Former Devil May Cry and Dragon’s Dogma Director Reveals New Studio

Longtime Capcom director Hideaki Itsuno, known for his work on the Devil May Cry and Dragon’s Dogma franchises, will lead a new studio named LightSpeed Japan. His final game before leaving Capcom earlier this year, Dragon’s Dogma 2, was released to largely positive reception, though some of its design elements saw criticism. Nevertheless, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is one of the biggest fantasy RPGs of the year next to BioWare’s more recently released Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

Having been hired by Capcom in 1994, Itsuno went on to become one of the more prolific game directors at the publisher for his work on titles like Devil May Cry 3, 4, and 5, as well as the less popular 2012 fantasy RPG Dragon’s Dogma, which finally received its long-awaited sequel in 2024. While the original Dragon’s Dogma largely flew under the radar and was considered a more niche cult classic, its follow-up became one of the most anticipated games of the year and landed an OpenCritic score in the high 80s. Dragon’s Dogma 2 would be Itsuno’s last game with Capcom, as the famed director departed the studio in August.

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A few months after his departure from Capcom, Itsuno revealed on Twitter that he’d be leading a new branch of Tencent’s LightSpeed Studio, named LightSpeed Japan. Known mostly for working on games like PUBG Mobile and Undawn, LightSpeed’s new Japan studio based out of Tokyo and Osaka will create a triple-A action game with Itsuno’s leadership. “Joining LightSpeed Studios is an exciting new chapter for me…I look forward to creating original triple-A action game titles together with the amazing team, and building aesthetic and innovative experiences for the global player community,” Itsuno commented.

Hideaki Itsuno Will Helm Tencent’s New LightSpeed Japan Studio

Prior to becoming the Devil May Cry director within Capcom’s ranks, Itsuno worked on a number of fighting games, such as Power Stone, Project Justice, and Capcom vs SNK 2. Despite his earlier experience with fighting games, it seems clear that he’s been brought on with LightSpeed to helm action games and potentially RPGs that are more in-line with Devil May Cry and Dragon’s Dogma. Whether his new project at LightSpeed will be a spiritual successor to either of those two franchises or if it’ll make its own mark is yet to be seen, though it will more than likely resemble elements of Itsuno’s past work with Capcom.

LightSpeed Japan has only just been formed, so fans of Itsuno’s work with Capcom shouldn’t expect any concrete information about upcoming titles anytime soon. As for Capcom, it’ll be interesting to see how the publisher moves forward with its Devil May Cry and Dragon’s Dogma franchises, if at all, seeing that Resident Evil, Dead Rising, and Monster Hunter have arguably become hotter commodities among Capcom fans.

Capcom

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June 11, 1983

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Kenzo Tsujimoto

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