Embodiment of Scarlet Devil/Afterword

○東方紅魔郷　～ the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil. あとがき　上海アリス通信 vol.1 上海アリス幻樂団長　ＺＵＮ 2002/08/11	Touhou Koumakyou ~ the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil. Afterword Shanghai Alice Correspondence vol. 1 Team Shanghai Alice Leader ZUN 2002/08/11
ネタばれもありますのでクリアしてない方は、読んでも読まなくても。	Spoilers are present, so for people who haven't cleared the game, read at your own discretion.
というか、おまけ文章です。シューティングゲームのネタばれもへった 　くれも無いですけどね。	But it's just extra writing. Shooting games don't really have that many spoilers in the first place.
初めましてＺＵＮです。初めてじゃない人には初めませんＺＵＮです。 　今回C62夏コミで初参加となります。今度ともよろしくお願いします。 　言ってみれば、この作品が処女作品ってことになるのかな？	Nice to meet you, this is ZUN. For those who have already met me, then this isn't the first time we've met. This C62 Summer Comiket is my first time as a participant. I hope you enjoy the games I make from now on. In some sense, I suppose this would be considered my maiden game?
東方紅魔郷は、弾幕萌えな作者が弾幕萌えな方の為に創ったゲームです。	Touhou Koumakyou is a game made by a danmaku moe artist for those who are danmaku moe.
昨今の市販及び同人のシューティングの出来は、あくまで静かにですが、 　一昔前では考えられない位進化したと思います。	These days, the independent and commercial shmups have been slowly, but silently, evolving at a rate that was unthinkable only a few years ago.
しかし、弾幕ＳＴＧに限って言うと、私にとってはどうしても納得のい 　かない方向に進んでいる様に思えます。その大きな要因は、難易度のイン 　フレ、弾が多いだけのもの、派手で綺麗だけど見辛いエフェクト、弾避け 　を考慮に入れない斬新なシステム、あたりだと思っています。 　　ゲームとして面白い場合も多く、それはそれでいいのですが、場合によ 　っては「弾避けは面白くない、弾があるのはＳＴＧとしての当たり前」、 　って感覚が何処かにある様に見えるのです。そう見えるのは弾避けの面白 　さを追求しないなら、何故、敵弾を排除してからＳＴＧを考え直さないの 　だろう？と思うからです。	However, to narrow the scope to only danmaku shmups, I'm feeling a bit dissatisfied with the direction that it's currently headed. The main issues are the rapid inflation of difficulty, games that have only a lot of bullets, effects that are fancy and beautiful, but are not easy on the eyes; and games with new systems that don't require dodging bullets. That is my opinion. Many of them are usually fun to play as games, but even though that might be fine as it is, in some instances it might give the impression that "Dodging bullets is not fun; of course there are going to be a lot of bullets in an shmup." If they don't try to find dodging bullets fun, why don't they try to reconsider why they would play a shmup if the enemies' shots were gone?
そんなこんなで、紅魔郷で原点に帰り、難易度を抑えて奇抜なシステム 　も避けて、本来の弾避けの面白さを追求してみました。 　弾幕黎明期の頃の弾幕のような本来の存在意義を、２１世紀になってもず 　っと昇華させていたらこうなるだろう、という気で創っています。 　　２１世紀の２０世紀延長型、と謳ってるのはそういうことです。勘違い 　しないで頂きたいのは、９０年代後半のゲームにノスタルジーを感じて 　「やっぱ、ＳＴＧはあの頃が一番だったなぁ」とか言ってあの頃のゲーム 　を創ったわけではありません(^^;そんなこと言うくらいなら、私なら基盤 　買います。わざわざ創りません 　　「やっぱ、ＳＴＧに限らず新しい物の方が面白いと感じていたい」	That's why I returned to the basics with EoSD, kept the difficulty low, avoided bizarre systems, and pursued the original fun of dodging bullets. I made this game with the intention that this is what it would be like if the original purporse of danmaku, that is, doding bullets, had been kept all the way into the 21st century. If the danmaku in the 21st century were to continue to maintain the same meaning of the danmaku that was present during the dawn of danmaku, you should end up with a game like this. That was my intention in making this game. That's the reason why I'm calling this a Late 20th century style, 21st century shmup. One thing that I would like to clarify that I did not feel some nostalgia to the games of the late 90's and say: "Yup, shmups back in those days were the best." And decide to make a new game. (^^; If I were to say something like that, I wouldn't be making a new game, I'd be buying them. "Yup, not just with shmups, but with everything, I want to find the joy in trying new things."
