Kohei Ikeda walks
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There’s a lot of movement around Tekken 8 at the moment, whether that’s the game itself or the people working on it.
Most notably, Tekken legend Katsuhiro Harada left Bandai Namco not too long ago, and now, game director Kohei Ikeda, is following suit.
With 20 years at the publisher under his belt, he’s been working on the fighting game series for a long time, but has decided now’s the time to call it quits.
In his statement, Ikeda recalls getting his start with Soulcalibur IV before moving onto the Tekken series, eventually becoming game director of Tekken 7 as well as 8.
“Being surrounded by passionate and incredibly talented mentors and colleagues, and dedicating ourselves wholeheartedly to game development together, remains one of the most cherished experiences of my life,” he writes.
“While my role leading the team as Game Director is coming to a close, the values that both I personally and the Tekken Project have always cherished staying close to the fans and the community and building the game together with everyone will never change.
I have entrusted those values, and that baton, to the incredible team that will continue shaping the future of Tekken.”
The game itself has been through some tough times, with major updates upsetting the game’s balance.
It’s starting to recover now, with recent patches going a long way to rein in the overly aggressive gameplay and Heat system.
As mentioned, Harada left just a few months ago too. He’s now heading up a new team, VS Studio, at SNK.
Are you surprised to see Ikeda leave Bandai Namco? Tell us in the comments section below.
Stephen has been part of the Push Square team for over six years, bringing boundless enthusiasm and a deep knowledge of video games to his role as Assistant Editor. Having grown up playing every PlayStation console to date, he’s developed an eclectic taste, with particular passion for indie games, arcade racers, and puzzlers. He’s also our go-to guy for Sonic-related matters, much to his delight/chagrin.
