Chinese publisher Netease has been pulling back its gaming investment, especially in Japan, and the latest victim is Gang of Dragon.
The game, presented at The Game Awards last December, is the first title by Nagoshi Studio, helmed by Toshihiro Nagoshi of Yakuza/Like a Dragon fame.
According to a report by Bloomberg, which includes a confirmation by Netease itself, the company has decided to withdraw funding from the studio and the game’s development starting from May.
Nagoshi Studio is now faced with the demand to find investors to pay for its independence and continued development. Although the specific terms are unknown, failure to do so is likely to lead to a deeply unpleasant outcome.
This is just another chapter of the controversial history of Netease’s expansion into the Japanese gaming market. The company invested in several studios over the past few years, hiring big-name developers to lead them.
Since then, they have closed Ouka Studio immediately after it delivered the fairly well-received Vision of Mana.
Another peculiar case is Pincool, led by former Dragon Quest Producer Ryutaro Ichimura. At Tokyo Game Show 2024, I was invited to check out its first game Pritto Prisoner and interview Ichimura-san, and I was then asked by Netease to hold any coverage indefinitely.
I did not hear anything about it for a year, until Pincool came back as an independent studio and released the game late last year to a fairly positive reception.
We don’t know what happened behind the scenes, but at some point, Netease and the studio parted ways, leading to the independent release.
We can only hope that Nagoshi Studio manages to do the same, and either finds a publisher able to buy the studio out, or investors capable of helping it pursue independence.
