Confusion over Panzer Dragoon VR ‘cancellation’ after false claims of death

The status of the VR version of Panzer Dragoon is currently unknown, following a strange tweet falsely claiming the developer’s CEO had died.

A tweet posed by the official Panzer Dragoon Voyage Record Twitter account stated that the game had been cancelled due to the death of producer Haruto Watanabe.

The tweet, which was posted in both English and Japanese, read: “Panzer Dragoon Voyage Record has been cancelled due to the cancellation of the contract by Sega and the death of the producer, Haruto Watanabe, CEO of Wildman Inc. Thank you for your support.”

A few hours later, both versions of the tweet were deleted, and a number of Watanabe’s friends reported that he was still alive.

One user tweeted: “I went to the Wildman office and can confirm he’s safe. A lot of friends are gathering.”

Another added: “We’ve just received confirmation of the safety of our friend and colleague. More information will be tweeted by him as soon as he is settled.”

Panzer Dragoon Voyage Record was originally announced in March 2020. The single player “virtual reality dramatic shooter” was described as “a completely new work” that would let players relive each of the various episodes from Sega Saturn titles Panzer Dragoon, Panzer Dragoon II Zwei and Panzer Dragoon Saga.

further reading

Panzer Dragoon VR’s latest trailer confirms PC, console and standalone release

Crowdfunding to add additional episodes

Originally released in 1995, the original Panzer Dragoon is a rail shooter in which the player rides atop an armoured blue dragon.

The aim is to get to the ancient Prototype Dragon and destroy it before it reaches a black tower containing a wealth of weaponry.

A Panzer Dragoon remake was released for Nintendo Switch last year.