Itagaki, father of DoA & Ninja Gaiden resigns

[BlackKnight]

Apparently his efforts were not properly rewarded- Tomonobu Itagaki, creator of Dead or Alive and the new Ninja Gaiden series has left Tecmo and renounced control over said franchises.

 

Statement

 

I, Tomonobu Itagaki, hereby announce that on the 14th of May 2008 I filed a complaint in the Tokyo District Court against Tecmo Co., Ltd. for unpaid completion bonuses, and against the President of Tecmo, Yoshimi Yasuda, for such unlawful acts as unreasonable and disingenuous statements made towards me, claiming damages in total of 148 million yen. I also announce that this complaint was delivered to the defendants on May 22nd of the same year.

 

In addition, I hereby announce that I have today submitted a letter of resignation to Tecmo Co., Ltd. stating that I will resign as of the 1st of July, 2008.

 

Before the start of development on DEAD OR ALIVE 4, Tecmo Co., Ltd. had agreed to pay a completion bonus to me for this Xbox 360 title, which I produced. However, when the time came for the actual payment, Tecmo Co., Ltd. went against its previous agreement and refused payment. President Yoshimi Yasuda chose not only to violate this agreement, but also turned defiant, telling me “if you are dissatisfied with the decision not to pay the bonuses, either quit the company or sue it.” In addition, he made demeaning remarks about me to my subordinates and colleagues, causing me significant emotional distress and worsening my personal relationships and work environment. Thus, I have no choice but to resign from Tecmo Co., Ltd.

 

The conduct of Tecmo Co., Ltd. and its president Yoshimi Yasuda towards me has been unbefitting of a publicly-listed company.

 

I have filed this lawsuit with a strong intent to question the social responsibility of Tecmo Co., Ltd. and its President Yoshimi Yasuda, as well as condemning them for their unjust acts. Today, in addition to announcing the reasons for this lawsuit, I make clear my reasons for resigning.

 

To All Game Fans

 

I truly feel sorry to all the fans of the games I have made. NINJA GAIDEN 2, which will launch on the 3rd of June will be the last NINJA GAIDEN I will create. I will also never be able to make DEAD OR ALIVE 5. I regret the circumstances that have forced me to leave Tecmo, where I had worked for so many years, and I regret the disappointment this will cause my fans.

 

However, I can no longer continue to work with President Yoshimi Yasuda, a man who chooses not to honor promises even when he is able to do so.

 

I truly hope that nothing like this happens again in the future.

 

Tecmo Co., Ltd. Creative Officer

Leader, Team NINJA

 

Tomonobu Itagaki

 

Anyone who knows the guy knows he is quite a character. Trust him to go out in a blaze of glory by not only resigning, but also suing his company.

 

Just to put this in some context, 'bonuses' are a big deal in Japan and often amount to 3-4 months pay, in some cases upto 45% of the yearly wage, or contract amount. Considering the contract for the creation of Dead or Alive 4, the unpaid sum would probably be quite significant.

 

It's all a shame- I was looking forward to Ninja Gaiden 2 and will miss Itagaki and his crazy-ass games. Until recently he and his Team Ninja were the Japanese support for the Xbox brand, making this an even bigger loss.

[Wizard]

Wouldn't it be quite a surprise if he suddenly joined Kojima and his company, considering they are good friends and all. I swear the world would explode if that happened.

[L.S.D]

Wouldn't it be quite a surprise if he suddenly joined Kojima and his company, considering they are good friends and all. I swear the world would explode if that happened.

Yeah, we would get gamegirls with XXXL size boobs. Both of them are well known perverts

 

But seriously, if that is happening, I will buy the very first game they released.

[BlackKnight]

By the way, the Ninja Gaiden 2 demo is up everywhere but the US, Canada, India and Germany.

[Inky]

Wouldn't it be quite a surprise if he suddenly joined Kojima and his company, considering they are good friends and all. I swear the world would explode if that happened.

Kojima+Itagaki=incredibly difficult cutscenes.

[solidius23]

well i respect him for standing up to tecmo, but microsoft and tecmo own the rights to some of his best franchises, i wont worry im pretty sure he can release some cool shite with another company and im with the concensus it will prolly be with kojima.

[Wizard]

Actually, Temco owns the rights to DOA and NG, not MS nor him. MS just paid alot for exclusivity.

[Fatal Rose]

I hope this is the end of DOA.

[BlackKnight]

I hope this is the end of DOA.

Don't be hating. DoA was good once. It can be good again.

[ken_cinder]

And none of you think he'll go right to Microsoft as a first party dev? I can see it. If not there, somewhere that is at least a direct opponent to Tecmo.

[Wizard]

It never occured to me he could single handedly form M$'s japanese gaming division. But that's still a long shot.