Tekken boss Katsuhiro Harada is leaving Bandai Namco after 31 years: "I felt this was the most fitting moment to bring one chapter to a close"

Longtime Tekken series producer Katsuhiro Harada is leaving Bandai Namco at the end of 2025 after a 31-year stint at the company.

Harada, who has been with the series since the beginning and directed Tekken 3, Tag Tournament, 4, 5, and 7 – and produced a number of Bandai Namco titles – announced his departure on Twitter, saying, "With the Tekken series reaching its 30th anniversary – an important milestone for a project I've devoted much of my life to – I felt this was the most fitting moment to bring one chapter to a close."

Harada explains, "In recent years, I experienced the loss of several close friends in my personal life, and in my professional life I witnessed the retirement or passing of many senior colleagues whom I deeply respect. Those accumulated events made me reflect on the 'time I have left as a creator.'" He adds that he sought advice from original PlayStation lead Ken Kutaragi, whose words "quietly supported me in making this decision."

The Tekken team also shares a statement on Twitter, saying, "Rest assured that we are fully committed to the future development and content plans for Tekken 8. We will continue to take community feedback on the game and its content to heart to ensure that we uphold the vision and spirit built by Harada-san, dedicating our utmost efforts to ensure the legacy of the Tekken series continues as a fighting game franchise beloved worldwide."

Harada doesn't say what the future holds for him but adds, "For 30 years I kept saying, 'I’ll do it someday,' and never once performed as a DJ at a tournament event. So instead, I will be releasing – for the first and last time – a 60-minute Tekken DJ-style nonstop mix (DJ mix), personally edited by myself, together with this announcement." So perhaps a DJ career is next.

That being said, a major change isn't always the worst news for a series. Harada's influence may have helped shape Tekken's identity over the years, but he explains, "Over the past four to five years, I've gradually handed over all of my responsibilities, as well as the stories and worldbuilding I oversaw, to the team, bringing me to the present day."

First-time director Takayuki Nakayama absolutely killed it with Street Fighter 6, and considering Tekken 8 is having a turbulent time akin to Street Fighter 5, perhaps a new generation could result in a similar revival. It just means we won't be able to ask Harada "for shit" anymore.

Now that Kirby Air Riders is out, everyone is making the same joke about Nintendo immediately asking Masahiro Sakurai to work on Super Smash Bros 6: "Alright. We let you make Air Riders. You know what comes next…"