It seems like Kazuhiro Tsuchiya, a prominent Japanese game producer, has left Capcom. He worked there for more than three decades, contributing to some of the company’s most famous brands.
Image: Mega Man YouTube channel
Tsuchiya didn’t publicly announce his departure, but recently updated his bio on Twitter (spotted by the Mega Man fansite Rockman Corner).
The new description indicates that he no longer works at Capcom (the previous version of the text read that he was “in charge of Mega Man/Street Fighter series”). However, the reason for his departure remains unclear, as well as what he plans to do next.
The news comes just days ahead of the Street Fighter 6 launch. Tsuchiya worked on the game as a producer along with director Takayuki Nakayama, who wanted the team to recreate the feel of the Street Fighter II era. “We wanted to make another Street Fighter game that’s not just for existing fans of the series, but for everyone and get that same feeling where all types of gamers are falling in love with fighting games … with Street Fighter,” Tsuchiya told Game Informer last year.
The first reviews of Street Fighter 6 have already arrived, with critics praising the game and its mechanics. On Metacritic, its average score currently ranges from 89/100 (for the Xbox Series X version) to 93/100 (for the PC version).
Kazuhiro Tsuchiya joined Capcom in 1992, working as a programmer on titles like Mega Man 7 and Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo. He then served as the director of survival horror game Haunting Ground and producer of action game Asura’s Wrath.
Tsuchiya eventually became the producer of the Mega Man series, overseeing the development of Mega Man 11 and Mega Man Legacy Collection. “I like to think of myself as a single gear, doing my utmost to push along this great machine, and that even after I retire from the industry, the torch will be taken up by the younger generation,” he told Capcom in 2018, adding that he hopes that the Mega Man brand will live on for another 10-20 years.