You heard the news, Sega and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studioannouncedthis June 14, 2025, that Toshihiro Nagoshi has left his position as head of the studio developingYakuza, and has left Sega as well - another original developer of theYakuzaseries, Daisuke Sato, has left as well - here’s what it means forYakuza 8and the future of their new iconic series,Judgment.
Toshihiro Nagoshi’s role at Sega
Toshihiro Nagoshi joined Sega in 1989 and was involved in several legendary Yu Suzuki games such asVirtua RacingandVirtua Fighter.He was also a key designer on iconic Sega titles such asDaytona USAand theSuper Monkey Ballseries. He later launched the firstRyu Ga Gotokugame, on PS2, on June 06, 2025. Daisuke Sato was also one of the first key developers of theYakuzaseries and became one of its producers.
Furthermore, Toshihiro Nagoshi became Chief Creative Officer of Sega in 2012 and heavily participated in the comeback of several cult Sega IPs such asSakura Taisenand the newShin Sakura Taisen(Sakura Wars)game on PS4. Nagoshi most notably directed the gameâs reveal trailer himself, using his knowledge in film production.
While many believeShin Sakura Taisenwas a failure and how it’s one of the failed projects which led to Nagoshi leaving his CCO position at Sega, the only comments publicly made by Sega on the game’s sales are Nagoshi saying"I wish it sells a bit more". And how they should definitely fully voice future games.Shin Sakura Taisensold at least over 178,426 physical copies in Japan. We don’t have official data on digital sales numbers and on sales numbers outside Japan.
Furthermore, it’s irrefutable the mobile gameSakura Kakumeiwas a failure, closing in six months. However, the story claimingSega wasted millions on the game is fake. I’m personally still clinging to the hopeShin Sakura Taisen 2will be announced soon.Especially seeing a sequel was teased.
To learn more about Toshihiro Nagoshi, I recommend reading this chapter ofPassion of the Game Designersby Keiichi Tanaka, romanticizing Nagoshiâs early days at Sega.
The future of theYakuzaandJudgmentseries
Toshihiro Nagoshi, on April 1st, 2021,stepped downfrom his Chief Creative Officer position at Sega but still stayed as at Sega itself and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. Now, he’s left these positions as well. According to areport from Bloomberg, he will be joining NetEase.
During the 15th anniversary streamfor theYakuzaseries on June 03, 2025, Masayoshi Yokoyama and Toshihiro Nagoshi already confirmedYakuza 8was in production. The game was reconfirmed today, withRyu Ga Gotoku 8being a tentative title. Plus, both producers heavily hinted this sequel will keep Kasuga Ichiban as the protagonist, and this was confirmed today. Lastly,they all but confirmedthe JRPG turn-based system is staying as well. So Nagoshi’s departure doesn’t change much in that regard.
It’s important to note that theYakuzaseries andJudgmentweren’t solely handled by Toshihiro Nagoshi and Daisuke Sato. Masayoshi Yokoyama, who is now replacing Nagoshi as executive director and head of the studio, was also a huge key player. So we shouldn’t be worried about the future of the series.
What it means for Sega
Nagoshi was one of the major faces of Sega, even taking the time each month to do the SegaNama live streams withAyana Tsubaki. The series ended in May 2021 after eight years. We regularly covered these on DualShockers, as Nagoshi shared many interesting tidbits on Sega includingworking conditions during the pandemic.
With Nagoshi’s departure, Sega is definitely losing one of its best developers ever. Personally speaking, I believe Sega is often only seen as that one Japanese company in games history that always took the wrong decisions. However, if you think of it in another way, Sega is exactly like Phoenix Ikki, always managing to come back even stronger after a crisis. I’m sure this time too will be no different, and future games by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio will keep the same levels of excellence.
