In October 2021, we reported that Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi and his right-hand man Daisuke Satu left Ryu Ga Gotoku, a studio he founded over 10 years ago and owned by Sega. It was then discovered that Nagoshi might join the Chinese publisher NetEase to start up a new studio. An official announcement is here, Toshihiro Nagoshi has announced a Nagoshi Studio, his new studio with NetEase.
Nagoshi shared a message about establishing his new studio, going over what he wants to accomplish with his new company and the environment he wants to set. He will be the President and CEO of Nagoshi Studio, and his team will include eight additional staff members, all of whom are game industry veterans.
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The eight staff members are producer Daisuke Sato, artist Kazuki Hosokawa, programmer Koji Tokieda, designer Masao Shirosaki, engineer Mitsunori Fujimoto, artist Naoki Someya, director Taichi Ushioda, and artist Toshihiro Ando. Most studio members have worked with Sega, just like Nagoshi, before joining Nagoshi Studios.
NetEase is a company that has developed some of the biggest mobile and PC games for China and other Asian markets, including Onmyōji, Fantasy Westward Journey, and Marvel-licensed titles like Marvel Duel and Marvel Super War. NetEase has also partnered with Activision Blizzard to bring games like World of Warcraft, StarCraft, and Overwatch to China.
