Akitokid

Gamer/ACGer/Tekken player/content creator on Bilibili/YouTube: 青色夜想曲

[Akitokid @lcakito]

@NARIA_030 @wongwongkwan Such a nice story, you put your heart into it and it’s paying back now. Amazing commentary, keep going!

[Yagami @yagami2428]

My Tekken 8 Season 2 recap haha
Try it yourself at https://t.co/bYMOlmAain

[Akitokid @lcakito]

@Harada_TEKKEN Thank you for everything Harada san. Not sure the Tekken will be the same without you. But I also looking forward to see you somewhere else. Hope you can enjoy your life beyond Tekken.

[Katsuhiro Harada @Harada_TEKKEN]

I’d like to share that I’ll be leaving Bandai Namco at the end of 2025.
With the TEKKEN series reaching its 30th anniversary—an important milestone for a project I’ve devoted much of my life to—I felt this was the most fitting moment to bring one chapter to a close.

My roots lie in the days when I supported small local tournaments in Japanese arcades and in small halls and community centers overseas.
I still remember carrying arcade cabinets by myself, encouraging people to “Please try TEKKEN,” and directly facing the players right in front of me.
The conversations and atmosphere we shared in those places became the core of who I am as a developer and game creator.

Even as the times changed, those experiences have remained at the center of my identity.
And even after the tournament scene grew much larger, many of you continued to treat me like an old friend—challenging me at venues, inviting me out for drinks at bars.
Those memories are also deeply precious to me.
In recent years, I experienced the loss of several close friends in my personal life, and in my professional life I witnessed the retirement or passing of many senior colleagues whom I deeply respect.
Those accumulated events made me reflect on the “time I have left as a creator.”
During that period, I sought advice from Ken Kutaragi—whom I respect as though he were another father—and received invaluable encouragement and guidance.
His words quietly supported me in making this decision.

Over the past four to five years, I’ve gradually handed over all of my responsibilities, as well as the stories and worldbuilding I oversaw, to the team, bringing me to the present day.
Looking back, I was fortunate to work on an extraordinary variety of projects—VR titles (such as Summer Lesson), Pokkén Tournament, the SoulCalibur series, and many others, both inside and outside the company.
Each project was full of new discoveries and learning, and every one of them became an irreplaceable experience for me.
To everyone who has supported me, to communities around the world, and to all the colleagues who have walked alongside me for so many years, I offer my deepest gratitude.
I’ll share more about my next steps at a later date.
Thank you very much for everything.

【Postscript】
Although I will be leaving the company at the end of 2025, Bandai Namco has asked me to appear at the TWT Finals at the end of January 2026, so I expect to attend as a guest.

For 30 years I kept saying, “I’ll do it someday,” and never once performed as a DJ at a tournament event.
So instead, I will be releasing—for the first and last time—a 60-minute TEKKEN DJ-style nonstop mix (DJ mix), personally edited by myself, together with this announcement.
Listening to it brings back many memories.
Thank you again, sincerely, for all these years.

‘TEKKEN: A 30-Year Journey – Harada’s Final Mix’ by Katsuhiro Harada 1 is on #SoundCloud https://t.co/PUFOWt3R6M

December 8, 2025 - The Final Day of TEKKEN’s 30th Anniversary -
Katsuhiro Harada

[日本語版 (Japanese version)]
このたび、2025年末をもちまして、私はバンダイナムコを退職することにいたしました。
長く携わってきた『鉄拳』シリーズが30周年という大きな節目を迎え、ひとつの区切りとして最もふさわしい時期であると考えたためです。

私の原点は、日本のゲームセンターや、海外コミュニティの小さな講堂やコミュニティセンターで、まだ小規模なトーナメントをサポートしていた時代にあります。
アーケード筐体を自ら運び込み、「鉄拳もぜひ遊んでみてほしい」と声をかけながら、目の前の参加者と向き合った日々。
あの場で交わした言葉や空気が、私という開発者の核を形作りました。
時代が変化しても、あの経験が自分の中心にあります。
そしてトーナメントシーンが大きく成長した後も、皆さんは旧知の友人のように私に声をかけ、会場で対戦したり、バーで『一緒に飲もう』と誘ってくれました。
それらもまた、大切な思い出です。

ここ数年間、私生活においては友人達との死別があり、仕事においては、私が尊敬する多くの先輩方の引退や逝去に触れてきました。
そうした出来事の積み重ねが、私に『開発者として残された時間』について考える契機を与えました。
その過程で、私がもう一人の父親のように敬愛する久夛良木健さんにも相談し、貴重な助言と励ましのお言葉をいただきました。
この言葉もまた、今回の決断を静かに後押しするものとなりました。

