Article/The Announcement of Enemy Zero

"The Announcement of Enemy Zero, The Ripple Effects Across the Industry", from Game Hihyou 09, 1996.

### Original Text

> 3月22日のPSエキスポ会場で発表されたワープ新作ゲームソ フサターンでの発売決定。ト「E」のPSでの国内発売凍結とセガこの発表が業界に投げかけた波紋とは何か。
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> PSエキスポ会場での突然の発表去る3月27日、東京、晴海国際見本市会場で3日間にわたって開催されたプレイステーションエキスポ会場で、株式会社ワープ代表取締役、飯野賢治氏より、新作ゲームソフト「EO(エネミー・ゼロ」の、PSでの事実上の国内開発の凍結と、セガサターンでの年内発売が発表された。同会場で飯野氏は、PSでの国内発売を西暦2080年まで延期すると発言。その理由として、流通問題を始めとしたSCEの姿勢に、信頼感を保ち続けることができなくなったことを挙げた。この突然の制作転向は、PSエキスポという、いわばSCEのお膝元での発表ということもあり、ユーザーと業界に大きな波紋を投げかけた。編集部では、この発表に関して4月末にワープ、SCE双方に取材を申請。だが、「すでに他誌で語り尽くしたことでもあり、実際にサターンでの開発を進めている中で、これ以上
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> SCEに対しコメントをするのもどうかと思う。もし、SCEの佐伯氏がコメントするなら、取材に
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> 応じても良い (ワープ、飯野氏)」。「これ以上この問題を引きずっても、双方とも良い結果にはならないと思う(SCE、佐伯氏)」との回答を得た。そこで、編集部では、この発表に関してできる限り中立な立場から、その後の影響をレポートしてみたい。飯野氏、SCE、そして周辺からの声TOPICS
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> 飯野氏は、今回の発表に関して、主に流通面やスクウェアの移籍などから、サードパーティ間の平等をうたいながら実際は大企業重視のSCEに信頼を保てなくなった、と他誌で繰り返し主張している。「クリエイターにとって最大の喜びは、作品が一枚でも多く流通して世間の目に触れること。ところがPS版「Dの食卓』は初回が4万
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> 本で初日に完売し、リピートも少ない。一方でSCEは『ビヨビヨ』400万本出荷し、店頭で余らせて「いる」(PSエキスポでの飯野氏談)。「我々はクリエイターだ。 感覚はレコード業界と同じで、発売元と喧嘩したら別の会社にあっさりと移ってしまうということをよ「く考えてほしい」(週刊東洋経済9年4月13日号飯野氏談)。これに対してSCEは「PS版『Dの食卓』は3DO版、SS版より後の発売。 旬を過ぎていたか初回本数を4万本に抑えさせてもらった」(同号、SCE談)とコメントしている。また秋葉原で
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> も「PS版『Dの食卓』の初回出荷に関しては、飯野氏の発言にも一理あるが、発注時にSS版の店頭価格が3000円前後にまで下がっていたこともあり、発注に二の足を踏んだことも事実だ」 (ゲームショップ仕入れ担当者談)との声が上がった。一方、編集部に寄せられたアンケート葉書によると、賛否両論に分かれた中でも比較的飯野氏に否定的な声が目立った。「はっきり言ってPSユーザーを馬鹿にしている。SCEに不満があるのはわかるが、イベントを滅茶苦茶にしてまで発表するべきことだったのか。少なくともユーザーには直接関係のあることではないはずである。(中略)もし『EO』に期待してPSを購入した人がいたとしたら、その責任をどうとるのですか」。これなどは、その代表例と言えるだろう。また業界からは「前後関係がわからないと言うことが一番大きいのですが、やはり飯野氏の独り相僕という印象を受けました。 初回本数に関しても、それほど弊害を
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> 感じたことはありません」(PS用ソフト開発者談)。「SCEへの疑問は正直感じる。だが会場で発表することはなかった。 サードパーティを馬鹿にしてはいないだろうか」(PS用ソフト開発プロデューサー)など、特にPSエキスポでの発表に関して疑問視する声が多かった。批判点もあるが功績を忘れてはならない
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> 流通や規制など様々な面で揺れるSCE。そんな中で、ことあるごとにSCEに対して異議を唱え続けてきた飯野氏だけに、あえてPS陣営に留まって闘い続けてほしかったという声も少なくない。飯野氏の選択が最善だったのか、PSエキスポでの発表という点に恣意的な点はなかったのかなど、批判される点も確かにある。だが、現在のPSが抱える様々な矛盾や問題点に対し繰り返し警鐘を鳴らし続け、問題提起を続けた飯野氏の功績も事実だ。これまでスキャンダルに極端に弱かったゲーム業界。社会的な問題が起きると、開発者はメーカーの陰に隠れ、メーカーは終始事なかれ主義を通し続けることが業界の常識だった。そんな中で、批判を恐れることなく、マスコミ上で正々堂々と主張し続けたクリエイターは希と言って良い。 PSエキスポ会場で「ハードよりソフトが強いことを証明したかった」と言い残した飯野氏。 その証明は、セガサターン版「EO」の発売で果たされるのだろう。そして実は、それこそがクリエイタとしての飯野氏の、ユーザーに対する責任の取り方ではないかと(編集部)も考えている。
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### Machine Translated Text

