Shinji Mikami thought Tango Gameworks would be safe from closure “as long as they continued to make Hi-Fi Rush games”.
Mikami, who spoke to IGN alongside Suda 51, was the founder of Tango Gameworks but left in February 2023. The studio was then closed by Microsoft earlier this year, before being acquired by PUBG publisher Krafton last month.
“I had thought the studio would be safe as long as they continued to make Hi-Fi Rush games,” said Mikami. “That’s one of the reasons I left Tango Gameworks. So I was surprised when the studio was closed down.”
When Suda replied the closure was “a bolt from the blue, wasn’t it?”, Mikami was ultimately positive about the future of Tango Gameworks.
“Now Krafton has taken over the business, so I feel like it worked out well in the end. I was reminded that if you make a good game, someone will pick it up. The hard work of the Hi-Fi Rush development team led to a new chapter for the company.
“I think that for a development studio, making a good game is more directly related to survival than making a popular game.”
After his departure from Tango, Mikami stated his reasoning for leaving was to break free of survival horror games. He also wanted to create an environment for younger developers to have more frequent opportunities to gain experience.
Mikami has now founded a new company, KAMUY, though it’s unknown what projects are in the works.
Both developers have been interviewed ahead of the release of Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered. The pair discussed the nature of remakes with Eurogamer, with Mikami suggesting he’d be interested in a remake of Sweet Home – the game that inspired Resident Evil back in the ’90s.
Mikami also discussed his thoughts on a new Dino Crisis game, noting “the awesomeness of dinosaurs and the stuff you can do with dinosaurs, that’s been kind of really nailed down by Monster Hunter in recent years”.
