Astral Chain director quits PG
Image: PlatinumGames

It's been announced in the latest issue of Famitsu Magazine that PlatinumGames designer Takahisa Taura is parting ways with the developer in order to start work on his own company, Eel Game Studio.

As revealed in a post by Genki, and spotted by the folks over at VGC, Taura stated on a few social media sites that he hasn't got anything he wishes to share with regards to his new venture just yet, but really it's the fact of another big name leaving Platinum that's the real concern for fans of the studio.

Taura's work will be well known to any avid fan of very good action games, with the incredible Astral Chain, which we raved about in our 9/10 review, a particular highlight. Indeed, taking the director's chair on one of the most unique action games of its generation certainly marks his new venture out as something to watch with very eager eyes indeed.

Not to mention that he's also led the design of what must be one of the most influential games — in terms of its incredible style — of the past decade or thereabouts, in the form of Nier Automata. Ah, Mr Taura, with this resume you are really spoiling us.

Hideki Kamiya parted ways with PG in 2023, after two whole decades with the group, in order to move on to work with Capcom on an Okami follow-up via his new Clovers company. Kamiya, speaking to Japanese outlet Game*Spark earlier this year, opened up a little on this move, saying that the Platinum had been:

"gradually shifting towards a modern model of game development that doesn’t place importance on the creators’ individuality...even if it meant the end of my career as a creator...I couldn’t allow myself to kill my soul in order to work in an environment that I didn’t agree with”.

Kamiya also confirmed multiple other high-level staffers had quit PlatinumGames in a video posted to his YouTube channel in February of this year.

Right at the end of this video, Kamiya has a "bonus" section where Abebe Tinari (director of Bayonetta Origins), Yusuke Miyata (Bayonetta 3's director), Kenji Saito (lead director on Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance), and Masaki Yamanaka (Anarchy Reigns and Resident Evil character designer) are confirmed to have left. This, of course, followed on from other departures in 2024, which saw several veterans leave their positions.

It's certainly been a topsy-turvy time for PlatinumGames of late, then, that's for sure, so we're keeping all of our fingers and toes crossed that their new venture, Ninja Gaiden 4(!) lives up to the company's incredible past form.

[source bsky.app, via videogameschronicle.com]