Itagaki's New Studio Is Named "Valhalla"

From Team Ninja to "Valhalla Game Studios." That's the name for the new studio from former Team Ninja head Tomonobu Itagaki, as revealed in this week's Famitsu.

The new studio isn't actually Itagaki's own studio. He's the "CTO." The studio was formed by former fellow Tecmo employee Satoshi Kanematsu. Itagaki oversees the game development division.

Famitsu scored a two page interview with Itagaki, but only managed to get a few hints about the new project that he recently alluded to in his statement announcing a settlement to his nasty legal battle with Tecmo.

Asked if it's okay to think that the new game will see formal announcement soon, Itagaki said "At this stage, I cannot say. However, I believe the game I'm making now will be a little bit like nothing anyone has ever seen."

Famitsu pressed him for more information. But rather than detail the game, he went into an explanation of how his games don't target any particular group of people. Said Itagaki, "If you ask who I've been developing for, it's for Earthlings."

Itagaki wouldn't even confirm the game's platform, saying that he's flexible. "There could new hardware released in the future. Also, not just consoles -- I am interested in PCs."

Despite Itagaki's reluctance to share specifics on the new game, Famitsu decided to ask how many copies he hopes to sell. "The highest selling of the games I've made is Dead or Alive 3," explained Itagaki. "It was 2 million. So, this time, I'd like to make a game that can be played by, at the very least, 4 million people. I mean, there are people who make games that sell 10 million units, so 4 million isn't that reckless a number."

Also in the interview, Itagaki issued some words that could cause rage in some fighting game circles. Asked if he plans on making a fighting game in the future, Itagaki said: "At my previous company, I made the best fighting game in the world, Dead or Alive. Fighting games have once again reached a dead end, although to be honest, if there was no Dead or Alive, fighting games would have ended a long time ago."

Good to have you back doing interviews, Itagaki! Now hurry up and announce your new game!

[note: this version corrects Kanematsu's first name to "Satoshi" instead of "Satoru"]