Disclaimer: The following article is a non-profit fan translation; all .hack title series are owned by CyberConnect 2 and Bandai Namco Entertainment; please buy .hack//ARCHIVE 02 (.hack//G.U.) BLACK Official Complete Documentation Setting and support the official release. You can buy it on Amazon or any online store.
Let’s write a memoir for the new .hack that is about to begin. Suddenly, I thought… I’m going to start writing. Just now…
Thursday, November 21, 2002 9:00 p.m.
The game has only been released to the world up to .hack//Mutation. We are still waiting for the release of .hack//Infection and .hack//Outbreak at the end of the year and .hack//Quarantine in the spring of next year. Vol. 4 has not been mastered yet (ver. 1.01 is being adjusted), Vol. 2 of the USA version is still in production, and (this is still a secret) I am working hard on the alpha version of “Naruto” for the PS2, in the midst of all this. I have at hand… a “planning image document” that I made together with Niizato (※1), who is in charge of planning, and a “system concept document” that he put together for the time being. It is for the .hack///SECOND (tentative) project.
Only a few people in the company know of its existence (or that it has started). (Starting tomorrow, Daisuke Uchiyama (※2), two scriptwriters, Kazunori Ito (※3), Michiko Yokote (※4), and I will have a meeting at Bandai in Tokyo.
Currently, the game system is based on .hack///FIRST Morganna, and I have only been re-recognizing “weak points” and “points to be improved” and making suggestions for improvement and refinement. However… I already have a “completed” image of the project at ———-.
I feel that it will definitely be … “Interesting.”
I have no doubt… I will get burned.
I think it has that kind of “Structure.”
If I write too much… I am sure I will be embarrassed at the time of “specification changes” that will surely come later… so I will leave it at that. I will probably release it two years from now (※5), but… I will express my “feelings” about the things I have created so far, including the project image document that I have at hand… and I will write a new version of this project. I’ll make a declaration like this. I think .hack is interesting.
Wednesday, November 27, 2002 5:00 p.m.
Based on the overall idea and the story plot and character list that came out of the meeting on November 23, we had a meeting with Niizato in the conference room. At the meeting on November 23, only fragmentary ideas came out, and time ran out when Mr. Ito and Ms. Yokote’s ability to concentrate was at the limit.
But…there was a harvest.
The “game brain” is what I’m going to try to learn about. I decided to know about it because I thought it was an important element to catch on to. I told Niizato about it, and he praised me highly, which spurred me on.
I will be discussing ideas with Niizato regarding the game system, game progression, flow of each volume, and narrative. The reason why it is not just about the system is… The reason for this is to make the story “convenient in a good sense” for us, the game creators.
This is the most important part of the story, including the direction. First of all — I would like to decide on the relationship (positional relationship) between The World and other “Internet games” and the progression of the game.
Thursday, December 26, 2002 1:00 p.m.
A new member joined the scriptwriting team.
Miu Kawasaki (※6)
She is Kazunori Ito’s new apprentice.
This is the third time we have met? Maybe….
Anyway, she is a new member.
I have a sense of “being there.” I try to summarize the whole process, but I get stuck.
Why? Because we don’t have enough material.
When I start to come up with a variety of ideas, I feel that I can put them all together, but then I get stuck. I start to feel the illusion that I can put it all together, but then I get stuck.
Why? Because there is not enough material.
In short, it is too early to summarize.
Yes, more patterns need to be examined. Review of deficiencies in the previous series. Improvements. Suggestions for improvement. Identification of points that need to be expanded. Areas that need to be drastically eliminated. We proposed a three-volume style. This is something we learned from the previous series.
And… the biggest problem that needed to be solved was the “lack of volume.” This is the bad image we unfortunately gave to the users with the previous series. There are many ways to do this, but this time, we would like to break free from this image with a “very easy-to-understand approach.
We will make the opening part extravagant.
“Make the first and second OPs, and then the title finally appears.” “Make it feel like a big production.”
After the proposal, Kazunori Ito frowned. He seemed to dislike the idea. I understand how he felt. The openings of today’s game titles are very long. The time spent watching them before starting to play the game is extremely long. This is a production style that is disliked, especially in foreign countries.
But.
I thought it was necessary.
