官方就P4U鎖區(qū)所作出的回應(yīng)

　　原文：

　　Friends of ATLUS,

　　 The last week brought with it news that Persona°4 Arena? would effectively become the first PlayStation°3 system game to be region-locked. We can today confirm that this is true; the game will be region-locked in all its respective territories of release.

　　 As we’ve ascertained from your impassioned responses online, this is obviously a tremendous frustration for many fans. We understand the various perspectives on the matter. Those who fear this is a slippery slope, the beginning of a dangerous and unnecessary precedent. Those who import foreign hardware for a multitude of reasons and expect to be unlimited in their software selection. Those who aren’t necessarily affected by this issue, but who are principally opposed to it. We are not blind to these concerns and we pledge to grow ever more informed as to exactly what our fans want. It should be added that we were completely unprepared for the force with which the community communicated their disapproval.

　　 There are, however, a few points to clarify. This is NOT the beginning of a new ATLUS policy, nor do we view it as a precedent or a slippery slope. If anything, your determination and dedication to what you believe in has certainly stood in the face of that. This is an isolated case, a situation precipitated by a number of factors, some of which are simply out of our North American hands. Moreover, and perhaps there is no way to convince our fans of this considering the magnitude of the betrayal many are feeling, but we are not doing this out of malice or a desire to control. Allow us to explain.

　　 Persona 4 Arena achieves a number of triumphs for our North American publishing house. For years, our fans have asked us to include dual language audio in our games. Finally, with P4 Arena, we were able to deliver on that desire and include the exact same content as the Japanese release for our North American fans. Moreover, our North American community is often forced to wait months for a localized release (a plight our friends across the Atlantic can relate to). Again, with P4 Arena, we’re able to release within two weeks of Japan. We pushed hard for these things. We know our fans want them–well really, EXPECT them–and we did our best to get as much for our release as possible.

　　 The unforeseen consequence in all of this was that we had a version of our biggest game of the year releasing within a couple weeks in two territories, both identical in content, but at radically different price points. Importing, as great as it is for gamers who otherwise can’t get access to a title, can also cannibalize the performance of a title in one territory to the benefit of another. While we’re all one big ATLUS family, the reality is that the dramatic difference between the Yen and the Dollar makes for a dramatic difference in price. So the decision was made, perhaps at the expense of some of our fans, clearly at the frustration of many, to region-lock Persona 4 Arena.

　　 For many of you, there is no explanation that resonates, no justification that atones for this fact. We can only endeavor to earn back your confidence and, to learn from your arguments. We absolutely recognize the fear that this is the beginning of a trend. We in no way view it as such. Please also keep in mind that the game’s excellent online multiplayer is global, a fact that is in no way affected by the region-lock. Players can compete against fighters from all territories.

　　 A tremendous team of talented developers and artists poured their blood, sweat, and tears into Persona 4 Arena, and every reaction we’ve ever received to the game has shown that those efforts are readily apparent. The decision to region-lock P4 Arena was a business one, one that has very clearly affected how many perceive the project, but we ask you to please not overlook the exceptional efforts of the people behind the game and to work with us through constructive dialogue.

　　 Thank you.

　　翻譯：

　　親愛的ATLUS玩家們，

　　上周有消息說P4U講成為PS3第一部鎖區(qū)游戲。今天我們向大家確認(rèn)這消息的真實(shí)性：該游戲?qū)⒃谒邪l(fā)售地區(qū)實(shí)行相應(yīng)鎖區(qū)。

　　從大家在網(wǎng)上積極熱情的留言中我們能看出這個消息令很多fans失望。我們也明白玩家對鎖區(qū)所持有的種種想法。有人擔(dān)心這將成為日后PS3游戲一個不好的開端，是日后危險且不必要的鎖區(qū)措施大量涌現(xiàn)的前兆；有人出于各種原因從國外買入硬件設(shè)備并希望在軟件選擇方面不受限制；有人并不怎么受鎖區(qū)影響但是認(rèn)為從原則上應(yīng)該反對鎖區(qū)措施……這些擔(dān)心我們都看在眼里記在心里，并且我們還會更廣泛地聽取大家的意見，以完美制作出玩家想要的作品。同時必須承認(rèn)，我們對于玩家群體如此強(qiáng)烈地表達(dá)反對的聲音準(zhǔn)備不足。

　　然而，有些事情我們想澄清一下。本次鎖區(qū)并不意味著日后ATLUS公司會繼續(xù)這項(xiàng)政策，也不是任何不良開端的先兆，因?yàn)槟銈兊臎Q意和執(zhí)念無疑會阻止事情向任何不好的方向發(fā)展。本次P4U鎖區(qū)純粹是個體的獨(dú)立的時間，其原因也是多方面的，甚至有我們北美部完全無法左右的因素。我知道我們可能無法讓那些成千上萬感到自己被背叛的fans相信我們的話，但是，我們并不是出于榨取利潤或控制游戲銷售這樣的目的才鎖區(qū)的。請容我們解釋：

　　P4U見證了我們北美宣傳部的諸多成就。多年來，fans時常要求我們加入雙版本語音，最終在P4U中我們得以滿足玩家們的愿望并且在北美版中加入與日版完全一樣的語音要素；另一方面，我們北美部總是被要求在日版發(fā)售數(shù)月后才發(fā)行美版（這關(guān)乎我們?nèi)毡就碌娜粘蹋?，而這次P4U在日版發(fā)行兩周內(nèi)就會上市。我想說，我們真的為爭取到這些付出了諸多努力。我知道我們的玩家想要這些要素，并真心期待這些要素能夠?qū)崿F(xiàn)，而我們已經(jīng)盡全力在發(fā)售美版時讓玩家的夢想成真。

　　于是出乎意料的是我們要將我們本年度最重頭的游戲在幾周內(nèi)就放到兩個市場發(fā)行，而兩個市場產(chǎn)品內(nèi)容完全一樣但是價格卻有很大差異。玩家可以從海外購買更便宜的版本并受益，但是我們卻會因此損失一個版本的銷售績效……盡管我們不同海外工作室本是一個ATLUS大家庭，但現(xiàn)實(shí)是日元和美元的差異導(dǎo)致游戲售價大為不同。所以盡管知道這會損失部分玩家的利益并讓很多人失望，但我們最終還是艱難地決定鎖區(qū)。

　　對于你們很多人來說，沒有什么解釋能真正令人信服，也沒有什么措施能夠補(bǔ)償。我們只能努力重新贏得你們的信任，并且從你們的反饋中吸取教訓(xùn)。我們完全明白你們對“不良開端”的擔(dān)心，但我們絕不會讓它成為不良開端。同時請你們明白，這個游戲的在線多人對戰(zhàn)系統(tǒng)是全球通用的，該系統(tǒng)不受鎖區(qū)限制。玩家可以真正跨越版本限制與全球各地的高手切磋交流！

　　為P4U這部作品我們傾注了整個天才開發(fā)和美工團(tuán)隊(duì)的心血、汗水和淚水，而我們收到的關(guān)于這個游戲的每一條反饋都是對這些付出最好的回應(yīng)。對P4U鎖區(qū)是個商業(yè)政策，并無疑影響了很多人對我們努力的印象，但我懇求你們不要忘記整個游戲背后開發(fā)人員超乎尋常的努力，并希望你們繼續(xù)積極給予我們反饋和支持。

　　謝謝你們。