United Kingdom, Dec. 8 -- Tekken chief Katsuhiro Harada will leave Bandai Namco at the end of 2025, marking the end of a three-decade run that helped turn the fighting series into one of gaming's most recognisable franchises.

In a statement, Harada said Tekken's 30th anniversary felt like "the most fitting moment to bring one chapter to a close," reflecting on his early days hauling arcade cabinets into community halls and asking people to "please try Tekken".

He said those grassroots encounters formed the core of his identity as a developer, even as the series scaled into a global esports fixture.

Harada added that the recent loss of close friends and the retirement of respected colleagues prompted him to consider "the time [he has] l...