The Tekken series’ former producer Katsuhiro Harada has joined SNK’s new game development subsidiary, VS Studio, and will be acting as its representative.
In a new press release, Japanese fighting game developer SNK announced that former Tekken producer Katsuhiro Harada has joined the studio as the representative of their newly established game development subsidiary, VS Studio. The press release reads: “VS Studio SNK Co., Ltd. was established on May 1, 2026. In conjunction with this establishment, SNK Co., Ltd. will support the launch of the new studio and plans to make it a consolidated subsidiary. The new studio and SNK will collaborate on game software development to further strengthen their development capabilities.”
Harada has commented on his new position, explaining that VS Studio’s goal is to “combine technology, sensibility, and world-class expertise to pursue the ultimate,” the endgame being the creation of “memorable games.” His comment continues: “Having been involved in game development for many years, I’ve constantly considered how I want to spend my time as a developer and what kind of environment allows developers to perform at their best. VS Studio is one answer to that question.” According to him, VS Studio will “aim to deliver the best gaming experiences to users worldwide.”
In the same press release, SNK game designer Yasuyuki Oda has expressed his feelings on the announcement: “I am extremely proud to welcome Mr. Katsuhiro Harada, who has been a long-time friend and a worthy rival to us, into our group. We’ve long discussed the hypothetical scenario of working together, and now that dream has become a reality. To be honest, nothing has been decided yet, but I have no doubt that things will become even more exciting than ever before.”
On December 8th, 2025, Katsuhiro Harada had announced his departure from the Tekken ship after 31 years working at Bandai Namco. While it is not known what kind of game he will be making in the future, VS Studio being a subsidiary of the Saudi-owned SNK makes for easy guesses.
In an interview with 4Gamer, relayed by VGC, Harada was asked about potentially working on one of SNK’s fighting game franchises, such as The King of Fighters, Fatal Fury, or Samurai Shodown. He answered: “Speaking personally, there are certainly things I’d like to do. However, since it belongs to SNK, I can’t really say anything too freely. This isn’t about hiding anything. It simply means that nothing has been decided yet.”