too hot for tv
Team Ninja's fearless leader and boozemaster Tomonobu Itagaki is one of the last people you'd expect to answer to The Man, but he's actually pretty OK with it.
I don't believe the adage that the artist should be able to express whatever he wants is necessarily applicable in this case, because we're creating entertainment. And entertainment shouldn't include things that make people feel uncomfortable or extremely upset...[and] people out there that want to create something that is very far removed from societal norms and the moral sensibilities of the general public ... They're unfortunate, and I don't want to be grouped in with that group of people.
Who does want to be grouped with those weirdo people?? We're with you all the way! But, uhh...what's with all the decapitation?
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gotta wear shades
Head ninja Tomonobu Itagaki goes nowhere without his sunglass and leather jacket. Or his pack of smokes. And while we didn't catch him without the leather and the cigs, Itagaki did take off his sunglasses — only for a brief instant. A sonic boom that separated time and space and blurring our photo. Catching this moment on film? Impossible. Though, once he got the shades back on, the reverb was felt. The evidence after the jump.
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wcg
With the sunglasses and leather jacket, you could get the idea that
DoA and
Ninja Gaiden creator Tomonobu Itagaki comes is cold and distant. Like he's just
sneering at us, releasing bastard hard games and waiting for his next whiskey straight. But wait! Here he is. And he's actually touching another human in a friendly way. It's like the game creator
is human. Or something. There's good reason why he's so pleased! That dude Itagaki has his arm around is a regular
Dead or Alive finalist in the WorldCyberGames. The WCG 2007 finals aren't until October, but prelims were held in Tokyo with
Dead or Alive 4. Is that curled lip a slight smile on Itagaki's face? Impossible!
WCG Prelims [Game Watch Impress]
hate
Beside booze and boob physics,
Dead or Alive creator Tomonobu Itagaki doesn't like much of anything!
Tekken he hates so hard. And the upcoming PS3 title
Heavenly Sword? Meh! The game features "Hero Sequences" in which players have to input particular commands to proceed through a
Dragon's Liar-esque cinematic event. In the latest
Electronic Gaming Monthly, Itagaki offers his two cents:
I've never played a good game where the developers put a big icon of the button you're supposed to press onscreen... I look at Heavenly Sword and it seems really half-assed, because it's asking you to do all these button-timing sequences but you are not getting much payoff from it.
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from the mouth of babes
Normally when we have a quote to share with you from an industry personality we summarize their comment humorously in the title and then give you the actual wording in the main body of the post. Not so this time. Joystiq caught up to Dead or Alive creator and paragon of coolness Tomonobu Itagaki at the recent Championship Gaming Series North American World Series Final, where they asked him if he was looking forward to Tekken 6.
Tekken sucks. I don't know what you're talking about.
The black leather jacket and sunglasses aren't just for show. Itagaki is a bad ass rebel. You'd never hear Yuji Naka say, "Yo, fuck Mario," even though I would personally give him $100 just to get it on tape. The rest of the interview is pretty tame, though he does hint at the possibility of a Wii title down the line.
We're doing a lot of research, that's about all I can say right now. Although, to add on that note, my kids have been saying they want a game for the Wii. To tell you the truth, Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword, that's because my kids were asking for one of my titles to be on the DS.
The Wii could certainly use a dose of Itagaki's trademark family friendly fare.
Joystiq interview: DOA creator Tomonobu Itagaki, "Tekken sucks" [Joystiq]
boob physics involved
Sunglasses-wearing Tomonobu Itagaki gave a quick short phone interview via translator with
Dead or Alive fan site DoA Central. Most of the DoA Central post goes on and on about how Itagaki and TECMO take into account what forum members post about gameplay and whatnot, but did some good info about the upcoming
Dead or Alive 5. Itagaki confirmed that he's leaning further away from tag mode in
DoA5, and it even sounds like it could be axed altogether. And the giant jubblies? Those stay.
Itagaki Phoner [DoA Central]
itagaki
Tomonobu Itagaki sat down with the crew at CVG to talk all things Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword for the Nintendo DS, but he seemed to keep harping on how totally badassical and ultra killer it's going to be.
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tecmo
If you're going to drop nearly 8200 yen (about $70 American) each on Kotobukiya's Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 Kasumi PVC figures, you're
entitled to see how that paint job turned out.
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Kotaku
