with excitement and many questions.
One of MiKandi Japan’s strategies to reaching success and beyond has been providing a wide selection of appealing reward tiers and add-ons. Last week, cosplay burst onto the scene as part of an official collaboration with three very popular cosplayers: Kururu Kurasaka, Uniko, and Riku Tonami. Just prior to this announcement, Kururu joined MiKandi Japan for an AMA over at the cosplay subreddit where she entertained questions about her early days starting out in Akihabara, her favorite characters to cosplay, otaku culture and more.
For the collaboration, Kururu, Uniko and Riku will be playing Libra’s top-voted characters, Mari, Lycoris and Iris respectively, in a special photo disc that will contain a ton of backer-exclusive content.
“With this reward, our concept is making an image disc like you could pick up from the cosplayers if you attended Comiket in Japan,” said James (Project Manager for MiKandi Japan). And, “For select tiers, backers will even be able to request a pose from their favorite cosplayer that will be printed and autographed. Finally, there are three limited cosplay tiers that will have the exact costume used for the photo shoot! Collectors and cosplay enthusiasts should definitely keep an eye out for these. Actually, we just had Lycoris’s costume tier pledged on within minutes of it going live!”
Note: The special cosplay disc is also available as an add-on for $20. There are currently over 40 add-on items available that backers can select once BackerKit is activated post Kickstarter.
MiKandi Japan has also been boosting pledges by running their “Bring a Friend to Battle” Giveaway, in which all Libra backers can participate.
Here’s how the Libra of the Vampire Princess Bring a Friend to Battle Giveaway works:
- Bring a friend to back Libra for at least $35
- Both of you will receive a color-copied Iris shikishi ($10 value) for FREE
- Then, both of you will be entered for a chance to win a rare, 60-page art book signed by Risa Miyasu-san (artist for Shuma, Calen, Mari and Iris)
- There’s no limit to how many friends Libra backers can bring. Backers that have brought a friend should contact MiKandi Japan immediately through direct message on Kickstarter so they can be verified and entered into the giveaway
Throughout the campaign MiKandi Japan has remained inspired by returning to Producer MOKA’s vision of bringing more visual novels to the West:
“In an environment where foreign players get Japan’s newest games, that will help pull the industry into a new future. There are many makers like us, and so many games that can come to you. I want to create new moe for everybody, so please support this project, and let’s make new moe together in the future. That’s my hope.”
Now that Libra is a success on Kickstarter, that vision — bringing more visual novels to the West — appears clearer than ever. Fans from overseas can expect more projects from MiKandi Japan and XERO in the not-too-distant future.
“MiKandi Japan and XERO would like to give a sincere, heartfelt thanks to our friends, followers, the media sites that shared our battle with their audience, and to the Vampire Princess Army. Without you, making it this far wouldn’t have been possible. Together we’ve marched to victory and proven that there is a hope for more visual novels to make it overseas.”
Related: Help Support Libra of the Vampire Princess Visual Novel Game on Kickstarter
I'm a published author and proud US Army veteran who happens to be a gamer, so I decided to combine the two and love every minute of it! Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments and I'll be sure to get back to you.
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