Raw Danger is coming soon(and may already be here!)

Raw Danger, The sequel to the PS2 classic Disaster Report, is one of those budget releases that I often lust after and have a hellish time getting my hands on(see Chulip, Carol Vorderman's Sudoku, Brave: The Search for Spirit Dancer, etc.) Here's some various info I've dug up about it.

The best place to start is the official website for the Japanese version, Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 2: Itetsuita Kiokutachi. There are pages for wallpapers, videos, book covers(!), and press pictures(characters, logo, screenshots).

By way of GameSetWatch, I see that Namako Team has a couple of posts by Trevor Wilson pertaining to the US version dealing with problems that might have arising form the honkification of the main characters(everyone is now blond?) and the ESRB rating changing from Mature to Teen(boo).

I initially had hopes for some actual promotion of this game when IGN published a three page Survival Guide(note the changes in hair color on the character art)back on April 13th but there really hasn't been anything of substance since then. The official Agetec page for the US version is extremely lame with only a picture of the cover and five screenshots. As usual, I'm shocked that any company would release a game that they apparently have worked very hard on and not give it a lick of promotion. What is wrong with these companies?

Speaking of the cover here's a comparison of the main characters from the original version and the US box art:
You can see that they used the Japanese art for reference but Anglo-ized the faces(And kept the same hair colors!). I'm not sure about the whole street sign theme they went with, complete with an out-of-place bio hazard symbol and subliminal skull and crossbones, but it is an attention-grabber.

As usual price and release dates are all over the place. Most have the release date as today with the price 14.99 but here's a general roundup.

Amazon - 14.99 - Available to purchase, but not in stock
Gamestop/EB - 19.99 - Release date is today but you can't actually order it yet. A call to local stores says that it's in the computer as being out, but no one has any copies. I would have pre-ordered this and have been trying to for months, but they never had it listed. It must have popped up in the last week or so.
Best Buy - 14.99 -Release date is next week (6/18)
Agetec store - 39.99(!!) - Can't actually order it yet.

Too bad we don't get the promotional whistle with pre-orders and I hope they haven't cut this cute little guy out of the game (whoever he is). I'll report when/if I am able to find it locally and what color everybody's hair is now.