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Itagaki leaving Team Ninja, suing Tecmo photo

The last time I ran into Team Ninja head man and Ninja Gaiden director Tomonobu Itagaki, he was a happy son of a bitch. He had new games lined up, his army of scantily clad girls in tow, and his sunglasses were shinier than ever. Not so much today, though. In fact, he seems a bit angry.

1Up has the low down on the story of Itagaki's departure from Team Ninja. It seems that he is suing Tecmo for unpaid bonuses, claiming damages in total of 148 million yen. Itagaki's aide Andrew Szymanski sent along a statement from his boss, which also said that Itagaki will resign from Tecmo Co., Ltd. on July 1st.

The dispute is over an unpaid bonus for the Dead or Alive 4 on the Xbox 360. Itagaki was promised a payment after completition, but never saw that. He says that his boss told him to either quit or sue if he was unhappy with this. 

Itagaki also sends along an apology to you, dear gamer:

"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."

What do you think of all of this? Do you think Itagaki will be alright? 


Continue: More Tecmo stories





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75 comments | showing # 1 to 50

Ichigo Style's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:46
Ichigo Style
Itagaki is a legend, and I'm sure he'll bring us some more great games, wherever he goes. We'll have to wait and see, Team Ninja is an amazing dev team, and I hope they continue to press on with the same integrity they did when Itagaki was with them, and Itagaki can find another team as good.
TurboSpaz's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:46
TurboSpaz
Stick it to the man!
timtheterrible's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:47
timtheterrible
Don't know quite what to think about this. I was never a huge Team Ninja fan, and the last game that I really enjoyed from Itagaki was Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Chaos Sword for the NES. That being said, though, I hope his new IP's will do well. Maybe he needed this push to stop churning out old franchises with new coats of blood and try something unique.
Novakaine's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:51
Novakaine
Itagaki was hated by a lot of people it seems, but I always loved him. I personally loved his games, and I loved his rock star persona and attitude.

I wonder where he'll go... one thing's for certain: Tecmo will dearly miss him. He basically kept that company on profits for the past decade or so.
Grenator Bole's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:53
Grenator Bole
I think if what he says is true, he has no other option. I would love to see the strange, violent things he could create for Nintendo, but sadly, that will never happen. DOA was a fun fighting game, never the best, but fun. Ninja Gaiden on the other hand had that amazing retro difficulty that made me into a man that can stay calm in any situation because nothing can be as hard as playing his games as a five year old until I could beat them. I hope his crazy ass can find something new and exciting so I can break a few controllers, just for old times.
MaxVest's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:53
MaxVest
Interesting to see this. I don't think lawsuits of this type in Japan have quite reached the commonness that they have the US, where a lawsuit is just one of the costs of doing business. This is an unusually strong public swipe at the President.
The Wizard's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:55
The Wizard
I think he'll be fine. He probably thought this out before quiting and suing Tecmo and has another job set up somewhere (Microsoft?)This also brings up another question: does this mean that DoA and NG franchises will no longer be Xbox exclusives?
EternalDeathSlayer's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:57
EternalDeathSlayer
Wow. That's fucking crazy.

Oh well, more publicity for NG2, which comes out TODAY.
SuitcoatAvenger's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:58
SuitcoatAvenger
Perhaps he and Kudo Tsunoda can get together and for a new studio dedicated to the continuation of designers that wear sunglasses indoors/at night.

In all sincerity, this is a surprise considering how big of a cog he was in Tecmo. If Microsoft was smart, they'd swipe him up with an exclusivity contract in a hearbeat. Not only is Itagaki one of the few Japanese developers who actually likes the 360, he's also got enough of a base in the country to spur console sales with a newly-developed exclusive. Just a thought.
galagabug 's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 09:59
galagabug
don't take no junk from nobody!
Professor Pew's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:00
Professor Pew
Here is to a big-boobed jb JRPG(or JBRPG)by Itakagi. Wait, did I say that out loud?
ParaParaKing's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:04
ParaParaKing
I guess if he gets the money, he will either live the good life or continue to make games for somebody else.
covah's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:05
covah
Like I said in the Cblogs, I'm really saddened by this news. Team Ninja was one of my favorite developers and Itagaki was why. DoA is my favorite fighting series and Ninja Gaiden is my favorite action series. These franchises won't be the same if they continue. And I was really hoping to see Dead or Alive 5 at some point.

Also, there goes Dead or Alive Code Cronus and Project Progressive, two games Itagaki had ideas for.
Robert's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:12
Robert
That pic makes him look like a zombie.
ShinAmano's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:14
ShinAmano
He will bring us more incredible games that is for sure...Team Ninja will press on.
covah's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:19
covah
Team Ninja will press on but its not going to be the same, Its like if Kojima doesn't work on Metal Gear... which is probably going to end up happening and the games just wont be the same.
GuitarAtomik's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:22
GuitarAtomik
Itagaki will be fine. Boobs will jiggle again. Can't wait to see what new IP he'll work on next.
kevkevblazini's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:25
kevkevblazini
I dunno, I'm kinda excited at the possibility of the "Boob Engine" being used to animate Peach, LOL wouldn't that be some crazy sh*t!
loki d20's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:26
loki d20
I'm sure someone will scoop him up, Avenger's idea about Microsoft doing so wouldn't be bad at all considering how well Ninja Gaiden did and how well Ninja Gaiden 2 will likely do.

