Acclaimed game designer Yuji Naka announced on Twitter this morning that he was joining Square Enix.
Naka is best known as the former head of the Sonic Team at Sega. Naka left Sega in 2006 to start his own independent studio, Prope. The studio released Let’s Tap in 2008 for the Wii, in which players tapped a corresponding cardboard box to match the cues on screen. (In an age of Nintendo Labo, Nintendo’s own cardboard-gaming project, Let’s Tap feels ahead of its time.) Prope also developed a few Digimon games, including Digimon Adventure in 2013 for the Playstation Portable and Digimon All-Star Rumble in 2014 for the PlayStation 3.
Naka didn’t announce what he’ll be working on at Square Enix, but said his goal was to create an enjoyable game.
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
Naka’s announcement marks the first piece of big news for the developer since Prope released its last game, Rodea the Sky Soldier, for the Wii and Wii U.
Naka confirmed he joined Square Enix in early January, but other details about his employment are scarce at this time.