After all, what we are about to create is a so-called “JRPG (※7)”. Who is it aimed at? It is a work for customers who like this kind of RPG. If this is the case, we should go for it. It needs to penetrate slowly into this world that they are experiencing for the first time, so that they will be able to understand the drama of the game fully. It is necessary to get them to understand the drama and the world as a preliminary step and get absorbed in it while playing the game. The beginning is the key. Therefore, let the user play directly through the scene “where the main character is PK’d on the day he logs in for the first time,” eight months before the main story.
And let’s get you drunk on the grand OP of the three-volume project that is about to begin. The “length” is necessary for that.
On the same day, Kazunori Ito submitted the first draft of the main character image. This is just a template. Based on this, the characters were defined by exchanging images such as “I am sure this is the kind of character that will say this kind of thing.”
“Haseo”
As expected of… I should say, Kazunori Ito. Matsuo Basho, huh?
Interesting… It’s a name. I have a feeling I could love him. At the same time, I have a suggestion.
“Let the characters tell each other’s stories… Love.”
Simply put, I suggested ・・・・ to make sure to include the element of “who will like who by drawing the whole volume.” This is something I have been thinking about for a long time. I have been thinking about this for a long time, or rather, it is my personal preference, but I can’t take my eyes off of other people’s love affairs. Or rather, I find it interesting. It is the same with romantic dramas. That’s why I watch ——. That’s why everyone else watches ・・・・・・. That’s what I think fundamentally. Perhaps it was because I proposed the idea with a very high level of tension, but it turned out to be a rather easy decision. Kazunori Ito says, “If it’s me, it will be like Creamy Mami’s pattern.”
It is excellent. I am very much looking forward to it.
For that reason, I would like to include any kind of event.
The event that I thought of for this purpose is a “wedding”.
Now, how should I cook it? I have a lot more to look forward to.
This will be our last meeting before the end of the year. The next meeting will be held on January 15, 2003. We decided to give everyone a homework assignment. Each person should come up with at least five ideas for events and situations before the next meeting.
Let’s see what will happen.
Anyway… Happy New Year everyone. Happy New Year to everyone, and thank you for your support in 2002.
Monday, December 30, 2002 3:00 p.m.
After all, they are working until the very end of the year. The staff is on New Year’s vacation and a refreshment break. I am writing this memoir alone in my office. I am writing this memoir alone in the office because……it caught fire. “Boo-hoo!
I saw an advertisement in the back of Weekly Famitsu (Dec. 28 issue) for “FF12 staff wanted” by Square. A single image. It was probably the one of “FF12”. It was just like the image I had in my mind. Crimson King (※8).
It’s an ultra-modern hybrid fantasy. Simply put, it is a science fiction image of cars and spaceships roaming around in skyscrapers. The images are quite different when compared in detail, so there is no “overlap” in terms of material, but it’s manageable. But I honestly thought, “Ah… I like it.” It was only one picture.
That’s how it is. A single picture can ignite a spark within a person.
I came to the office thinking, “Ah… I have to write this feeling down before I forget it.” I wanted to write it down.
Yes, in the end, an image is necessary. Someone has to draw it as an image. I don’t know if it should be me. But…what has been ignited can’t be helped. After all, am I an artist?
Wednesday, January 15, 2003 1:00 p.m.
Hmmm… …
The homework I did at the end of last year. To be honest, none of them were very good.
If things continue like this…it’s not good.
What’s wrong is that we don’t have a sense of unity as a team.
I suggested this directly to everyone at the end of the meeting. As a result, we decided to have a training camp.
We decided to have a training camp. (Again.) Well, I think this is a good thing. We will not leave until we get an answer in an isolated space…….with such determination.
I heard that the “Training Camp in Hell” will be held in Hakata, Fukuoka. Well…
Wednesday, February 12, 2003, 4:00 p.m.
It is the first day of the training camp.
The members are … Matsuyama, Niizato, Ito, Kawasaki, and Uchiyama. One person is missing. Yes. Michiko Yokote was missing. To my surprise, I received a phone call on the morning of the day and was told that she could not come because of the flu. The camp started with an indescribable sense of anxiety.
Bandai @Uchiyama arranged the venue.
It was a 30-minute JR train ride from Hakata Station. A 20-minute cab ride from the station.
Genkai Royal Hotel.
The hotel looked as if it had been built during the bubble era, but no one came after that.
The rooms for the conference were reserved only for the next day, so we decided to have a meeting in someone’s room. As a matter of course — we decided to meet in Matsuyama & Niizato’s room (twin room).
Kazunori Ito proposed a project title. It was because Bandai@Uchiyama had pointed out that he did not like the project name “Second.”
I agreed with him.
