经济学人下载:亚洲的想象力

There were 170 exhibitors. More would have come, but the organisers insisted on widening the corridors after last year’s gridlock. One small firm selling figurines based on Hollywood films is said to have taken in HK$5m. Microsoft’s installation for its Xbox console was twice as big as last year’s, yet the crush to watch games unfold on large screens was still impassable.

此次香港动漫电玩节有170个参展商。将来还会有更多，但是组办单位坚持加宽会场的通道以利通行，因为有上年的交通堵塞为前车之鉴。一家小型公司表示，他们此次售卖的以好莱坞电影人物为原型的雕像已卖出5百万港币。微软的Xbox游戏操纵台装置是去年的两倍之大，但仍然无法满足迫切观摩在大屏幕上展现的最新游戏的拥挤观众群的需要，通道人满为患。

The organisers have created two similar fairs on the Chinese mainland: one in Guangzhou, the other in Shenyang. These fairs are popular, but tightly controlled. Censorship is stricter (so there is less sex and violence). Cartridge-style computer games are illegal, a rule that conveniently shuts out Microsoft’s Xboxes. Even games sold over the internet are limited—a few big portals have a lock on the Chinese market. That leaves only toys and comics. One day, perhaps, the imaginations of mainland Chinese will be allowed to roam free. In the meantime, there is Hong Kong.

组办单位已经在中国大陆举办了两场类似的展会：一场在广州，另一场在沈阳。这些展会大获好评，但都被严格的控制了场面。审查制度更加严谨，因此不会有太多色情和暴力的元素。暗盒式电玩是不合法的，正是因为这一规定导致微软的Xboxes游戏被排除在展会之外。甚至通过网络售卖游戏也是受限制的，因此一些大型门户站点在中国大陆市场上是被封锁的。这样就进仅剩下玩具和动漫了。也许有一天，想象力在中国大陆可以自由翱翔。而现在，就只有香港可以。