Sonic Creator Yuji Naka Heads to Final Fantasy Studio
Sonic the Hedgehog creator, Yuji Naka, has announced that he has joined Final Fantasy maker, Square Enix.
Naka revealed his new employment on Twitter where he says he will be back to game development. While this is certainly exciting news, the details are a bit vague in terms of what he’ll be working on. Ah well, we’re positive we’ll find out in due time.
Just a quick note to let you know, I joined SQUARE ENIX in January.
I’m joining game development as before, and strive to develop games at SQUARE ENIX.
I aim to develop an enjoyable game, please look forward to it.— Yuji Naka / 中 裕司 (@nakayuji) January 22, 2018
“I’m joining game development as before, and strive to develop games at Square Enix,” said Naka in his tweet. “I am to develop an enjoyable game, please look forward to it.”
To say that Yuji Naka is the reason for Sonic’s success would be an understatement. It’s safe to say that without his involvement, Sonic the Hedgehog would never have achieved mainstream pop culture status without him. Naka has also worked on dozens of other Sega classics since the 80’s including Phantasy Star, Nights, Samba de Amigo, and Billy Hatcher.
Naka had left Sonic Team in 2006 and formed a small studio named Prope. In 2015, his team put out Rodea the Sky Soldier for both the 3DS and the Wii U. Since then, however, it’s been awfully quiet as to what they’ve been working on. Naka’s employment change may suggest that Prope’s days are numbered, or it could mean that they’re in need of new management.
Either way, we’re excited for Naka and the possibility of a new game.
Tell us what you think in the comments below.