Quick answer: Yes, Nagoshi Studio is officially closed. The Tokyo studio led by Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi was dissolved by a shareholders’ resolution on October 31, 2026, according to a notice in Japan’s official government gazette Kanpo on November 2. NetEase had stopped funding it in May. Its only announced game, Gang of Dragon starring Ma Dong-seok, has no new publisher or release date. Current as of Nov 2, 2026.
Toshihiro Nagoshi’s post-Sega studio is gone. Nagoshi Studio Inc. was officially dissolved by a shareholders’ resolution on October 31, according to a notice published in the November 2 issue of Kanpo, Japan’s official government gazette. Gematsu, VGC and Anime News Network all reported the listing on Monday.
What was Nagoshi Studio?
Nagoshi left Sega in 2021 after more than 30 years at the company, where he created the Yakuza series (now Like a Dragon) and led Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. Chinese publisher NetEase backed his new Tokyo studio, founded in late 2021 and announced in January 2022, as part of a wave of investments in Japanese and Western developers.
The studio revealed its first and only game, Gang of Dragon, at The Game Awards in December 2025. It is a third-person action adventure set in Kabukicho, Shinjuku, starring Korean actor Ma Dong-seok (Don Lee of Train to Busan and Eternals) as Shin Ji-seong, a high-ranking member of a Korean crime syndicate. The trailer showed brawling, blades, gunfire and car chases, and the game was announced for PC via Steam.
Why did Nagoshi Studio close?
Money. In March 2026, Bloomberg reported that NetEase would stop financing the studio from May, and a NetEase spokesperson confirmed the decision to the outlet. According to that report, NetEase pulled out after learning Gang of Dragon needed about 7 billion yen (roughly $44 million) more to finish. The studio had the option to go independent if it could find its own funding, but the gazette notice shows that did not happen.
Nagoshi Studio is the latest casualty of NetEase pulling back from game development outside China. The publisher has already closed or cut loose several studios it funded, including Ouka Studio, the Tokyo team behind Visions of Mana, which closed in 2024.
What happens to Gang of Dragon?
Nobody has said yet. Neither Nagoshi nor NetEase has announced what happens to the game, and as of Monday morning its Steam page was still live and listed as “coming soon.” With the studio that was making it dissolved and no new publisher announced, Gang of Dragon is effectively on ice unless someone else picks up the project. We will update this story if Nagoshi or NetEase comments.
Our take
This is a rough end for one of the most anticipated new projects from a Japanese veteran. Gang of Dragon looked like a spiritual successor to Yakuza with a movie star lead, and it was shown off less than a year ago as a game deep in development. Its fate is a reminder of how fragile big publisher-backed startups can be when the money moves. The good news for Yakuza fans is that the series itself is in safe hands at Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, which is busy with Stranger Than Heaven.
More studio news: EA shuts down BioWare and Samson developer Liquid Swords declared bankrupt.
Sources: Kanpo gazette (Nov 2, 2026) via Gematsu, VGC and Anime News Network; Bloomberg; Nagoshi Studio. Featured image: official Gang of Dragon screenshot, © Nagoshi Studio.
