Yuji Naka, the Japanese developer responsible for coming up with the concept of the firstSonicgame, as well as leading development on multiple titles in the series, has been arrested yet again, according to websiteAsahi.
Newsof Naka’s prior arrest broke a few weeks ago, wherein it was revealed that Naka engaged in insider trading withinSquare Enix, purchasing approximately $20,000 USD worth of shares of a company that was developing a mobileDragon Questgame, before this title had been officially announced.
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Profiting from trading by taking advantage of non-public company knowledge is illegal in most countries, including Japan, which is why Naka, a former Square Enix employee, was previously arrested. Now, as transcribed byVGC, it was reported that Naka had engaged in another instance of insider trading, this one was significantly more egregious, and it has resulted in his repeated arrest.
Asahi reports that Naka invested in a separate company that was also working on a mobile title based on a Square Enix property, this one calledFinal Fantasy VII: The First Soldier. Prior to the game’s official announcement, Naka had reportedly purchased approximately $834,000 worth of shares of its development studio, ATeam. It’s unclear what exact consequences Naka will face this time, but given the much higher offending amount, the sentencing will presumably be that much worse.
Naka’s only game to come out of his four-year tenure at Square Enix wasBalan Wonderworld, a 3D platformer that was widely regarded as one of the most underwhelming games of 2021. Its infamous one-button system (every button did the same thing) resulted in a gameplay loop that many deemed too simplistic and restrictive. Furthermore, it had unusual technical issues, like objects disappearing once you got too close to them.
Naka laterclaimedthat he was removed from the project before its release, and was therefore unable to give the game the proper adjustments it needed, which is why it came out “unfinished”. Naka heavily criticized Square Enix, stating that higher-ups at the company spoke about him behind his back to orchestrate his removal from the game. He then called the publisher a company that “cannot take care of games.”
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