Rebuttal to "Re: See? Square Does Listen!" by Shanoyu

by James "ChuckMan" Thorne

Your second point is on Square's reputation with American fans. It does not deal with FFA at all. Of course, this is no probelm, it simply does not deal with the direct issue of the first point (I simply wanted to clear up my reasons for moving past it.) Indeed, your second point, which begins with the sentance "Is squaresoft's reputation damaged with american fans?" is where your editorial heats up, in my mind.

"Reason one" Okay, it's true, a ton of Americans knew Aerith/Aeris was going to die before the game was released. None of us are arguing that. However, the fault does not lie directly with the Japanese fans. First off, Square itself has to release the information. So the base fault lies with the company. Second off, most of us don't understand Japanese, so we rely on a third party to relay the information to us. And I'm sure most of these knowledge distributing people are not Japanese (Mike Tidwell, long lost nephew of Emperor Hirohito? Nah.) These distributors are English magazines, English websites, and the like (note the "English" theme). These are the people who really tell us, the English speaking gaming audience, about things like Aerith's death. In the end, however, the blame sits on your own lap. Just as it takes two to tango, it takes two to spread information; one to speak and one to listen.

The phrase "....Japanese squaresoft fans can't keep their damn mouths shut", that's harsh. First off, it's a stereotype, just as saying all Americans are pigs and are disrespectful is a stereotype. Besides, blaming Squaresoft's fans is futile. How could Squaresoft's fans hurt their reputation. I would think the company's own actions would affect the company's reputation.

Addressing the problems of spoilers popping up, there is an easy solution. Remember that "two to tango" thing I just said? The answer is there. Don't put yourself in a position to discover spoilers. Don't read gaming magazines, and don't go to gaming websites. Ask yourself if "Ask Googleshng" is worth the risk of seeing a few spoilers. If it is, read the Q&A column, be happy, and understand that you may end up seeing a few spoilers. If the answer is no, then turn off your net browser and be happy knowing that game X is going to be a surprise.

"Reason two" Well, again, you are making stereotypes. But I'll humor the idea that these people (60+ year old Japanese businessmen and women) hate Americans, with a vengence of course. Now that that is settled, who is the leader of Squaresoft? And how old is s/he? I don't know. I would assume than Shanoyu does not either, otherwise the information would have been given to help his argument. So, seeing as neither of us appear to know, I'll give Shanoyu the benefit of the doubt. Okay, Squaresoft's leader is a racist Japanese. How does that affect Squaresoft's reputation now? Wouldn't that have hurt it way back in the 80's when the company was formed? And what does the leader's (supposedly) racist beliefs have to do with games released in America (this goes back to Shanoyu's idea about the rereleases of FFV, FFVI, and CT)? Is he sitting in some Tower of Doom on Squaresoft Island, plotting, and scheming? I can see it now. Sitting on his throne of bones and blood, our mystery leader laughs maniacly while screaming "I'll give those Americans games with slow loading times! BWA HA HA HA! This will tide them over until the release of Xenogears II, with a plot so horribly complex that those stupid Americans' brains will melt in their heads! Then my revenge will be COMPLETE!!!" Talk about a man with a plan. Oh, as for the atrocities, they know as well as we do that they hit us first.

"Reason three" Shanoyu, you are absolutely correct in saying that many Japanese fads cannot be understood or appreciated in America. However, more and more, translators are writing better and better diologue. People in games are more believable than ever, thanks to companies such as Working Designs. Squaresoft too makes excellent and beautiful stories. Played Vagrant Story yet? An amazing English translation, with a touch of archaic speech to really spice it up. Not a noticable Japanese fad in sight. See where I'm going? Games are getting better and better for the American audience. And hey! Some games actually have jokes that Japanese might not get. In Terranigma, when you visit Japan or China, the natives speak really bad English. Quite amusing, really ("Best thing to treat her with love! Number one!") I don't understand how this could hurt Squaresoft's reputation, I would think it would help it instead. Final Fantasy's translation was nothing compared to Final Fantasy VIII's, Legend of Mana's, Vagrant Story's, etc. They just keep getting better and better.

"Squaresoft does not understand the american audience because they literally do not make games for the american audience." Shanoyu, that's a Catch 22. And really, I believe Squaresoft deserves a good deal of credit. America isn't that "country over the horizen" any more. Technology, emigration and imigration, and many other factors make communication more than possible. They make it a reality. Our cultures are different, but they understand us well enough, just as we understand them well enough. We know that the Japanese are a lot more polite and traditional than us. That does not mean that every time you see someone while visiting the Land of the Rising Sun you should bow and you should always wear a kimono. It means, be polite, and understand that tradition is highly respected in their society. Plain and simple.

"They do not understand our culture at all, and therefore they don't understand what may or may not make us buy a certain video game." Again, they understand us well enough. Squaresoft is a lot richer than most of us, so they must be doing something right. I mean, how many MILLIONS of copies did Shadow Madness sell (if any)? There's your American market. I'll cast my vote, along with my money, for Squaresoft.

Yes, it is true that the Japanese could see Jerry Falwell on TV. However, I think most level-headed people would understand that Jerry Falwell and others are pretty fanatical. The Japanese are intelligent enough to know the difference between fanatics and, uhhh, non fanatics. If you were watching a translated Japanese TV show where two people are discussing, who would you listen to? The one who says that the root of all evil is a purple thing on TV that carries a purse, or a person who believes that the root of American problems, not evil, is in the large number of weapons that are freely floating around and are accessible to troubled youth. And besides, it was Doom, Quake, and the like that got the most bad rap as opposed to RPGs after Columbine.

"They hear that Australia is going to put RPG's in plastic bags like they are pornography.... and what do you think they think?" Well, I'm betting they think that the fact that RPGs being put in bags in Australia has absolutely nothing to do with the USA. I mean, come on, crack is also put in little plastic bags, but that doesn't mean a thing. Or does it? "Tonight's headline: Drugs, sex, and RPGs, what Tifa REALLY put in Cloud's drink at the Seventh Heaven bar." Or maybe " Drugs, sex, and RPGs, do you know what your children are doing?"

Shanoyu says, "[Putting RPGs in plastic bags like porn] could be considered an americanish culture by a misinformed outsider." Yeah, right.

"So the question is, are we disappointing squaresoft or is our culture disappointing squaresoft?" Well, in either case, that has nothing to do with Squaresoft's reputation in America.

"Perhaps squares oft is disappointing us by not doing more research before they make assumptions about our culture." In my oppinion, I believe Squaresoft has done a superb job of researching our culture, at least as much as is neccessary. But really, how dare you say Squaresoft is making assumptions, Shanoyu. "....Japanese squaresoft fans can't keep their damn mouths shut." "Older Japanese, aged 60 and older, the kind of age group that stewards Japans major buisnesses (And therefore make those kinds of decisions), hate americans with a Vengence." "Remember, they are Japanese, they don't exactly have a good grasp on whats going on in the US of A." Well, Shanoyu, I'm betting they have a better idea of what's going on in the US than you do of what's going on in Japan. The pot calling the kettle black, indeed.

James, over and out.