Yakuza producer quits Sega board, but stays in company

Today Sega announced that Yakuza Executive Director and Producer Toshihiro Nagoshi will step down from the company’s board of directors. It will remain at Sega, however.

As shown on Biz game, Nagoshi will step down from the board effective April 1, when Japan’s new fiscal year begins. He will step down as Creative Director of Sega but will work as a creative director.

There is speculation online in Japan that Nagoshi was deported as a result of a controversial comment he did last year, seeming to mock Puyo puyo esports players. The producer said they appeared to be eating beef bowls with cheese. The term chiizu gyuudon gao (チ ー ズ 牛 丼 顔) or “cheese beef bowl face” is circulating online. Shortcut to chiigyu (チ ー 牛) or “cheese beef,” this slang term is used to refer to people who live in rural areas, look very young, wear glasses and don’t have much ambition. It’s a negative and mocking term for making fun of people who might not be considered “cool.”

Nagoshi excuse for the comment, saying, “As the remark was addressed to players who go all out playing a Sega title, Puyo puyo, and since this has tainted all esports, I’m so sorry. It was truly inexcusable.

The famous producer continues to appear in Sega’s Live streams on YouTube (pictured above), so maybe Nagoshi quits for other reasons. I hope he can focus his energy more on Yakuza games and not company policy.