Japanese video game and anime company Koei Tecmo has announced that it will begin new restructuring efforts on April 1, 2026, with some upcoming organizational shifts affecting subsidiaries like Team NINJA and Atelier developer Gust. According to a release from Koei Tecmo (via Gematsu), Team NINJA’s Division 1 team will transfer to Gust as its new Division 2. Koei Tecmo also plans to divide Team NINJA’s Division 2 and establish two new Team NINJA Divisions, also called Team NINJA Divisions 1 and 2.
“We would like to inform you that, effective April 1, 2026, the following organizational changes and personnel changes will be implemented at Koei Tecmo Games Co., Ltd., Koei Tecmo Wave Co., Ltd., and Koei Tecmo Net Co., Ltd., two of our group’s major operating companies,” reads a digital translation of Koei Tecmo’s opening passage.
Team NINJA’s existing Division 1, led by Yasunori Sakuda, is the team behind live-service title Dead or Alive Xtreme: Venus Vacation, as well as Atelier Resleriana: Forgotten Alchemy and the Polar Night Liberator. Nioh 3 producer Kohei Shibata currently leads Team NINJA’s Division 2, though they will direct the company’s new Division 1 after changes take effect on April 1. In addition to Nioh, Shibata’s Division 2 is responsible for Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive, some of the studio’s best-known franchises.
Koei Tecmo will launch more than its bold new internal changes this year. The studio will release Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Remake on March 12, while Ninja Gaiden 4 will reportedly get its first post-launch expansion, “The Two Masters,” sometime this year. Additionally, Nioh 3 will receive its first DLC this September. According to the game’s Season Pass listing on the PlayStation store, Nioh 3 players can anticipate a second DLC drop “by the end of February 2027.”
A closer look at Koei Tecmo’s restructuring strategies
Confused by Koei Tecmo’s internal shuffle? Gematsu’s translation clarifies some of the changes:
- Entertainment Division
- Team NINJA Division 1 will be transferred to Gust, and renamed Gust Division 2.
- Team NINJA Division 2 will be split into Team NINJA Division 1 and Team NINJA Division 2.
- IP Business
- The name of this division will change to Global IP Business.
- Marketing Division
- The name of this office will change to Global Marketing Division.
- Global Marketing Department’s name will change to Marketing Department.
- Global Business Department’s name will change to Business Development Department.
- Business Division (Newly Established)
- Business Division will be established, and Global Business Promotion Department and Business Department will be transferred from Marketing Division.
- Global Business Promotion Department’s name will change to Business Promotion Department.
