Update, 12/7/2022: Balan Wonderworld director Yuji Naka has been re-arrested on a second cost of insider buying and selling, this time involving the cellular battle royale title Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier.
Last month, Naka and former Square Enix worker Taisuke Sazaki have been arrested on suspicion of shopping for shares in developer Aiming after studying prematurely in regards to the crew’s announcement of its cellular recreation Dragon Quest Tact (see the complete authentic story under). Japanese outlet Asashi (thanks Video Games Chronicle) now studies that Naka and Sazaki are believed to have tried an analogous scheme for the reveal of Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier.
Ashai notes that in February 2021, developer Ateam and Square Enix introduced a partnership to develop the cellular battle royale title. Naka and Sazaki are mentioned to have identified the particulars of this deal earlier than it grew to become public and acquired shares in Ateam in hopes of profiting off a better inventory value stemming from The First Soldier’s reveal.
Naka is reported to have bought 120,000 shares for about 144.7 million yen (roughly over $1 million). Sazaki is accused of shopping for 91,000 shares for about 105 million yen ($767,000), in addition to passing this insider data to an acquaintance who additionally acquired shares. The investigation is ongoing so it is unclear the place issues will go from right here, however Square Enix beforehand acknowledged it’s absolutely cooperating with the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission and Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office.
In October, Square Enix introduced it was shutting down Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier on January 11.
Original Story, 11/9/2022: Legendary Sonic designer and Balan Wonderworld director Yuji Naka has been arrested in Tokyo in connection to an insider buying and selling investigation involving the reveal of a Dragon Quest recreation.
According to the Japanese information outlet FNN, the final 24 hours noticed ex-Square Enix worker Taisuke Sazaki and his pal Fumiaki Suzuki arrested on suspicion for insider buying and selling. In 2020, developer Aiming had been set to announce its cellular recreation Dragon Quest Tact, and Sazaki and Suzuki are alleged to have identified particulars in regards to the recreation earlier than it was publicly revealed. The pair reportedly bought a mixed 162,000 shares of Aiming for roughly 47.2 million yen (or over $335,000) prematurely with the intent of profiting on a probably increased inventory value stemming from Tact’s announcement.
Yuji Naka is now suspected of being concerned on this scandal as properly. He is accused of buying 10,000 shares value 2.8 million yen (roughly $20,000) in Aiming for a similar objective of cashing in on Tact’s reveal. Naka was apprehended by Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, and the investigation is ongoing. It’s at the moment unknown if the suspects nonetheless personal their shares or in the event that they already offered them.
This is the second main controversy Naka has discovered himself concerned with this yr. In April, Naka publicly blasted Square Enix on Twitter over his elimination as director from Balan Wonderworld previous to its launch, blaming Square for the recreation’s crucial failure. This outburst got here after the conclusion of a lawsuit he’d beforehand filed in opposition to the writer. Naka is finest often called the lead programmer behind the unique Sonic the Hedgehog video games for Sega Genesis and Nights into Dreams.
[Source: FNN]
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