Nagoshi – who worked as executive director on Yakuza: Like a Dragon – has been a key part of the Yakuza franchise since it first launched back in 2005, and he’s been with Sega since the mid-90s arcade days, too. Nagoshi’s new role (which will formally begin on April 1, 2021) was revealed in an announcement that also confirmed that the company will be making some more wide-reaching changes in the coming year. A managerial and organizational reshuffle at Sega confirms that the publisher is undertaking a split and absorption-type merger to “transform its business structure to adapt to the external environment.” The restructure will allow Sega to “integrate corporate functions and administrative operations” and “accelerate global business”. In short, the company is basically looking to make its organizational structure more streamlined to allow for quicker decision-making and better communication between departments. Toshihiro Nagoshi will be an interesting creative director; he’s a colorful and controversial figure, and his comments can often come off as fairly opinionated. It’ll be interesting to see where he takes the company: recently, we’ve heard that another Yakuza producer wants “to get involved” with a “completely different” Sonic the Hedgehog game, which he’ll certainly have the chance to do now.
