The studio was confirmed to have been working on a single title—Gang of Dragon. While it hasn’t made any official announcement on the matter, the fact that its website and YouTube page have been taken down likely indicates that the title has been cancelled, or has at least been put on ice while director Toshihiro Nagoshi looks for more funding elsewhere.

It is worth noting that the X account for the studio remains live. However, it hasn’t seen any activity in quite some time, with its last post being published on February 17th, celebrating the fact that the Gang of Dragons trailer had gotten 650,000 views. There have also been no changes made to the action game’s Steam listing yet, aside from one from April 3rd that brought in higher-resolution banner assets (via SteamDB).

Reports have indicated that NetEase’s decision to cut funding for Gang of Dragon came down to the fact that it was going over budget. The studio was allegedly going to need an additional ¥7 billion to ship the game, translating to around $44 million. If Nagoshi were to get more funding to work on the project, he would have to pay NetEase Games to acquire the IP and its assets.

Gang of Dragon was going to be the first project by Nagoshi’s studio, which was founded back in 2022 after his departure from Yakuza/Like a Dragon developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios.

“For creators, this makes working in the industry today incredibly challenging,” said Nagoshi when he announced his studio’s founding. “But no matter how the times change, I believe that what people essentially want from entertainment has not changed one bit. People see their dreams in entertainment. People look to entertainment to give them hope in life, to soothe them in times of difficulty, and to add excitement in happy times. People look to entertainment to provide the spark for all kinds of events.”

“The appetite for entertainment is the same today as it was in the past. There are obviously differences between the past and the present in how entertainment is consumed, its volume and velocity, but its essence remains the same. The only way to deliver this essence to the world is if all creators approach the works they create with seriousness and clarity while grinding away to get closer to reaching the ideal.”

Gang of Dragon was originally unveiled at The Game Awards 2025 back in December with a trailer revealing its protagonist, Shin Ji-seong, who was going to be played by actor Ma Dong-seok. The story would revolve around a Korean syndicate and the Tokyo underworld, and was likely going to make use of Tokyo’s Kabukichō district as its primary setting.

The trailer is still on other YouTube channels, including the The Game Awards where it was first unveiled. The Nagoshi Studio X account also remains online, and the pinned post still links to the original reveal trailer for Gang of Dragon. However, the last post made on the account was all the way back in early February. Interestingly, even the Steam page remains online.

The decision to cut funding for Gang of Dragon allegedly came from the fact that it was going to need ¥7 billion for development, which roughly translates to around $44.4 million. With the partnership ending, Nagoshi Studio would need to pay NetEase Games for the IP and assets if it wants to continue development. In the meantime, Nagoshi himself is noted to be in the hunt for “new sponsors.”

Gang of Dragon is the first game by Nagoshi, who is known for his hand in creating the Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchise. He founded Nagoshi Studio in 2022 after he departed from Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios and was said to have been working on the title since then.

When he first founded his studio, he wanted to create an “open atmosphere” where developers would have a lot of freedom, since “even the most talented creators cannot fully unleash their abilities in isolation.” This means that the studio also has “open-ended discussions that ignore seniority and hierarchy” and “not fearing mistakes while also not being afraid to correct them, and treating failures as assets.”

The game focuses on Kabukichō – the nightlife district of Shinjuku, Tokyo – and would star Ma Dong-seok as protagonist Shin Ji-seong. The character is a high-ranking member of a Korean crime syndicate, with the story focusing on a large conflict between various underworld factions. Interestingly, the real-world location of Kabukichō also serves as the inspiration behind the Yakuza franchise’s Kamurocho.

Gang of Dragon will feature real-time action combat with a third-person perspective, including melee combat with brutal hand-to-hand strikes and blade attacks and some gunplay for the larger fights. It’s also slated to offer vehicular gameplay complete with customization.

In an interview, Nagoshi had explained that everything in Gang of Dragon was “conceived and built from the ground up.” He also described its story as a “human drama centered on outcasts living in the real district of Kabukichō.”

“From the cityscape and world setting to the overall gameplay experience, every element has been conceived and built from the ground up as we move forward with planning and development. Our team remains fully committed to creating a work that we can confidently deliver to players around the world.”

While it didn’t outright state the reason, anonymous sources told the website that the upcoming title would reportedly require ¥7 billion or $44.4 million of funding to complete. As a result, NetEase is leaving the studio to go its own way, but while it could carry on development, it would allegedly need to pay for the IP and its assets.

