Ninja Gaiden's Itagaki Leaves Tecmo, Sues for Damages

Gamasutra is reporting that Ninja Gaiden developer Tomonobu Itagaki has resigned from Tecmo and is suing for damages in the neighborhood of 148 million yen ($1.42M USD). "In recent press interviews for the just released Xbox 360 exclusive Ninja Gaiden II, Itagaki had repeatedly stated that it would be the last game in the series he would work on, while also disparaging Ninja Gaiden Sigma on the PlayStation 3 - with which he was not directly involved. At the same time he began to make reference to work beginning on a new action title unrelated to Ninja Gaiden. It now seems likely that these comments were made with the knowledge that the title would not be created at Tecmo, although Itagaki has given no indication of what his future plans might entail."

Tomonobu Itagaki...

[Lilith's Heart-shape]

Tomonobu Itagaki is going to make Tecmo his bitch. We're next.

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[Malevolyn]

So you're saying he studied Ryu Hayabusa's moves in the game before leaving the company?

Yeah, we're boned.

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[Drathos]

No, he's saying he studied under John Romero and he's going to make some Ninja Gaiden/Daikatana hybrid..

Re:written contract

[exley]

He was just pissed that they failed to provide him with his requisite sunglasses for outdoor and indoor use. That guy's a rock star, you know?

Seriously, though, I wonder how series like Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive will look without Itagaki at the helm. Can DOA: Extreme Barbie Doll Dressup really be the same without his genius guidance?

Then again I wasn't too impressed with all the focus on making the girls' breasts all bouncy -- it just ended up looking really weird. And there were never enough cute shoes!

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[The Moof]

Ninja Gaiden Sigma would be a good example.
He had nothing to do with the port, due to his contempt of the PS3.

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[tarun713]

I didn't find anything wrong with Ninja Gaiden Sigma. I have played Ninja Gaiden (and NG: Black), and then I picked up Ninja Gaiden Sigma for the PS3. Rachel controlled well but was a varied enough style to change it up. The game didn't do anything wrong.

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[king-manic]

Ninja Gaiden Sigma would be a good example.
He had nothing to do with the port, due to his contempt of the PS3.

Reply to This

Itagaki didn't want it on the PS3 but the port was good. High rez textures, HD graphics, same responsiveness and gameplay with a bit extra to justify the purchase.

I think it was a matter of personal pride, he backed this horse and the release of it for the PS3 hurt his pride. But I don't think he quit over that. I think it's money and unfulfilled promises of cash. Perhaps they pushed him for publishing NG II, he had years to tune NG and it was a great game for it. NG II's flaws are all flaws that could be

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[Bryansix]

You've obviously never played DOA: Beach Volleyball with custom skins.

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[RogueyWon]

I'm not convinced that a change of leadership here is a bad thing. Too often, the Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive (including Xtreme) games feel like they've been designed by somebody who really, really hates the average gamer and wants them to suffer. On one level, I understand and appreciate his emphasis on artistic integrity... on the other hand, it drives me crazy whenever I play one of his games.

The way of the ninja

[Kingrames]

The lawsuit was found nailed to their door by a shuriken, with no less than ten corpses strewn about for good measure.