Yakuza Creator Reportedly in Negotiations to Join NetEase Games - News
by William D'Angelo , posted on 30 August 2021 / 1,557 Views
Yakuza and Super Monkey Ball creator Toshihiro Nagoshi is in negotiations to join Chinese company NetEase Games, according to a Bloomberg report.
Nagoshi if hired by NetEase Games would create his own team and develop new games, according to sources familiar with the matter. He hasn't signed a final contract and his duties have not been finalized.
NetEase Games has been making headway into Japan recently with the establishment of Ouka Studio led by Bandai Namco veteran Tetsuya Akatsuka. Tencent has also invested in Marvelous and Platinum Games. Both are looking to continue to expand in Japan.
"Tencent and NetEase have been speaking to just about all publicly traded studios here and are actively courting some privately held developers, too," said Tokyo-based industry analyst Serkan Toto of Kantan Games.
"They both feel pressure to make headway in Japan, especially since game regulations in their home market are becoming increasingly restrictive."
NetEase and Tencent representatives did not respond to requests for comment on the matter. A Sega spokesman said the company doesn't comment on matter to the employment status of individual employees.
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel dedicated to gaming Let's Plays and tutorials. You can contact the author at wdangelo@vgchartz.com or on Twitter @TrunksWD.
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