More

    Legendary Game Director Shinji Mikami Leaves Tango Gameworks

    The father of survival horror says goodbye to the studio he founded.

    Gaming legend Shinji Mikami is leaving Tango Gameworks, the studio he founded nearly 13 years ago. The news comes just after the apparent success of Hi-Fi Rush, the studio’s latest title. Tango Gamework’s parent company Bethesda (whose parent company is Xbox) confirmed the news in a tweet this morning, thanking the respected creator for his work in nurturing the talent at the studio, and wishing both him and the remaining staff at Tango well.

    Mikami is a revered figure in the video game industry, known for directing Resident Evil (1996) and its GameCube remake, Resident Evil 4, God Hand, Vanquish, and The Evil Within. He served as executive producer on Tango’s last three projects, The Evil Within 2, Ghostwire: Tokyo, and Hi-Fi Rush.

    In a 2020 interview with Variety, Mikami stated, “My thinking is that if I had a chance to make a game from the beginning to end that’s completely my vision, then definitely, that would be my big last project as a director. It would probably be more fitting as that ‘last game I direct’ kind of thing.” It’s likely that we haven’t seen the last of this talented game director.

    Why Leave Now?

    Why is he leaving the studio he founded after a well-received game? At the moment, it’s unclear. My own conjecture: Mikami’s role at the studio for their last three titles appears to have been that of a mentor. The Evil Within 2 and Hi-Fi Rush director John Johanas has made a name for himself by leading those games with Mikami’s assistance. Perhaps Mikami feels that he’s taught the talented team at Tango everything he has to impart and is confident in letting them continue on without him. If it’s his desire to make one last game that’s solely his own vision, it’s possible he wouldn’t want to take time and resources away from the staff at Tango.

    Whatever the case may be, here’s hoping for more great games from both Tango Gameworks and Shinji Mikami in the future.

    BusterSwordBoy
    BusterSwordBoy
    BusterSwordBoy is a video game enthusiast who writes about them here, plays them live on Twitch, and talks about them endlessly to anyone who will listen. Subjectively believes that the PS2 is objectively the greatest console of all time, but also loves games from far older hardware, and new releases as well.

    Latest articles

    Related articles