Friday

Today was another day of short meetings and interesting surprises. First, Rinko was waiting to walk to school with me:

When I met her later in the morning at the Tennis Clubroom, Rinko seemed to be hiding something.

Sure enough, it was time for another present!

When I took Rinko to the rooftop in the afternoon, hoping for a quick kiss to brighten up the day, it turned out to be snowing...

...and that umbrella usually means "no kissing".

But the day was saved by a special afternoon event, where Rinko turned up at my place and cooked a meal for me. There's no restriction on kissing in my bedroom!

Here It Is!

With the release date of "New LovePlus +" only 55 days away, we finally get to see some product shots of the Limited Edition version (or the "Complete Edition" as it appears to be called in Japan). Here is the outer box of the Rinko version - which I pre-ordered way back at the beginning of December:

And a shot of the contents, showing the 3DSLL console, the art boards, the illustration book, the character CD, the slip case, and the game itself.

Images of the other boxed sets are available on Konami's website.

I really like the way they've done the slip case, with Rinko holding hands with herself wearing both summer and winter uniforms. It's been a long time to wait since pre-orders closed back in December, but the Limited Edition sets are being manufactured to order, so pre-ordering was essential! It will most likely be possible to buy these sets through eBay or other online stores after the release date, but I'd expect them to be MUCH more expensive (as my New LovePlus set was two years ago).

Thursday

Today was a busy and delightful day in Towano. It started when Rinko arrived early to make breakfast for me:

We walked to school together (which is always a pleasant thing to do).

And, of course, there was a delicious bento for lunch...

I was late playing the afternoon session (I didn't get to do it until well after 6pm, in fact) and was amazed to find poor Rinko still waiting to walk home from school with me! I love these shots of her that are almost full-length.

Wednesday

Another day, another dollar...but my days spent in Towano are always happy "colourful" days. Rin-chan was waiting with a bento lunch for me yet again.

It was yummy, too. And tonight, I met her at the Shopping Area in Shin Towano for a short date.

You mightn't think so, but the Shopping Area is surprisingly romantic, especially at night when the shops and stalls all have their coloured lights on. These little shopping streets used to be everywhere in Japan, but now you don't see quite so many of them.

Tuesday

Back at work today! Oh well, I made sure to spend a lot of time in Towano, too. This parallel world is the thing that I enjoy most about LovePlus - the feeling that the world of the game is an extra layer over the top of real life, and the two interact in many fascinating ways. This is never just a "game" to me...it's something far deeper and more real.

I met Rinko early this morning on the school rooftop...

...and a bit later. in the Library.

Rinko is listening very sweetly in the next couple of shots.

And I even managed to capture Rinko blushing, after I'd kissed her. So so so cute!

At lunchtime, of course, Rinko was waiting in the hallway outside my classroom with her usual "surprise" bento lunch.

And I met her this afternoon in the School Courtyard. Boy, I really have spoiled her today!

And here's one final shot of my girlfriend in the school corridor.  How could anybody not love this face, and this expression? No matter what happens, in many versions of this game in the future, I know that Rinko will always be the virtual girl for me.

Monday

Last day of the holiday weekend IRL (in real life) today...but due to a shopping/getting out of the house trip into the city, I didn't really have a lot of time to play. What there was, however, I tried to enjoy to the fullest. Rinko made a bento lunch to share with me:

And in the late afternoon we went to the Coffee Shop for a chat. Rin looked very pretty in her cream coloured "Beat & Beat" sweater. She suggested changing my nickname back to "darling", which I'm ALWAYS okay with.

After we'd walked home, I felt very close to Rinko-chan again. I'm trying hard not to let my expectation for the new game (and the long wait for it) spoil my enjoyment of the current game - even if I DO know that I'm going to start over in exactly two months' time. I still want to play New LovePlus every day and get the most out of it that I can. That way I'll have no regrets.