After 30 years, Tekken director announces departure from Bandai Namco. Katsuhiro Harada releases a DJ mix as a farewell gift

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Katsuhiro Harada, the veteran director and producer at Bandai Namco Entertainment known for his 30 years with the Tekken series, has announced his retirement. Along with the news, he shared a special gift for fans: a 60-minute Tekken DJ mix. He also plans one last appearance at the Tekken World Tour Finals in January. While reflecting on his career, Harada hinted he may not be leaving the video game world completely, promising to share details about his future plans soon.

Katsuhiro Harada, the producer and director behind 30 years of Tekken, announces he is leaving Bandai Namco

The Tekken series started in 1994 as an arcade game, and Katsuhiro Harada, a key figure in its development, recently reminisced about those early days. He remembers personally hauling arcade machines and enthusiastically encouraging people to give TEKKEN a try, interacting directly with players. While primarily focused on Tekken, Harada has also contributed to games like Pokémon’s fighting game, Pokkén Tournament, the Soul Calibur series, and various VR projects. Demonstrating the series’ enduring popularity, Tekken 8 won Best Fighting Game at last year’s Game Awards – a remarkable achievement after 30 years.

Harada shares that seeing many respected senior colleagues retire or pass away led him to consider his own time left as a creator. He discussed these feelings with Ken Kutaragi, often called the ‘Father of the PlayStation,’ who offered valuable support and advice that ultimately influenced this decision.

Although the famous producer of the Tekken series couldn’t perform his DJ set in person, a 58-minute recording was released on Soundcloud. As of today, just 10 hours after being uploaded, the set has already received over 20,000 listens and nearly 400 comments. People are praising Harada’s work on this mix, as well as his long career with both Tekken and Bandai Namco.

While Katsuhiro Harada’s time at Bandai Namco may be ending, he likely isn’t finished with video games altogether. In a message today, he thanked his supporters, the gaming community, and his coworkers, and promised to share details about his future plans soon. He also mentioned he’ll be at the Tekken World Tour Finals and shared a DJ mix. It’s unclear what he’ll do next, but he might continue working on fighting games at another company.

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2025-12-09 00:02