難易度は抑えてあるけど、弾の数はいっそう多くなっています(汗） 　「多けりゃいいってもんじゃないだろー」ってツッコミながらプレイして 　貰えれば幸いです(w	The difficulty is downscaled a bit, but there's a greater number of bullets than usual. (sweat) "It's not simply OK to have a ton of them!" would be a phrase that I would like to hear from those who play it. (lol)
ＳＴＧは斬新なシステムがなきゃーとか、超派手な画面がなきゃーとか、 　爽快感がーとか、萌えキャラがーとか、ボイスがーとか（そんな人居るの 　か(^^;？）思っている方は、市販のゲームか他の方のＳＴＧの方が大変よ 　く出来ているので、このゲームに合わないかと思います（ぉぃ）	To those who think STGs need to have a unique system, fancy graphics, a sense of exhilaration, moe characters, or voices (Are there even those kinds of people(^^;?), there are commercial or other shmups that are better-made and this game would probably not be suited for you. (Hey)
もちろん、遊んでいただける方は、なんにも理屈なんか気にしないで 　楽しんでくださいね(^^; 　こういうこと考える必要があるのは創る（特に売る製品）側だけです。	Obviously, to those who decided to play, there's no need for reasons to enjoy the game. (^^; These things should only be considered to those who make (and especially to those who sell) the actual games.
なお、キャラがちまちましている、とか背景が単調とか、雑魚の種類が 　乏しいとか、は何のこだわりもあるわけではなく、ただ単に人手が足りな 　いだけです。申し訳ございません（汗）次回以降、回を重ねることに少し 　ずつ改善されて欲しいものです（他人事の様に(^^;）	Still, to those who feel like the characters are too small, the backgrounds are too monotonous, or a lack of variation in the small fry, this is not due to any particular insistence, but due to a simple lack of manpower. Please forgive me (sweat). Starting next time, I hope I am able to improve little by little as I become accustomed to it. (As if it's anyone else's business (^^;)
―― 愛があるから大丈夫	—— Made With Love So it's All Right
ちなみに今回の音楽はどうでしたか？ 　いつものより３倍くらい明るい曲にしたつもりです、最近のゲームミュー 　ジックには無い、一部ジャズフュージョンを取り入れたものになっていま 　す。自分が思うこのゲームの曲はこうだ！、という事と、少しでもゲーム 　の雰囲気のありがちな曲を避けたい、という事もあり、こんなに癖のある 　曲に仕上がりました。	By the way, how do you like the music? I intended to make it about three times as bright as usual, and since I haven't seen it in game music recently, I added some jazz fusion to it. I wanted to make it unusual and give it qualities of "This is what I think about when I think of game music!" yet I wanted to avoid the atmosphere that is so prevalent in game music a little bit.
って、実はこんな曲しか創れないとも言う（もう作曲歴も長いのに...） 　というか、一言で言ってしまえば曲調が古いのでは？ 　ノスタルジックと古いと言うのは違うんだろうなぁ(^^;	...But it's more like I didn't make anything BUT those kinds of songs. (Even with as long as I've been composing...) If I were to sum up the melodies in a single word, I guess I'd say "old"? I don't think "nostalgic" quite has the same meaning, anyway. (^^;
今回は、私的にラスボス、エキストラボスのテーマが対象的な曲に仕 　上がって、両方気に入っています。	This time, I personally think that the last boss and extra boss theme's were created to be representative of the game, and I quite like them both.