> The decision to release Warp's new game on the Saturn was announced at the PS Expo on March 22. What kind of ripple effect did this announcement have on the industry?
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> On March 27, at the PlayStation Expo held at the Harumi International Trade Fair Hall in Tokyo, Kenji Iino, president of Warp, Inc. announced that the development of the new game "EO (Enemy Zero)" for the PS platform in Japan has been effectively frozen, and that the game will be released on the Sega Saturn by the end of the year. The game will be released on the Sega Saturn by the end of the year. At the same event, Mr. Iino stated that the PS domestic release would be postponed until 2080 A.D. The reasons for this were distribution problems and other issues. The reason given was that he could no longer maintain confidence in SCE's attitude, especially with regard to distribution issues. This sudden change in production caused a huge stir among users and the industry, especially since the announcement was made at the PS Expo, which is SCE's home turf. At the end of April, the editorial department requested interviews with both Warp and SCE regarding this announcement. However, we were told, "We have already talked about this in other magazines, and we are in the process of developing the game for the Saturn, so we are not sure if we can make any further comments to SCE.
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> I don't think it would be a good idea to make any further comments to SCE. If Mr. Saeki of SCE would like to comment, I would be happy to do the interview.
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> I'd be happy to do an interview if Mr. Saeki of SCE would like to comment. I don't think that dragging this issue out any longer will result in a good outcome for either party (Mr. Saeki, SCE). The editorial board would like to report on the impact of this announcement from as neutral a standpoint as possible. Voices from Mr. Iino, SCE, and others TOPICS
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> Mr. Iino has repeatedly claimed in other magazines that he no longer has confidence in SCE, which touts equality among third parties but in reality focuses on large companies, mainly because of the distribution aspect and the transfer of Square. The greatest joy for creators is to have as many copies of their work distributed and seen by the public as possible. However, the first run of the PS version of "D's Dining Table" sold out on the first day with 40,000 copies.
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> The first run of 40,000 copies of "D's Dining Table" sold out on the first day, and there were few repeat sales. On the other hand, SCE shipped 4 million copies of "BiyoBiyo" and had a surplus in stores (according to Mr. Iino at the PS Expo). We are creators. We are creators, and we feel the same way as the record industry. If we quarrel with the distributor, we can easily be transferred to another company" (Weekly Toyo Keizai, April 13, 2009, Iino). SCE responded, "The PS version of 'D's Dining Table' was released after the 3DO and SS versions. We were out of season, so we limited the initial run to 40,000 units" (SCE, in the same issue). Also in Akihabara
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> However, the price of the SS version had dropped to around 3,000 yen at the time of the order, so we were reluctant to place the order," said a game store stockist. On the other hand, according to the survey postcards sent to the editorial office, among those who were divided on both sides of the issue, those who were negative toward Mr. Iino were relatively conspicuous. Iino's comments were relatively negative: "To put it bluntly, they are making fun of PS users, and I understand their frustration with SCE, but should they have ruined the event to announce it? At the very least, it should not have been directly related to the users. (omission) If there were people who bought PS because they were expecting "EO," how would you take responsibility for that? This is a typical example. Another comment from the industry was, "The biggest thing is that we don't know the back-and-forth, but I still got the impression that Mr. Iino was the sole author. I have never felt that the number of first-runs was that detrimental.
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> I have never felt that the initial number of units was that detrimental" (according to a PS software developer). I honestly have my doubts about SCE," said a developer of PS software. But we didn't announce it at the event. Many people questioned the announcement at the PS Expo in particular, saying, "I think they are making fun of the third parties. While there are criticisms, we must not forget the achievements.
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> Many have said that they wish Iino had stayed in the PS camp and continued to fight for SCE, which has been rocked by various issues such as distribution and regulations, and he has always spoken out against the company. There are certainly criticisms that need to be addressed, such as whether Mr. Iino's choice was the best one, and whether there was anything arbitrary about the announcement at the PS Expo. However, it is also true that Mr. Iino has done a great job in repeatedly sounding the alarm and raising the various contradictions and problems that PS faces today. The video game industry has been extremely vulnerable to scandal. Whenever a social problem occurred, developers hid behind their makers, and the makers continued to maintain a "keep quiet" attitude from beginning to end, which was the common practice in the industry. In such an environment, it is rare to find a creator who has been able to make a fair statement in the media without fear of criticism. At the PS Expo, Mr. Iino said, "I wanted to prove that software is stronger than hardware. The release of the Sega Saturn version of "EO" will prove that point. In fact, we believe that this is exactly how Mr. Iino, as a creator, takes his responsibility to the users.
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