Tomonobu Itagaki resigns from Tecmo

Tomonobu Itagaki is leaving Tecmo

THIS is shocking news indeed. In my futile efforts to clean my room, I refreshed Kotaku.com and was offered this sad, weeping gem.

Itagaki was by no means at the top of my list, but his attention to aesthetic was up there with the best. Team NINJA put every thing they could into the look of their games, delivering crisp and clean sounding/looking cutscene and gameplay.

Ninja Gaiden was a rollicking and hard to play game, challenging and pushing player's patience and rewarding them with did-you-see-that moments. The Dead or Alive as a series has been around for years, delivering (amongst other more...buoyant things...) some simple and fun fighting action with great looks, and great settings. I personally enjoyed playing DOA4 with pals after a few silver bullets. Great way to spend a night.

Itagaki gave a great message to his game fans:

To All Game Fans

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.

It's sad to see him leave, but it seems like it's the best option. Someone like him won't stray far. Rest assured that either he'll go, or Tecmo will bump it's CEO within the next 48 hours. Without Itagaki, Tecmo has a little stride but with him, they've got solid, selling franchise. I'll try to keep my ear to the ground on this as best I can, but for now...time to clean my room.

If it turns out that things go sour for him...arigatou gozaimasu, Itagaki-sama.