Kind of sad to see a Japanese company mimicking the business style of the good ole U.S. of A. I wonder how much money will be wasted just trying to get the money, or even worse to not get any at all?
savagesaladin's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:31
savagesaladin
@timtheterrible

He's not the original creator of Ninja Gaiden for NES.

I'm sure Itagaki's boss is a total scumbag that deserves murder. His boss probably thinks he can push him around and just make someone else create the game. Though who would want to work for someone like that?
Ichigo Style's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:33
Ichigo Style
I posted earlier when I came upstairs to check a walk through for Persona 3: FES (I don't know what kinds of houses there were in japan way back when!), so I completely forgot to bring this up-

Where the hell is my Dead or Alive Extreme Beach Volleyball 3 going to come through? I collected all of the swimsuits in both 1, and 2. Dammit.

Also, where does the rest of dtoid see this man going? Sony's out of the question (the man hates them), and loves Microsoft, possibly a small dev team that's published by Microsoft? Sega? I know he had great relations with Sega back in the Saturn/Dreamcast days...
free touch's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:37
free touch
I see him going to Gameloft, because they suck as much as he does. OVERRATED
Vigor's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:44
Vigor
I dont really care for him that much. He makes good games, but he thinks his games are the greatest games of all time, and that other developers should bow down to him. He hates on every other game god of war, heavenly sword, tekken. When they are good games in there own right. He needs to lose the ego.

He said ninja gaiden sigma for the PS3 was trash. It may have been a remake, but it was awesome. To play in 1080p with new weapons. And for people that didnt have a xbox it was great.

He needs to chill, and look at maybe some of the things he does causes some of his problems. But i think his head is to big to realize.
b33b3s's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:51
b33b3s
Here's hoping that he gets a job at Platinum Games.
Neonie's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:51
Neonie
Is that picture what he looks like in The Matrix?
TheNakedAnt's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 10:54
TheNakedAnt
My cumbersome itagaki man-crush forces me to feel empathetic towards him, Though i do wonder if there wasn't more at play here than what you see on the surface.
Hitogoroshi's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:03
Hitogoroshi
Don't let people fuck with your money.
ZagZagovich's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:05
ZagZagovich
Itagaki is strong. He will be fine that's for sure. I'm sure we'll hear of him soon.
CaptainApocalypse's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:07
CaptainApocalypse
Companies pull shit like this all the time. I'd be interested to see Japan's laws concerning what constitutes a verbal contract. No matter who is at fault here, we're still not getting another Ninja Gaiden or DOA. At least, not from the guy whose done it right so far.
Mr Gilder's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:07
Mr Gilder
I haven't really been a fan of any Tecmo franchises that don't involve Itagaki. He won't be jobless for long before one of the other Japanese bigboys gobbles him up.

Imagine if Capcom rose to the occasion? Imagine if he worked on Devil May Cry . . . imagine the state of Trish's boobs in that vision of the future.

Itagaki is now free to bring his unique vision of breast-centric gameplay to other venues. The world is his.
Tull's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:09
Tull
Even money says Microsoft scoops him up and makes him a very rich video game rockstar.
Alexradl's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:09
Alexradl
No worries. I'm sure he'll continue making semi-good games with another company. It will be interesting to see how this lawsuit plays out though.
GOLD5's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:09
GOLD5
Usually in Japan, when someone is contracted for work, it's considered rude to talk about how much you will be paid. Even ruder, is for the company doing the paying, to not give the worker a completely fair recompense for their work based on their skill and experience. It's supposed to be all taken care of in a respectful fashion. This Tecmo President Yoshimi Yasuda truly has NO HONOR. I hope his ancestors are ashamed of his greed and deceit. Apparently Yasuda should brush up on his poker skills because Itagaki sure called his bluff and raised the roof!
skullivan's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:16
skullivan
DOA4 came out almost 3 years ago. Why is it this is only an issue now?

In any case, I'm glad that Itagaki will be forced to move on from DOA. It's not like there was some sort of compelling narrative going on in that series that is going to suffer without him. And hopefully it'll mean no more DOAX games. It should be interesting to see what he comes up with on his own.
foxhound009's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:20
foxhound009
"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."

lol what a selfish prick, he made those games by himself he thinks? he really thinks they need him xD

I hope I'll never hear about him again... I never liked those shitty glasses of his anyways..
Demtor's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:21
Demtor
Meh, wutevea. Maybe its for the best since he wanted to work on new IP anyways.

