SEGA’s tanning industry icon Toshihiro Nagoshi is about to be stolen by Chinese company NetEase. This is according to Bloomberg, which reports that the creator of Yakuza is in “final negotiations” to join the giant, after 32 years of career in the Japanese publishing house. It is speculated that Nagoshi will be free to assemble his own team, where he will create new games and franchises.
Chinese companies like Tencent and NetEase are desperately trying to grab international assets as regulations slow down the growth of the video game industry nationwide. It is worth noting that Nagoshi has not yet signed any contract, but it seems that his passage through SEGA is coming to an end. For now, the publisher has declined to comment on the “employment situation of individual employees.”
We’ll have to wait for more information, but it’s probably safe to assume that Nagoshi will continue to play games with a style similar to Yakuza’s, in case he finally makes the move. In recent years, the veteran has worked as SEGA’s creative director, overseeing all of its products, although he changed roles from Creative Director earlier this year.