Tomonobu Itagaki, a director best known for his work on the Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive series, has announced that he is founding his own studio, named simply “Itagaki Games”. According to a statement from Itagaki himself, the announcement was initially planned to be part of a Bloomberg article detailing the history of Xbox articles, but the article ultimately ran out of space and failed to include this information.
Previously, Itagaki was employed at Valhalla Game Studios, which released its first title Devil’s Third in 2015. After resigning from Valhalla, he primarily worked as a teacher who hoped to get the younger generation interested in game development.
When asked on Facebook why he chose to make his own studio at this time, Itagaki’s reply was simple. He stated that he wanted to make a game again, and “just established a company for that purpose”. He has not yet announced what Itagaki Games’ first project will be, but seems very eager to get started.
Regarding the possibility of working with Microsoft again, Itagaki stated that “it would be an honor for [him].” Previously, the director worked extensively with Microsoft on several of the Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive titles, many of which were released as Xbox console exclusives. He expressed hope that the studio might reach out to Itagaki Games regarding a future collaboration.
He did not state whether or not he was interested in working with Koei Tecmo, the studio with which he was employed for several years prior to his resignation in 2008. However, he previously filed a lawsuit against the studio for unpaid bonuses, so the relationship between them may not currently be a positive one.
What sort of games would you like to see Itagaki make under the label of his new studio? Let us know in the comments!