Whenever I see a picture of that guys ugly mug, it makes me think of JP from Grandma's Boy.

"Please, sit on my face!"
manasteel88's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:22
manasteel88
my only issue is outside of DoA and Ninja Gaiden, what has tecmo done recently that people actually care about. Tecmo bowl is the only thing I can recall on the horizon. Itagaki was a huge player in Tecmo. I think the Team Ninja teams will carry on fine without him but still its awkward.

I doubt MS is gonna pursue Itagaki with setting up a studio around him. I just don't think that they have that intention. It would be cool to see his take on Killer Instinct though.
Blackhat's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:42
Blackhat
So this guy's famous for DoA, and one Ninja Gaiden game? Why all the hype and mystique? Sounds like a one-trick pony to me (and a rather lame trick at tha- look boobies!)
foxhound009's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:44
foxhound009
His games suck... someone has to tell him that...
he seem to think otherwise...
Noah's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:57
Noah
Good news from the 1up link...
"Itagaki mentions that he intends for his next game to be "a brand new action game" that will be violent like Ninja Gaiden."


@The Wrath

Yeah I was starting to feel a little sorry for him, then I remembered that sexual harassment case...he's probably one of those guys who uses the PSP camera for upskirt pics.

Fame is a funny thing. It's hard to feel sympathy for a rich person who's quitting his job over MORE money. It does sound unfair though.
Ichigo Style's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 11:59
Ichigo Style
foxhound-
You say that his nose being in the air is any different than Kojima, whom you seem to be a fan of. Please, tell me- Has Kojima ever come up with an original idea? Snatcher (which is his child) is a complete rip-off of the movie Blade-Runner, and Metal-Gear Solid wreaks of pretty much every other US Action flick he could get his hands on (Snake's name is lifted from Snake Plissken, and even his character design to an extent). Itagaki has done some great things with his franchises, and I'll be completely honest- has struck me as a more creative person than Kojima, whom seems to think that I'm going to choke down an hour and a half of cinematics in MGS4.

Once again people, this man's ego isn't anything out of the ordinary, and at least he's upfront about it. Kojima is as much of an ass as Itagaki is.
Cowboy TTop's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:06
Cowboy TTop
Itagaki is better off out of Tecmo, where he can invest the money he's due and start his own development studio. I'm sure Team Ninja will soldier on well without him. Come on, Tecmo, pay the man his money and restore your honour.

If I was Itagaki, I'd contact Sega and see whether he can recreate the Shinobi series for them (something that's sorely needed for Sega, and would be a nice challenger to Ninja Gaiden). That would really put the cat amongst the pigeons.

I'll look forward to what great games Itagaki will make in the future, as I'm sure he's far from done with making games.
foxhound009's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:08
foxhound009
@Ichigo Style
mgs is an rip off..... seriously..?
how many other games are like mgs?.. what sam fisher.. that's not really that close....
now count how many ninja gaiden like games are out there...
those tricks saltos and body part ripping games...
c'mon.. let's be serious..

about his ego.. I don't like fake people..
be yourself not someone you saw in matrix movie xD ...
SyntaxError's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:18
SyntaxError
Let's just say that Kojima is subtle while Itagaki is more in-your-face.

As someone pointed out, are there any Tecmo games in recent years that has been hyped without him involved in some form? I can't recall any.

On a lighter note, he just might be the man to develop the world's first anti-gravity thingamabob. Those bewbs defy the laws of physics. Apply the computations they used in their graphics engine and voila!!!
Cheeburga's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:22
Cheeburga
Microsoft will probably pick him up.
d0x's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:28
d0x
No matter what people think of this guy he makes amazing games, there can be no question. Find me an action brawler with more combat depth then Ninja Gaiden and I will stop gaming forever. Its deeper than most fighting games on the market.

This is sad news, but I hope MS scoops him up, gives him a fat wad of cash and has him create some new IP for them. A 1st party fighting game, and action game are just the the doctor ordered for Microsoft. Who better to lead the team that makes them?
Big Z's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:35
Big Z
With Ninja Gaiden such a runaway success and an obvious indicator of the kind of quality you can expect from Itagaki and crew, somehow I don't think he will be unemployed for long.
atheistium's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:38
atheistium
but i wanted DOA5 :( ... DOA5! DOA5!!111
TrailerParkJesus's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 12:46
TrailerParkJesus
What a fucking rockstar.
RWarrior1CO's Avatar - Comment posted on 06/03/2008 13:16
RWarrior1CO
DOA4 came out almost 3 years ago. Why is it this is only an issue now?

One theory is that he may have felt some loyalty to the company that kept him from leaving, but this slight eventually wore away at him until he couldn't take it anymore. If that's the case, I can certainly sympathize.

We can only guess at the truth, though. Is Itagaki telling the full story? Did President Yasuda withhold the bonus simply out of spite? Does the sexual harassment thing have anything to do with it? We don't know.
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