このゲームとは関係ないですが、音楽ＣＤも同時に販売しています。 　　こちらも、曲はこういう曲ばっかですので、今回少しでも興味をもたれ 　た方は、是非聴いていただきたいです。ただ、全体的にハイテンポに重い 　ので、人生を投げ出して首を吊っても良い、って方に最適です。 　　ジャンルフリーなＣＤだと思っているので、音楽ジャンル主義（こだわ 　り派）な方には向かないです。きっと。	This has nothing to do with the game, but I also released a music CD at the same time as this game. It's filled with songs like the ones in this game, so if you even like this game's music a little bit, please give the music CD a listen. However, it's almost entirely high-tempo songs, so you might find yourself considering that the best way to throw away your life is to hang yourself. I consider it a genre-free CD, so it isn't suited for people who get hung up on categorizing all music into genres. Certainly.
それにしても、弦楽器弾けるようになろうかなぁ 　二胡とか（いきなりかい）	In any case, it makes me want to play a stringed instrument. Like an erhu. (That came out of nowhere!)
―― そ・れ・で・も　いきますか？　Yes ->No<-	—— Ev-en-so, are you going? Yes ->No<-
大往生以来、ＳＴＧが出ていませんね。大往生は２周目いったところで、 　すでにあきらめてしまいました(^^;（Ａ－麗娘　使用） 　プロギアですら２－５でつまって１コインクリア出来なかったので、大往 　生２周は無理と踏みました（体力の限界）	There haven't been any shmups released since Dodonpachi Daioujou, yeah? I've gotten to the second loop, but I've already given up on that. (^^; (I use A-type Leinyan.) Even in Progear I was stuck in 2-5 and couldn't clear cleat it in one coin, so beating Daioujou's second loop is going to be impossible by my estimate (Due to physical limitations).
で、弾幕シュー、久々に作ってみて、やっぱりいいですね～。	But making a danmaku shmup after so long was just as fun as ever.
実は、怪綺談を出したときに、「弾幕系ももうそろそろ限界かな。」と 　思っていたのですが、ちょっと勘違いしていたようです。ゲームに限らず 　創作には大きく分けて２種類あります。それは、一般に広く受けるための 　創作と、ごく一部の人が深く楽しむ為の創作です。商用（これで飯を食べ 　ていくには）は前者で無ければいけません。もちろん弾幕は後者で、深く 　楽しめるユーザーを選定する、格好の素材だったようです。	Actually, when I released Mystic Square I thought "Danmaku shmups have already just about reached their peak." I suppose I was somewhat mistaken. Among the countless number of games, there are two large divisions. One group is games made to be widely accepted, and the other is made for a small fraction to greatly enjoy. For business (so they can put food on the table), the former is absolutely necessary. Of course, danmaku shmups fall into the latter. Enthusiasts choose them for the sake of the genre alone.
ほとんどの方から見れば、世にＳＴＧがあまり出ていないことでＳＴＧ 　は廃れたと思ってしまうと思います。おそらくこれからもＳＴＧの数が増 　えたりはしないでしょう。もしかしたら自分や周りの人、雑誌やネット上 　などで、ＳＴＧは面白くないと言ってる（もしくは、自分が思っている） 　から、廃れたと思っている方も多いかも知れません。	I think that almost everyone considers shmups to be an outdated genre based on the fact that they are rarely released anymore, and it's likely that not too many more shmups will be. If you or the people around you say that they're not fun in magazines or on the internet (or in your own thoughts), then it may very well be that there are many more people who also think shmups are outdated.
実は廃れているのです。ただし、アーティスティクの本質というものは、 　廃れたもののことでもあると思っています。大衆文化だった歌舞伎が、現 　在では芸術になるかのように、一時のワインブームが去ることで、本当の 　ワイン通が楽しめるようになるかのように、ＭＶＳ横シューのブレスタが 　職人芸扱いされるかの様に... 　　ゲームユーザーの間からＳＴＧというものが廃れ消え去った時、弾幕は 　本当の弾幕通の間だけで、本物の弾幕というものを深く追求出来る良い時 　代になるのかも知れませんね。	The fact is that they are old-fashioned. However, I think that its old-fashioned quality is part of its artistic essence. While kabuki was once pop culture, it is now considered fine arts in the present world. During the brief wine boom, some people may have become true wine connoisseurs. And like how the techniques used in Blazing Star showed up later in other horizontal shmups... When people who just think that shmups are outdated no longer exist among those who play games, when there are only true danmaku connoisseurs, I think that might be the best era for those who are truly seeking to make genuine danmaku.
