Speaking with Kotaku, Koji Igarashi of Castlevania fame explained why he left Konami. Igarashi announced yesterday that his last day at the company was March 15th, and that he intends to start a new game development studio.
Igarashi explains that, while he was at Konami, he requested to be shifted to the company’s social games department, since he was interested in that space. At the same time, however, fans of his games wanted him to develop consumer games.
“I keep getting messages from fans, via Facebook and such, telling me that they wanted me to make consumer games,” Igarashi shared. “The people who like my games tend to play traditional video games.”
“I’m in my mid-forties. If I don’t strike out on my own now, then when will I? The voices of those fans will just get softer and softer over time.”
Igarashi also mentions that he was inspired by the reaction Keiji Inafune got with Mighty No. 9 over Kickstarter. He goes on to say that Kickstarter is one of the options he’s considering, among others, such as venture capital.
As for the kind of game he intends to make next, Igarashi says, “I want to make games that people like, and that I’m good at.” When pressed as to whether it would be a 2D action title, he replied, “I haven’t decided yet, but maybe 2D.”
