SNK forms VS Studio, installing Harada as representative after Bandai Namco exit
Published 4 Nov 2026 · Games Atlas Editorial · Company Formation · Companies: SNK, Bandai Namco Entertainment
Games Atlas summary: SNK financed VS Studio as a consolidated subsidiary. Katsuhiro Harada became its representative after leaving Bandai Namco. He departed Bandai Namco in December after more than three decades. Harada says five-year development cycles left him time for only one more game.
How to cite this page
Games Atlas — Games Industry Intelligence (2026). SNK forms VS Studio, installing Harada as representative after Bandai Namco exit. Published 4 Nov 2026. https://gamesatlas.app/article/snk-forms-vs-studio-installing-harada-as-representative-after-bandai-namco-exit
Harada frames the exit as personal timing
- Harada says games once shipped yearly but now take five years each.
- He concluded at 50 that he had only one more game left in him.
- Tekken 8, released in 2024, was his final series credit as executive producer.
- "We used to release one game a year, but now it can take five years to make a single game." - Katsuhiro Harada, Representative, VS Studio
SNK's sovereign-backed structure funds a veteran-only roster
- SNK consolidates VS Studio onto its own balance sheet.
- Harada cites Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince, an avid gamer, as a deciding factor.
- The core team of ten recruits is entirely over age 45.
- Tekken 8 director Kohei Ikeda joined VS Studio as a game designer in August.
- "Being in their 50s can be an advantage, because experience really matters." - Katsuhiro Harada, Representative, VS Studio
Autonomy claim meets publisher-scale marketing reality
- Harada says VS Studio has complete autonomy and decision-making authority.
- He ran global marketing at Bandai Namco, which he calls Europe's strongest publisher.
- He admits VS Studio lacks comparable resources and marketing capability for now.
- "Major publishers have an overwhelming advantage in their ability to market and sell games." - Katsuhiro Harada, Representative, VS Studio
The launch runs against an industry cutting headcount
- Industry-wide layoffs hit 10,977 this year, already surpassing all of 2025, per ASGC data.
- AAA development can now cost up to 50 billion yen per game, Harada says.
- Rising costs push AAA studios toward established franchises instead of new risks, he adds.
- SNK's decision to fund an unproven veteran studio cuts against that retrenchment trend.
What this means
- For Publishers & Developers: Lock senior directors into retention deals before sovereign-funded rivals poach whole veteran teams.
- For Investors & VC: Add a secured publishing and distribution partner to diligence on creator-led studio startups.
- For Service Vendors: Pitch outsourced global marketing and publishing support to newly funded autonomous Japanese studios.