Yakuza director Toshihiro Nagoshi to be appointed Sega’s creative director

Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi is taking on a new role as part of a wider management and organisational restructure announced by Sega on Friday.

The Sega veteran, who is currently chief creative officer, will serve as creative director effective April 1, the company said.

Nagoshi, who underwent heart surgery in 2019, started his career in the mid-90s in Sega’s arcade department, where he contributed design to Virtua Racer and directed Daytona USA.

In 2000 Nagoshi became head of Sega’s internal Amusement Vision studio, which created the Super Monkey Ball and F-Zero GX/AX games.

He then launched the Yakuza franchise in 2005. According to Sega, it had sold more than 10 million units prior to the release of the latest series entry, Yakuza: Like a Dragon.

Nagoshi’s new role is one of a number of executive changes revealed alongside the announcement that Sega will proceed with a company split and absorption-type merger on April 1, which is designed “to transform its business structure to adapt to the external environment”.

The move will see Sega integrate corporate functions and “accelerate global business development by streamlining the group’s structure and accelerating decision-making”.

In a recent interview themed around Sega’s 60th anniversary, Nagoshi said he views Nintendo Switch predominantly as a console for “kids and teens”.

Further reading

‘Japan should have made Ghost of Tsushima’, says Yakuza creator

Toshihiro Nagoshi praises Sucker Punch’s Kurosawa homage