NetEase is reportedly considering withdrawal as Toshihiro Nagoshi searches for new investors to complete the ambitious crime drama.
A lot of the time, companies help pay the people who make games. Without steady support, the future of even the most promising projects can change at any time. That might be the case with Toshihiro Nagoshi’s new game, Gang of Dragon, which is coming out soon.
After Nagoshi left Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio in 2021, he founded Nagoshi Studio. The experienced developer made the long-running Yakuza game, which is what most people know them for. To make big video games for people all over the world, Nagoshi set out to make his new business.
Gang of Dragon was announced as one of these projects at The Game Awards 2025.
Fans were thrilled by the news and couldn’t wait to see what Nagoshi would create next that wasn’t part of the Yakuza series. The story is about a man named Shin Ji-seong, who is a high-ranking member of a Korean crime group. The game takes place in a busy Tokyo nightlife area.
The story is about the fights for power in the criminal underground and the complicated relationships that people who are stuck there form with each other. The idea is a lot like the dark storytelling style that made Nagoshi’s earlier games so popular. It has both crime dramas and stories about people in crowded towns.
Funding Challenges Threaten the Project’s Future.
On the other hand, new stories say that the project may have had a big problem. It is said that NetEase, the publisher that has been funding growth, is thinking about stopping giving money. It is said that the company made the decision after finding that it would cost an extra 4 billion yen, or $7 billion, to finish making the game.
Even for big businesses, that’s a lot of money to spend on a project that’s still being worked on. To finish the game, Nagoshi needs to find new backers, if what the news says is true. It can be hard to get funds for a project that is only partially finished because possible partners want to be sure that the extra costs of development will pay off in the end.
This means that companies often have to make tough decisions. To save money, they could scale back the project, delay growth while they look for new partners, or, worst case, just throw it all out. For fans who were excited about Gang of Dragon, the situation remains uncertain. Until a new funding solution emerges, the future of Nagoshi’s ambitious crime-themed title remains unclear.
