The minds behind .hack//G.U.

Speaking of this magazine that you've brought [from Japan, entitled .hack//G.U. The World] it's obviously full of manga and other stuff. This book couldn't really be published in America this way - is that worrisome? That American fans don't get the same access to the information as Japanese fans?

Matsuyama: We've already thought about this well in advance, as well. Because of that thanks to [Namco Bandai America Associate Product Marketing Manager] Aaron there, the .hack//G.U. website is going to launch... when...?

Aaron: When it's ready.

Matsuyama: Officially, when it's ready. Soon!

Aaron: Very, very, very soon.

Matsuyama: So from there, all of the information you need will be on the website as well. There's no worry for anyone because basically anything that's [in this book] will be on the website as well. So it's not like anyone's going to be losing any information.

Also, in terms of the website, it's not just there for people to get information, but it's also a place for fans to have their voices heard. So, for example, if the fans want to see a comic book published here - if they want to see more comic books, or a see a certain aspect of .hack that may not be available here, that's a good place where people can voice their opinions and we'll definitely take them into consideration. We'll do what we can - we'll see if it's something we can do.

Eventually the .hack//A.I. Buster novels are coming out here. They're just now coming out. [They were originally released in Japan in 2002.]

Matsuyama: So, essentially, in relation to the books, stuff like that takes a little time. What I want to say is that people are not just looking only on the official website, but also on the other user-based websites, to see what people are looking for and what people are wanting and stuff like that. So we look through it and say, "Oh, there are a lot of people who want stuff like this - maybe we should do something. What can we do to get this out?" We just want to let people know that we're taking user comments very seriously and reading them and everything.