The house that Tomonobu Itagaki built is apparently no more. According to a post on NeoGAF, which itself reported on the announcement from Tecmo Koei themselves, Team Ninja is apparently no more. Or rather, in its current form, it’s not the same Team Ninja that we know from before.
Tecmo Koei has decided to restructure the company, and split it into two divisions, now referred to as “Ichigaya Development” divisions.
The so-called Ichigaya Development Group 1 will be under Yosuke Hayashi. Hayashi has been leading Team Ninja for quite a while now. Meanwhile, managing director Keisuke Kikuchi will be leading Ichigaya Development Group 2.
So no, this isn’t the same Team Ninja that made Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive, and which has been around for more than 20 years. Change is in the air, and while it may be a little sobering to see the shift in identity, at least the old team members are still there. Barring Itagaki, of course.
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