Dead or Alive creator and Team Ninja founder Tomonobu Itagaki has died, age 58

Renowned Japanese video game developer Tomonobu Itagaki, the legendary creator of Dead or Alive and the modern Ninja Gaiden series, has passed away at the age of 58.

The details:

• The news was confirmed through a posthumous message posted on Itagaki's Facebook page, written by the developer himself before his death. “The light of my life is finally fading,” the translated message reads. “The fact that this message has been posted means that the time has finally come. I am no longer in this world (I’m asking a loved one to make this final post). My life has been a series of battles. I kept winning. I’ve caused a lot of trouble, too. I’m proud to say that I followed my beliefs and fought to the end. I have no regrets. However, I’m filled with regret that I wasn’t able to deliver a new work to all my fans. I’m sorry. That’s just how it is. So it goes.”
• Itagaki joined Tecmo in 1992 as a graphics programmer on Tecmo Super Bowl before rising to prominence with the creation of Dead or Alive in 1996. The 3D fighting game revolutionized the genre with its fast-paced combat, universal counter system, and fluid animation. The game helped establish Itagaki as one of Japan's top game developers, with DoA remaining one of the biggest fighting game franchises of all time.
• As head of Team Ninja, he also became known to many for the original Xbox’s 2004 reboot of the classic arcade series Ninja Gaiden, which was particularly acclaimed for its punishing difficulty and intricate combat system and still influences action titles in various ways to this day.
• Industry colleagues, including BitSummit co-founder James Mielke and former rival turned friend Tekken producer Katsuhiro Harada, have paid tribute to Itagaki on social media. “No way, Itagaki-san,” Harada wrote. “You said ‘let’s grab a drink sometime’, didn’t you? I don’t believe it. I don’t.”