The name “Second” would inevitably create a strong image of a “sequel.” What we are trying to make this time is “a new series called .hack based on the previous work.”
Then… we needed a suitable name for it.
Kazunori Ito prepared the following two title suggestions.
- .hack//M
- .hack//G.U.
To be honest, I intuitively chose 2) .hack//G.U. at first sight. I heard that it means “GLOW UP (Grow up)”. As soon as I saw it, other keywords associated with the initials “G.U.” popped into my head.
Guilty Universe
Gate of Uroboros
Yes, that’s good.
It’s good that there is no single impression.
G.U. seems to have about 12 meanings. It is an intuitive feeling, but that’s what I thought. Intuition is important. I have a feeling I’m going to love it. I have a feeling I’m going to love it. So, the name of the new project was decided to be .hack//G.U. It was a rather easy decision to make.
After that, we had a meeting to discuss the overall structure of the story, but the subject matter was so heavy that we decided to start the next day with all our might, including organizing it, and cut the first day off soon after.
Meaning from that sign (※)
※1)Hiroto Niizato
Director of CyberConnect2 Inc. He has been the main planner for all the .hack projects. As always, the early development stage of the “.hack” project starts with just the two of us, Niizato and myself. We can’t put together a development team until we have a full picture of what the game is going to be. So, for the first year or so, it was just the two of us.
※2) Daisuke Uchiyama
The producer in charge of the .hack project at Bandai (now Namco Bandai Games Inc.) at the time. He has been in charge of the project three times, but the first producer was Daisuke Uchiyama. After this (during the development of .hack//G.U.) The current producer is the 3rd producer, Mr. Masashi Harada. The current producer is Risei Nakata, the third producer (As of 2009).
※3) Kazunori Ito
Scriptwriter of all four volumes of the .hack//series. He worked on the script plot for .hack//G.U. with Kazunori Ito until the early stages of the series. I worked with him on the script plotting until the early stages of .hack//G.U. During the development of .hack//G.U., the production of the TV animation .hack//Roots started, so we switched our work to the animation scenario.
※4) Michiko Yokote
Scriptwriter Author of the .hack//ZERO series of novels. In 2002, while writing the novel, she was also working on the script plot for the .hack//G.U. project. In 2002, I was writing a novel and participating in the script plotting for the .hack//G.U. project.
※5) Two years later
In 2004, two years after 2002, .hack//G.U. was not released. It was not released. The actual release was in
May 2006. At that time, the development period was planned to be two years. In reality, it took three and a half years.
※6) Miu Kawasaki
A new apprentice was founded by Kazunori Ito at that time. Kazunori Ito, who did not take many apprentices, told him one day that “she was great. She later wrote the script for the animated TV series .hack//Roots and the novels .hack// Another Birth and .hack//Legend of Twilight.
※7) JRPG
Abbreviation for Japanese RPG. Especially overseas, Japanese RPGs are often referred to as “Japan’s original RPGs. That is how far Japan and the West differ in their understanding of the RPG genre. In the West, the priority is on “becoming oneself” and “freedom,” whereas in Japan, “characters and drama” and “parameter-oriented battle systems” tend to be prioritized.
※8) Crimson King
At the time, the MMORPG .hack//G.U. The World was a new MMORPG that was planned to replace “The World,” the MMORPG in which .hack//G.U. was set at the time. As a result, it was utilized as a setting and adopted as the new mother of The World, which collapsed after the “R.A Project” and was a PK-unbanning, cutthroat online game. The World R:2 is a bleak online game with a full of PK.
Thursday, February 13, 2003 10:00 AM
The second day.
Since the previous day was finished early, meetings were held from morning until late at night in a Japanese-style room prepared for the meeting. From morning to night (from 10:00 to 24:30, to be exact), we talked endlessly with mud in the Japanese-style room prepared for the meeting. Various things came into view, but… the most difficult part was… the final image. What on earth is this story for, and for whom?”
I couldn’t see that part for a long time.
In the end, we decided to go with the final image I had proposed. Everyone was exhausted and battered. Talking about the same thing over and over again was mentally painful.
Are we getting somewhere?
No, to be honest, we have only just begun.
It’s a long process from here. Now, when I think about it calmly, “I still don’t have enough things I want to do,” “I don’t have enough ideas…”
But… This is probably the limit for tonight. I feel a certain amount of satisfaction. I believe that the camp was worthwhile.
Finally… just as we were about to call it a night, I received a text message from Michiko Yokote on my cell phone.