ＳＴＧは、もっとも早くから存在したゲームの一つです。 　そのため、ちょっとばかり業が深いのかもしれません（笑）	Shmups only wanted to be a single game since its inception. For that reason, it might just be a little bad karma. (lol)
閑話休題...	Getting back to the main topic...
―― 私、初心者なので、すみません	—— As a beginner, I apologize
話変わって、今回、初めて規模の大きいWindowsのアプリを作りました。 　ほとんどWindows のプログラムをしたことが無かったので、かなり拙い内 　容になってるかも知れませんm(__)m。ただ実際は、 API や DirectX など 　環境があまりにも恵まれすぎているので、低レベルなこと（ハード周り） 　は殆ど触らず、うわべだけのプログラムで創れてしまいました。	Changing the subject, this was the first time I've made a Windows program of such a large scale. I've hardly done any programming in Windows, so the code might be rather clumsy. m(_ _)m However, in truth, working in an environment with things like API and DirectX is so much of a blessing. I barely had to touch anything low-level (like with the hardware), and I made a program that runs on the surface.
今回は一からのライブラリ、及びツール構築があったため、色々時間が 　足りなかったのですが、とりあえずこれで大分開発環境が整ったので、次 　回作からもっとクオリティＵＰ（特に演出面）を図っていけるかな、と思 　っています。	Since this time I had to construct libraries and tools from scratch, I ran out of time for making a lot of things, but for now just about every part of the development environment is in order. That means that for the next game I plan on improving the quality (especially on the production side).
今回、アーカイブに関しては Amusement Makers のぽんち氏に頂きまし 　た。そのおかげで、多くの時間をゲーム本質部分への作りこみに割けた事 　を感謝します。	I received an archive from Mr. Punch from Amusement Makers. Thanks to him, I was able to save a lot of time into putting together the essential parts of the game, so I am grateful for that.
今後は圧縮Wavファイルの部分ループを付けなければ、とかも思います。 　特に今回Midiも Wavもファイルも部分無限ループに対応させたのですが、 　Midi 再生ルーチンに関してはバグも多かった様で、ご迷惑おかけいたし 　ましたm(__)m	I think that from now on I have to make the compressed WAV files loop. In dealing with making the WAV and the MIDI files loop indefinitely, I found that the MIDI playback routine in particular had a lot of bugs. Sorry for the inconvenience. m(_ _)m
―― 次回は	—— As for the next time
どうしましょうかね。実は東方Ｐｒｏｊｅｃｔは向こう２作、仕様が 　出来ています。でも、個人的にはまったくの新作も作って見たいところ。 　新シリーズも構想だけ出来ています（東方と何にも変わらないけど（汗）） 　まぁ、とりあえずは、もう少し東方Ｐｒｏｊｅｃｔ作ってみましょうか(^^;	What should I do? Actually, I do have the resources I need to make the second Touhou Project game in the future. However, I would personally like to see if I could make a completely different game. I have made a plan for a new series (although it's no different from Touhou (sweats) ). Well, for now I'll see if I can't make more Touhou Project games for a little while longer. (^^;
多分ＳＴＧであることには違いないかと思います。でも、夏->冬は短い 　からきついなぁ、いやマジで。 　　というより、仕事が忙しくて創ってられないね（汗）	I think I'm certain it will probably be a shmup, but there is such a short amount of time between the summer and winter Comikets, so it'll be tough. No, I'm serious. And to make things worse, I won't be able to continue making it due to being busy at work. (sweat)
なにはともあれ、宜しかったらこれからもよろしくお願いしますm(__)m	In any case, please continue your support if you like my games. m(_ _)m