そして、この4〜5年をかけて私の担ってきたすべての業務やストーリーや世界観、そして責務をチームに段階的に引き継ぎ、今日に至ります。
振り返れば、VR作品（サマーレッスンなど）や『ポッ拳』、ソウルキャリバーシリーズをはじめ、自社他社問わず数多くのプロジェクトに携わる機会に恵まれました。
いずれのプロジェクトも新しい発見と学びに満ち、かけがえのない経験となりました。

これまで支えてくださった皆様、世界中のコミュニティの皆様、そして長年ともに歩んできた仲間たちに深く感謝申し上げます。
次の歩みについては、改めて皆様にお伝えいたします。
これからも、どうぞよろしくお願いいたします。

+あとがき
2025年末をもって退職致しますが、2026年1月末のTWT FINALには顔を出してほしいと会社からお願いされていることもあり、FINALにはゲストとして顔を出すと思います。
これまで30年間『いつかやるよ』と言い続けてやってこなかったトーナメントイベントでのDJですが、その代わりとして“最初で最後のDJ風60分ノンストップ鉄拳ミックス（私による初編集DJ mix）”も、今回のポストに合わせて公開します。

‘TEKKEN: A 30-Year Journey – Harada’s Final Mix’ by Katsuhiro Harada 1 is on #SoundCloud https://t.co/PUFOWt3R6M

様々な思い出が蘇ります。改めて皆さんありがとうございました。

2025年12月8日 - 鉄拳30周年最終日 -
Katsuhiro Harada

[Akitokid @lcakito]

Last time I grinding in rank was T7S2, I remembered I got Ryujin and I was No. 97 on Kaz global leaderboard. Last 3 weeks rank run were fun but I don’t feel the same excitement. Hope they fix balance in S3, and give proper punish to cheaters and pluggers. #TEKKEN8

[Akitokid @lcakito]

@TheTrust19 lol, lots of Drag players one & done me when I play Drag as well.

[WBG/Essence_x c c @tk_xiaochenchen]

I am really happy to have won Brics again. Thank you to my friends who have supported me. Through this competition, my mentality has become more stable, and I will continue to practice hard to become stronger ggs @KaizokuLars

[GTM丨PrinceHopKick. @PrinceHopKick92]

This year's BRICS Tekken event is very difficult! 👍
But @tk_xiaochenchen still The TekkenKing of BRICS！🥇
3 times championships!🏆
Congratulations!🎉🇨🇳🇨🇳

[Akitokid @lcakito]

@TyrantVergil @PETAAsiaZH 最后一句绝杀

[Stress斯特雷斯 @Stress_chan]

CNFGC have top-tier players, passionate communities, and pro organizers, but our events rarely receive official licenses from publishers other than SNK.
We want more opportunities for players like XCC and a1r0ke.
Sadly, no official AWT/TWT events occurred this year, even online.

[WBG/Essence_x c c @tk_xiaochenchen]

My evojapan ended in 13th place, which was my best performance in the competition. I thought I would make it to the top 8, but I still didn't. Thank you to those who supported me @Weibogamingwin
@TeamEssenceOff

[Akitokid @lcakito]

@MarkMan23 生日快乐🎂 Happy Birthday Mark. Wish you all the best!

[Katsuhiro Harada @Harada_TEKKEN]

Since the topic of About Ki Charge and other system updates came up, I’ll make a comment.

I understand that there are various opinions. However, at the time of writing this, players have not yet had the chance to play the updated version of the build. So, we would really appreciate it if you could try it out after the update goes live—spend some time playing or competing in tournaments—and then share your feedback with us.
With that in mind, please feel free to send any opinions or criticism to me or Michael. We won’t be replying to every message, but we do read pretty much all of them.

I will share that feedback with the team, and of course, I have full trust in the new generation of game designers and have left everything in their hands.

As I mentioned in the recent TEKKEN TALK, back in the day, Michael and I started the method of revealing content little by little at community events, and the community came to expect that. However, nowadays, people’s needs have changed, and it’s clear that more people want all the content to be revealed in a single announcement on social media or official sites. (Though there are still many strong opinions preferring the opposite.)

In this way, generational shifts among players are also progressing, and values are changing. Until now, I’ve responded to these kinds of changes in various ways (and that’s precisely why TEKKEN has continued for 30 years without interruption). But this time, I was slow to notice the change in needs regarding how content is announced, and beyond that, I can clearly feel that my own “sensors” for detecting change have dulled (Yes, precisely because I'm aware of that myself, I’ve already been transferring a lot of decision-making authority to the next generation over the past few years. I want to make sure the good things are credited to them, and on the other hand, any criticism or feedback is something that Michael and I take upon ourselves. By doing so, I am steadily and intentionally labeling myself as an old relic or stick-in-the-mud, and—taking my age into consideration—I'm actually accelerating the day I’ll be pushed out by everyone. And that, in a good way, is something meaningful for all of us and tekken community.).