As a result, Nagoshi is reportedly in the process of locating “new sponsors,” but thus far, there’s been no headway. If it can’t procure enough funding, then the title may face cancellation. It’s worth noting that Nagoshi Studios was established in 2022, and development has seemingly been ongoing ever since.

Announced at The Game Awards 2025, Gang of Dragon is similar to Yakuza with its beat ’em up mechanics, an action-adventure format, and Kabukicho as a setting. Players control Shin Ji-seong (played by actor Ma Dong-seok), who’s part of a Korean syndicate. It also promises “gunplay” and “high-impact vehicle action” with the option to customize one’s rides.

“The passion and enthusiasm we received from game fans around the world have been a tremendous source of strength and encouragement for our entire team,” said Nagoshi in a New Year’s Greetings post on the studio’s official site.

He described Gang of Dragon as a “human drama centered on outcasts living in the real district of Kabukicho.” “From the cityscape and world setting to the overall gameplay experience, every element has been conceived and built from the ground up as we move forward with planning and development. Our team remains fully committed to creating a work that we can confidently deliver to players around the world.”

And while there’s currently no release window for the platform, Nagoshi hoped that this year would be “filled with a wonderful and fulfilling game life for all players.”

Gang of Dragon stars Ma Dong-seok, a veteran actor and director best known for Train to Busan and Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time (and also featuring in Kojima Productions’ Physint). He plays Shin Ji-seong, a member of a Korean crime syndicate caught up in some infernal, underworld affairs. Though the finer plot details remain unknown, he’ll forge “intense, human connections that push him to confront his own sense of purpose,” per the game’s Steam page.

Much like Yakuza, Gang of Dragon features melee combat, both bare-handed and with weapons, though you can also wield firearms. Perhaps the biggest difference is the ability to drive vehicles and engage in “high-impact” action. You can even modify them in different ways.

We’ll need to wait for more details, but it’s been quite the journey for Nagoshi, who left Sega in 2021 to establish his new studio under NetEase Games in 2022. Interestingly, he likened it to a Quentin Tarantino film back in 2022, perhaps hinting at more brutal events and dark humor than Yakuza.

Alongside the trailer, Gang of Dragon also has a Steam page that reveals more details about the title. The game is slated to take place in the nightlife district of Shinjuku, Tokyo – Kabukicho (which also served as the inspiration behind the Yakuza franchise’s Kamurocho). Shin Ji-seong has been described as a high-ranking member of a Korean crime syndicate that is based in Kabukicho, and the story of Gang of Dragon will largely revolve around him getting caught in the midst of underworld conflicts.

While not too many details about the gameplay have been confirmed, the combat has been described as being in the third-person perspective and focusing on melee combat with brutal hand-to-hand strikes and precise blade attacks, as well as ranged combat through the use of various weaponry, from guns to grenades. Along with this, the title will also seemingly have driving sequences, with one of its screenshots indicating the ability to modify cars in various ways.

The trailer itself didn’t reveal too many details about the story in Gang of Dragon, instead opting to showcase the kind of brutality that players can expect from the title. Unlike Nagoshi’s previous works – the Yakuza series – the protagonist this time around is a much more brutal one that doesn’t shy away from picking up heavy weaponry to take out enemies for good. While Yakuza franchise protagonists Kiryu and Ichiban have both avoided killing their enemies over the course of the games, Gang of Dragon’s Shin Ji-seong doesn’t seem to have any such reservations against killing his foes.

Gang of Dragon doesn’t yet have a release date. Nagoshi Studio also hasn’t confirmed what platforms the title will be coming to, however it is easy to expect it to make its way to PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

Toshiro Nagoshi had announced his departure from Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and Sega alongside fellow veteran game developer Daisuke Sato all the way back in October 2021. A few months later in January 2022, Nagoshi announced a partnership with NetEase Games to found Nagoshi Studio, where he serves as president and CEO.

When the studio’s founding was announced, Nagoshi noted that one of his goals with the new venture was to create a more “open atmosphere” that would allow developers quite a bit of freedom. This, he said, was because “even the most talented creators cannot fully unleash their abilities in isolation.” To achieve this, the studio has “open-ended discussions that ignore seniority and hierarchy” and “not fearing mistakes while also not being afraid to correct them, and treating failures as assets.”