GhostWire: Tokyo dev who gave us the feel-good moment of E3 has left the project

Ikumi Nakamura at E3 — (Image credit: Future)

GhostWire: Tokyo creative director Ikumi Nakamura made a big and very positive splash when she presented the announcement trailer during Bethesda's press conference at E3 2019. "Everything about her presentation was perfect, from her groan-inducing jokes and nervous comments about the number of people in the audience to the dance she did before revealing the GhostWire: Tokyo trailer," we said in our description of her wonderfully wholesome moment on the stage. "It was a ray of sunshine in an otherwise mundane conference."

The game itself looks good too. It's an "action-adventure game in which you'll fight paranormal enemies and rid the city of supernatural evil," which isn't the most original idea ever, but the trailer was stylish as hell and "spooky" without tripping into outright horror. What kind of game GhostWire will actually be isn't know yet, but Nakamura said that gameplay will be different from the survival-horror style that developer Tango Gameworks is known for.

Overall, it was a very successful presentation for a promising game, which is why it seems so strange that just a few months later, she's moving on to other things.

After 9 years as Creative director & Art Director at Tango and Zenimax - I felt here is one of ends of the journeys . I learned from the talented people I've worked with and I respect. 🙏😊 Contact me if anyone wants to work with me! →　https://t.co/4VKLdY2ejl pic.twitter.com/Hbsuta3RgoSeptember 4, 2019

The tweet is a little muddled thanks to the language barrier, but Bethesda confirmed that Nakamura has left the studio and is no longer working on GhostWire: Tokyo. "We can confirm that Nakamura-san has decided to leave Tango and we wish her the best of luck in whatever is next for her," a rep said. "Tango continues to be led by the legendary Shinji Mikami and his talented team in the development of Ghostwire: Tokyo. We look forward to sharing more on what they’re creating in the coming months."

"I DO NOT want to forget appreciation and respect to everything," Nakamura wrote in a followup tweet. "I've also decided to proceed to the new world I can keep myself happy and somebody require me. Now the huge world is showing me infinite possibilities, like an open world video game. Life in NOT linear. :)"

The entire world is kind of a very balanced puzzle. Don't miss even a small piece, I believe. Things are multifaceted. You might not believe something I believe. The reverse is also true. To somebody everything that’s happening in the world appears phony. 🧐September 4, 2019

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.