I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break. We’re back this week with screens from the only notable DS release in 2012 (unless there’s any surprise announcements in the new year, of course), Devil Survivor 2. There’s also a couple of “man, Japan gets all the best stuff” stories, which I realize are kind of cliche, but they are also completely true.

NEWS

SMT:DS2 Screenshots Survive Localization

The first English screenshots of strategy RPG Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 2 have appeared, along with the game’s US boxart. It sounds like this game might be hard to come by, if 3DS’s Devil Survivor Overclocked was anything to go by. Combined with the fact that this might be the last decent new DS game, it might be an idea to pre-order. It’s due for release in “Q1 2012″, which Amazon is taking to mean February 14th. Click the screens below to see bigger versions.

Japan Gets the Coolest Stuff Part 1: Solatorobo Festival 2012

I guess Solatorobo has been a lot more popular in Japan than it was here in the West. CyberConnect2 is holding a special Solatorobo festival event there on January 7th 2012, coinciding with the release of a whole bunch of Solatorobo merchandise, like keychains, wall scrolls, and a Sugoroku board, among other items. There also appears to be a sort of making-of/art book, which I would love to get my hands on, even if I can’t read a word of it. The event even includes a live performance by LieN, who provides the vocals on the opening and closing music tracks in the game. You can see more details on the event here, including all the merch they’re selling.

Japan Gets the Coolest Stuff Part 2: Pokémon Dot 2

Speaking of awesome merch, Pokémon is getting some in Japan this month. That in itself is not exactly newsworthy – there’s always new Pokémon merch in Japan. But this set, entitled “Dot 2″ is worth mentioning. Like the “Dot” promo from earlier this year, all of this stuff features sprite artwork from Pokémon Black & White. While most of this stuff is pretty neat, like the mugs and watches, the real standout here are the little 3D figurines, featuring the male and female trainers, N, Cheren, Bianca, and (of course) Pikachu. Despite not being crazy about Pikachu, I do like this rather simple hoodie design too. You can see all the new merchandise here, and hopefully those figurines will make it to eBay ASAP.

Oh, and of course there’s some DLC for Black & White – this week it’s a Victini C-Gear skin for UK-dwellers. Just use the password “PGLVICTINI11″ on the Global Link Promotions page to unlock it.