Subject: BoringText: “What did you eat?
What did you eat? Did you get any work done?
It’s kind of boring here.
I’m writing zeros all the time, but yo…
Wednesday, March 12, 2003 1:00 p.m.
The plot of Vol. 1, which Niizato is writing, has somehow come together. No, it’s not solidified, but it’s starting to take shape, and then… a certain clash occurs. As the image gradually takes shape, each of us begins to talk about it in our minds. As a result, every time the details are worked out, they clash due to differences in opinions and ideas.
This time, there was a clash between Niizato and me. The clash was about the following two points.
1) The main character, Haseo’s Job, or rather, the idea of the weapon he has.
Niizato wants him to have a “Scythe.”
Matsuyama should have a “Twin Sword”.
2) The image of the “Blue Flame Kite.”
Niizato is a “big and bulky monster.”
Matsuyama is “a black kite with a young face that transforms into a monster.”
Kazunori Ito is apparently not interested.
In this case…there was only one thing to do. We decided actually to draw the image of the project with each other. That way, it would be clear. That’s right. It may be time to start putting together a concrete visual. So… I’m going to try actually to draw it.
Wednesday, March 19, 2003 1:00 p.m.
So, I actually drew them.
I drew the “Kite of Blue Flame” and the special weapon “Tenjo-Yoga-Tenka-Dokon.”
I drew them myself, but honestly speaking… they are not “well executed” enough.
I need more and more elements that can be “knocked down.”
Hmmm… To be honest, I don’t have much time. (This month is unusual. I am traveling to Tokyo every week. I have a lot of events, “Naruto” and various other things going on. I have to do something. I haven’t seen my staff for a week…)
But that is not the reason.
In fact, something is missing.
Something that burns.
It might take a little time.
I’m going to work hard again.
I’m going to start running again.
By the way, the event itself was a great success.
Thursday, April 01, 2003, 4:00 p.m.
I am currently working on various other projects apart from the development of G.U., not to mention the development of “Naruto” for the PS2. I am also working on various “.hack” related projects.
Among them, there is one title that is most closely related to the new project called G.U.
ZERO is a new light novel series. Scriptwriter Michiko Yokote is currently writing the three-volume series. The story begins… In the fall of last year, 2002, I received a proposal directly from Nee-san (Yokote) that she wanted to write a novel. Nee-san told me that she wanted to write a novel… Niizato and I discussed it at a coffee shop in Hakata Station, and Matsuyama wrote the proposal (outline). The book is to be released as Sneaker Bunko by Kadokawa Shoten.
We’ve already had a few meetings. In terms of quantity, I have completed about 150 pages. I have completed about 150 pages of the manuscript, compared to the usual 250 pages per book.
I have just received a copy of the manuscript, which is about 200 pages. I read it carefully. There is one thing I have decided to do in the course of working on this novel.
“I’m not going to tell you what I think of it.”
This is not the way it should be. This setting is wrong. It is natural to point out…
I say and tell.
But. I won’t say what I think.
I don’t know why, but I decided to do it myself.
I’ve met her many times before, and we’ve had a few drinks together. But this is the first time we have “worked” together. Do I want to see Michiko Yokote, a scriptwriter, without any “confusion” in my mind? I don’t know.
But… for some reason, I decided so myself.
Yes, even though I had decided to do so. Actually. Today (just now), I read the 200 pages of the completed manuscript that I received… I was so overwhelmed by the muddy “emotions” that were overflowing from within me that I almost picked up my cell phone and dialed the number “Michiko Yokote Mobile” that was registered in the “Ya” line…. I was about to call the number “Michiko Yokote Mobile” registered in “Ya-Go”……but then I put my cell phone down.
Yes, I managed to hold off. To be honest, I was in trouble.
I was about to call her and say, “You’re amazing!”
I was about to call him and tell him everything I was feeling right now, “You’re amazing.
Amazing. Really amazing.
There are rare times in my life when I feel a sense of hopeless “genius” akin to jealousy toward a certain kind of person. That’s exactly what I’m feeling right now. I am facing it. I am facing Michiko Yokote’s genius. I often talk with Niizato (after reading the manuscript up to the halfway point), and we say to each other, “You’re really great” or “You’re really good.”
But…. But I had never dared to tell her that until now.
This time…it was really bad.
I was almost beaten by the 50 sheets added from the last time. In fact, I was sweating under my armpits. I managed to put down my cell phone, which was about to call me, and I am writing this memoir to comfort these feelings that have nowhere else to go.
