Thanks to Chad (no link requested) for providing further translation and thoughts on the Watanabe statement. Italics are not derived directly from the Watanabe statement...

So the Watanabe Productions just wanted to set the record straight, that they have nothing to do with the project. They gave the source code to Ecole, and have no other part to it. They humbly talk about their game engine for Melty Blood having many problems, which might cause problems for Ecole.

If one of the posters "Itayama" on the Ecole BBS is a staff member (they appear to be), then they're not very professional in what they post, and they try to belittle others.

I'm not so sure that it's a matter of the quality of Watanabe's coding or not... Vince: After working with porting, I tend to think that code structure and readibility are important components that have a great effect

Looking at their statement, Watanabe Productions didn't seem to be very interested in creating an arcade adaption from the start. First of all, they were working on RBO (Ragnarok Battle Online) so they would not have the time, and secondly, they did not think they themselves could successfully create an arcade version.

So they decided to entrust it to the company Ecole. They didn't claim copyright to Melty Blood-- rather the copyright was more in the hands of Type-Moon. Watanabe Productions doesn't want to have their name credited, as it usually just causes trouble. They didn't want to have their name listed in the Melty Blood Guide Book (I think they're referring to the one published by Studio DNA). While Watanabe Productions handed the job over to Ecole, they did put in some conditions so as to somewhat safeguard the integrity of Melty Blood.

(I'm not sure what "conditions", but the direct translation of the line there was, "However, we didn't give E-sha (Ecole) complete rights to do whatever they please (probably meaning as in extreme changes), so rest assured.")

Regarding the location test of MB AC, the comments that people have said seem to be "For example the backgrounds... did the people who created these even play the game?" (as in they're not a fitting or appropriate setting for the game) The comments also tended towards, "The vectoring seems to be an afterthought", of which Ecole seems to be having problems with.

In the current state, there are a lot of problems, and being a beta version, things will naturally be improved. So Ecole probably did the location test to see the customer draw/appeal. They do not know what direction Ecole will be taking from here on. They will probably be deciding what direction to go in over the next few days, and post it towards the end of summer. Watanabe wants to clear it up that settling the problems is not dependent upon their participation. Also, Melty Blood AC coming out will not effect the development of Re-act.

Watanabe doesn't want to give a bad impression about Ecole, as Ecole is just like any other game company. They have released things like "Desukuri" and "Desukuri2", so people should consider those accomplishments. Watanabe commends E-cole for porting their very unstable Re-act program to arcade in just over a few months.

Should Ecole not be able to further develop Melty Blood AC, Watanabe would feel half at fault for their unrefined/buggy programming in the original. However, problems regarding the feeling, concept, and soul of the game are the creation of the people who created "Desu".