Industry Figures Gather to Honor Late Game Director Tomonobu Itagaki
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
Koei Tecmo executive Yosuke Hayashi delivered a personal eulogy at the memorial service for late game director Tomonobu Itagaki, honoring the creator of Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden.
The gaming community recently came together to mourn and celebrate the life of Tomonobu Itagaki, the visionary creator behind the Dead or Alive and 3D Ninja Gaiden series, who passed away last month at the age of 58. Industry leaders, including Tekken director Katsuhiro Harada and Koei Tecmo executive vice president Yosuke Hayashi, attended a memorial service to pay their respects to the legendary developer. Hayashi delivered a deeply personal eulogy, recounting his early days working under Itagaki in the late nineties and reflecting on the intense crunch of developing the original Xbox version of Ninja Gaiden.
Hayashi shared intimate details of their shared history, highlighting the chaos of past development cycles and the sheer dedication Itagaki brought to his projects. Despite past friction between Itagaki and Koei Tecmo following his departure in 2008, the two maintained a mutual respect in later years. Hayashi revealed their final exchanges, which touched on a promise to preserve the company logo and a candid critique of the modern games industry, where achieving high sales figures no longer guarantees industry-wide recognition.
For players who grew up dropping quarters in arcades or pushing the original Xbox to its limits, Itagaki leaves behind a complex legacy defined by uncompromising style and mechanical precision. Team Ninja and his later independent work at Valhalla Game Studios cemented a distinct era of action gaming. As current developers reflect on his impact, the community continues to remember a creator who shaped the action genre on his own terms. Original reporting and translations of the eulogy can be found on Eurogamer and VGC.
Tags: Tomonobu Itagaki, Ninja Gaiden, Dead or Alive, Koei Tecmo, Industry News
Original article: Eurogamer