A self-imposed rule that I set for myself.
I think I have a feeling that if I half-heartedly give my opinion to Nee-san and half-heartedly praise her now, I will destroy her work. It may not be the right nuance, but that’s how I feel.
There are only 50 more to go.
This weekend, I will hold a mini-training camp at CC2 in Hakata with Kazunori Ito, Miu Kawasaki, and Daisuke Uchiyama. After I finish writing the remaining 50 pages of this “ZERO,.”
To be honest. I’m approaching the end of my patience.
Hey, Ms. Please hurry up and finish the remaining 50 pages.
And. Let me say from the bottom of my heart.
“You… are really ・・・・・・・・・・・・.”
Tuesday, April 05, 2003 4:00 p.m.
It was a day of all-day meetings, a “mini-camp,” in a manner of speaking.
No, it was supposed to be.
The members were…
Kazunori Ito, Michiko Yokote, Miu Kawasaki, Daisuke Uchiyama, Hiroshi Matsuyama, and Hiroto Niizato.
First of all, the manuscript of “ZERO” by Nee-san was not ready….
I told her to come over after it was finished.
And Kazunori Ito’s “G.U. Overall Structure (Volume 2 and 3)” is not ready at all.
Oy…
In the end, we talked about the “G.U. System Proposal: The World Edition” prepared by CC2. However… this is only the basic system for the new “The World. It is “as good as it gets,” to be honest. It is a confirmation of the minimum direction.
The real appeal of .hack is its “duality” and “digital destruction.” Since this is the story before that… the story was over really quickly.
After that… we all looked at the “visual images of the main characters” that Niizato had drawn for some reason.
We all looked at the images with such thoughts as “Your (planning) job is not to draw pictures, is it?”
With this thought in mind, we all looked at the picture……and were (as expected) surprised at how unpopular it was. The day…really didn’t go any further.
In the end, we went out to eat “motsunabe” at night and had a drink…and that was it.
Oh well… Well, there are days like this…
Thursday, April 17, 2003, 5:40 p.m.
Finally, the novel .hack//ZERO Vol.1: Phantom Pain is completed. Michiko Yokote accomplished it.
And now. After a quick phone call to talk about Vol. 2… I told her how I felt. The contents… are a secret.
(I’m sorry.) At that time, Michiko Yokote said something like this.
I have written a book on sneakers before, but it failed because I put too much of myself into it.
The nuance may be a little different, but that’s pretty much what she said. I fear that I may make “such a mistake” in this ZERO series as well. I fear.
You know what? Hey, you know what?
I’m not worried at all.
Because I’m stoic?
Because I might look plain?
You know what?
I don’t care what style it is if it’s “good.”
I don’t care how it’s described.
“Good” is definitely “good.”
Therefore, there is nothing to worry about. There is nothing to worry about.
This ZERO series… is definitely… “good.” !!!!
It’s good.
This is the end of my “memoir of those days.” I was surprised at myself, but this memoir written from the beginning to the end was really written “back then.” I remembered that I had written it while thinking about what I would do someday in the future, so I searched through my PC’s hard drive and found the file.
File name “.hack_SECOND (tentative)” project development notes.txt”
It says .hack//SECOND (tentative)… In short, it is .hack//G.U.
The text itself may be a bit rough because it was written in 2002, but since I went through all the trouble, I decided to post it in its original form as much as possible. Looking at it this way, it is quite naked, embarrassing, interesting, and somewhat fresh.
Unfortunately, this is the end of the “Memoirs of those days.” There is no data after this point. The development of the project has reached its climax, and I am no longer able to continue with the memoir.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard of .hack//ZERO being mentioned in any way.
I will tell the truth in the next volume (Part 2). From here on, this is a memoir written by the present Matsuyama as he looks back on those days.
This book is a collection of the complete setting materials for the PlayStation®2 game software .hack//G.U. in three volumes.
The book has been divided into two volumes because of the sheer volume of images and materials.
The contents of this book will surely meet your expectations. The two volumes of .hack//G.U. will allow you to enjoy the thoughts of the creators of .hack//G.U. to the fullest. Please enjoy the thoughts of the creators of .hack//G.U. in these two volumes.
The second volume will contain even more information. About ZERO. Haseo’s hairstyle. The “Chup-Chop Incident.” More naked information than in the first volume.
Expect more! Dokodon!
President and Representative Director
-Director of .hack//G.U.-
Hiroshi Matsuyama
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