Tekken 8 Director Kohei Ikeda Leaves Bandai Namco

Kohei Ikeda has left Bandai Namco after a 20-year tenure, the game director announced on social media. He said he has passed responsibility for the Tekken series to the existing Tekken development team.

Ikeda began his career at the publisher working on Soulcalibur IV before moving to the Tekken franchise. He served as game director for Tekken 7 and later Tekken 8.

In a post on X, Ikeda wrote that working with “passionate and incredibly talented mentors and colleagues” remains one of his most cherished experiences. He added that the values he and the Tekken Project have prioritized — staying close to fans and building the game with the community — will continue under the current team. He said he has entrusted those values, and the “baton,” to the staff that will continue development.

Tekken 8’s development has drawn public attention after updates changed game balance and encouraged a more aggressive play pattern tied to the Heat system. Recent patches have aimed to reduce overly aggressive mechanics and rebalance gameplay.

Longtime producer Katsuhiro Harada left Bandai Namco several months ago and now leads a new team, VS Studio, at SNK. Bandai Namco did not immediately provide details about internal leadership changes or name a successor to Ikeda.

Ikeda’s departure ends his two-decade run at the publisher and leaves the Tekken team to continue work on updates and balance adjustments for Tekken 8.