That’s exactly why, as I’ve also said in previous programs, I’ve entrusted almost everything to the next generation dev members—and I trust them.
Above all, as everyone knows, this is the first TEKKEN to be released simultaneously worldwide on console without two years of arcade release and operation. This is a fact that has surprisingly been overlooked this time, and it’s probably the part that sets this title apart from previous entries in the series more than anything else.
TEKKEN 8 can be seen as part of an ongoing evolution, and there’s still plenty of room for it to change based on your feedback—just like how every arcade version in the past evolved without exception.

Of course, there are times when we reflect the community’s requests and opinions as-is, and times when the "development side makes new proposals" (Well, I went a bit too far back during TEKKEN 4. But since then, nothing quite that extreme has happened again). That part hasn’t changed from the old days, in a good way.
The fact that games are updated and undergo many changes is also just as it has always been. So, I really hope you will share your opinions after actually playing the updated game.

By the way, the reason KI Charge was first introduced is a bit far from what people imagine.
Come to think of it, it’s actually kind of surprising that the KI Charge mechanic hasn’t been updated until now.

Back when we were developing TEKKEN 3, the game systems were being scripted by just two of us: myself (as the game director at the time) and a senior colleague. One day, around the halfway point of development, the lead programmer, Y-san, said:

“Harada, of course sidestepping is a new system, and low parry is also a new system—but I’m still not satisfied! We need to put in even more new systems! Like, for example, something where you power up by psyching yourself up…”

That’s what he said.
And I scripted that system the same day.

Back then, that’s just how we put systems together. As for KI Charge, I added it simply because I wanted Y-san, the lead programmer, to feel more motivated about work. Looking back now, it’s like, “What the heck?!”—but that’s how it was back then.

And to go further, the system where Bryan can connect moves after his Taunt—which is now considered standard—that was also something I personally implemented, but at the time, I never imagined it would become what it is today.

I created it purely as a performance element to express Bryan’s personality, with no relation to match balance or mind games. I just thought it would be more fun if you could cancel it at any time during the Taunt.
But some time after the title was released, Bryan’s Taunt was being used in ways I never expected.
I panicked. I wanted to fix it right away, but at the time, it was the height of the arcade era, and we couldn’t do online updates.
So I tried to fix it in the next version six months later or in the console version release.
But when I spoke to players at arcades and tournaments about it, everyone was strongly opposed.

They all interpreted it as a “Official system.” I was shocked. I really wanted to explain, “No, that was just a bonus feature with no real purpose—it’s not a system, and I just scripted it wrong…” But I held back and left it in place.

Both KI Charge and the Taunt were systems that were added under those kinds of circumstances. They were introduced in ways that, to be honest, could rightfully have been criticized (or in the case of Taunt, unintentionally introduced).
But I believe it’s okay for those things to evolve into different proposals over time, or to change according to the needs of the players, or even to lead to unexpected developments.

Sometimes features that weren’t carefully designed or were introduced poorly are accepted.
Other times, carefully planned features are not.

Compared to the past, where arcade versions were updated repeatedly before a console release, the current situation—where the game is released worldwide simultaneously on console—is completely different.
I know there are many opinions. And above all, opinions reach us so much faster than in the past. I mean, people are already sharing opinions about a version of the game they haven’t even played yet. From the perspective of someone who used to write system scripts back in the day, it really feels like we’re living in an amazing time.

Anyway, the large-scale tuning of Season 2, the addition of new arts, and the system changes are all part of a free update—so please try playing it for a while, and then share your feedback again.

Thank you.

[Akitokid @lcakito]

6 days!

[Monster Hunter @monsterhunter]

Hunters, a quest from Gemma has arrived! Here's how you can hunt down a delivery of up to 100 Armor Spheres for everyone at launch. Not bad, huh?

1️⃣ Follow @monsterhunter
2️⃣ RT this post or post using #WildsArmorSpheres

[Monster Hunter @monsterhunter]

Hunters, a quest from Gemma has arrived! Here's how you can hunt down a delivery of up to 100 Armor Spheres for everyone at launch. Not bad, huh?

1️⃣ Follow @monsterhunter
2️⃣ RT this post or post using #WildsArmorSpheres

[Flower 🌼✨️ @FlowerFGC]

Don't mess up & go to Malmö airport! CPH is the place to go for easy transport to Hyllie 🤩🙌

[Akitokid @lcakito]

@yuripan_elegant 都是简单的目标 教材你已经都有了😎

[Speedkicks @Speedkicks]

Fightin Xiaoyu is a mental test of how many times you can hear wallsplat into "IMA DA" before the tilt kicks in and you start mashing into AOP.

[NYC TKN | Love n Care | Fear @Fearofsilence3]

How do you keep a positive growth mindset playing this game? I'm trying my absolute best, but I end up tilting even on victories.

[Akitokid @lcakito]

@Stress_chan 机战粉？别跑🎊