Tekken's Katsuhiro Harada Leaves Bandai Namco After 31 Years to Lead VS Studio SNK, a New Tokyo Subsidiary

Overview

Katsuhiro Harada — the producer and director who shepherded the Tekken franchise through three decades and helped build modern fighting-game esports culture — has departed Bandai Namco and launched a new studio under SNK Corporation. VS Studio SNK Co., Ltd. was formally established on May 1, 2026, in Shinagawa, Tokyo, with Harada serving as Representative Director and CEO. Yuichi Yonemori, a former director on multiple Tekken titles, has joined as Chief Creative Officer.

The announcement marks one of the most significant executive moves in the fighting-game genre in years, uniting a veteran designer with SNK — a publisher whose own flagship fighter, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, struggled commercially in 2025.

What We Know

The studio and its structure. VS Studio SNK is headquartered at the 4th Floor of the Shin-Meguro Tokyu Building in Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo. SNK Corporation is investing in the studio with plans to bring it on as a consolidated subsidiary. Despite the corporate relationship, EventHubs reports that VS Studio is technically independent from SNK and operates on a separate floor of the same building, preserving creative autonomy while sharing resources.

Harada’s background and departure. According to the official SNK press release, Harada spent 31 years at Namco developing arcade, home console, and VR games, and was recognized for pioneering global marketing and community support for fighting-game tournaments since the 1990s. Anime News Network notes he served as general manager at Bandai Namco and led its fighting-game esports division. His credits extend beyond Tekken: he also contributed to Soulcalibur, Summer Lesson, and Pokkén Tournament, and voiced characters including Marshall Law and Yoshimitsu.

Harada left Bandai Namco in December 2025, according to Variety and Anime News Network. In an interview published by Saiga NAK, he explained his motivation: “when calculating backward, there is not much time left,” adding that he wanted to “do what I can while I am still physically and mentally capable.”

CCO Yuichi Yonemori. Harada recruited Yonemori, who directed Tekken Tag Tournament 1 and 2, as VS Studio’s Chief Creative Officer, Video Games Chronicle reports. According to EventHubs, Harada approached Yonemori about “recreating the way we made things back then,” to which Yonemori replied: “This looks like so much fun.” In the Saiga NAK interview, Harada revealed the personal dimension of the name: both he and Yonemori share roots in “the VS Development Department back in the old Namco days.”

SNK’s welcome and context. SNK developer Yasuyuki Oda stated: “I am extremely proud to welcome Mr. Katsuhiro Harada, who has been a long-time friend and worthy rival to us, into our group,” Variety reports. Harada confirmed the partnership followed earlier informal discussions, telling Saiga NAK: “since there were many parts that aligned with my thoughts, it led to this realization.” SNK itself is wholly owned by the Electronic Gaming Development Company, an arm of the Saudi Arabian MiSK Foundation, according to Anime News Network. The company also established KOF Studio in December 2024 to steward the King of Fighters franchise.

Studio motto and the VS acronym. The official press release states the studio’s philosophy as: “Beyond tradition, crafted to perfection.” Harada elaborated: “We will combine technology, sensibility, and world-class expertise to pursue the ultimate.” The acronym VS carries layered meanings — “Video game Soft,” “Versus,” “Visionary Standard,” “Volition Shift,” and “Vanguard Spirit” — though Harada told Saiga NAK the most personal meaning is the historic VS Development Department the two founders shared at Namco.

Game focus and hiring. Harada told EventHubs that “games where you compete against other people are essential” and that he wants “a game that involves competition.” He is not limiting VS Studio to fighting games specifically, though competitive titles remain the priority, and he has not ruled out working with existing SNK intellectual property. The studio is currently recruiting across all experience levels; its website is set to launch in June 2026.

What We Don’t Know

No game has been announced. VGC notes that development timelines of four to five years make near-term reveals unlikely. Whether VS Studio will work with established SNK franchises such as King of Fighters or Fatal Fury, create a new IP, or venture outside the fighting-game genre altogether remains undisclosed. The full extent of SNK’s financial stake in the studio has not been published.

Analysis

The formation of VS Studio SNK is a story of convergence. SNK arrives as a company in search of a creative renewal after Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves failed to achieve mainstream traction in 2025. Harada arrives as a designer seeking one more act of creation on his own terms, freed from a corporate structure he had outgrown. The Saiga NAK interview captures the mood at SNK itself as projecting “an atmosphere like a second founding.”

For the fighting-game community, the pairing carries weight. Harada spent the 1990s and 2000s building the global infrastructure — from sponsored tournaments to direct fan engagement on social media — that competitive gaming now takes for granted. His return to hands-on creative work, alongside a collaborator like Yonemori who directed the beloved Tekken Tag Tournament entries, signals an intent to produce something substantial rather than serve in a purely executive capacity.