Dead or Alive Director Leaves After 16 Years With Koei Tecmo

From the outside, Dead or Alive is often referred to as a game that relies too much on fanservice elements. This claim is not entirely wrong, but it is also important to remember that the franchise has always put a strong focus on the fighting genre to the level of serious competition. After the release of the latest series Dead or Alive 6 which was quite successful, surely many of the fans are curious about the future of this franchise as well.

This curiosity was finally answered with news that made a little anxious. The news came from the director of the Dead or Alive series – Yohei Shimbori who reported that he had resigned from Koei Tecmo. This announcement was made through the account Twitter personally, for which he expresses his gratitude to those who have provided support throughout his career.

ご報告です.
Prayerに約16年携わらせていただき、喜んで頂けたこともあれば、ご期待に応えられないこともありました。多くの方々に支えていただき大変お世話になりましたこと, この場を借りて篤く御礼申し上げます.
ありがとうございました.
— (@shimbori_x) March 31, 2021

Shimbori himself has been a veteran director for 16 years and has handled various main game projects Dead or Alice as well as the Xtreme sub-series which focuses on the beach sports genre. With his long experience, there is a curiosity about whether Shimbori will join another developer, create his own studio, or really want to quit as a game creator. For a while, unfortunately he has not given a definite answer.

Shimbori’s exit from Koei Tecmo doesn’t mean Dead or Alive will just die, because there will definitely be a new director who will handle this franchise. With the direction of a new talent, Dead or Alive could end up being much better or worse in the future, the point is only time will tell.

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