Previously working at Netease-owned Ouka Studios, Visions of Mana director Ryosuke Yoshida is hired by Square Enix.

Visions of Mana director Ryosuke Yoshida has announced that he left the NetEase-owned Ouka Studios on the 31st October, and that he's now working at Square Enix. Of course, Square Enix published Visions of Mana to begin with, so the move makes sense.

Visions of Mana director Ryosuke Yoshida has departed the game's development studio Ouka in order to join up with Square Enix.

Although the Mana series is owned by Square Enix and it published Visions of Mana, it was developed by the NetEase-owned Ouka Studios. However, following the game’s release on August 29, it was reported that NetEase had “cut all but a handful of jobs” at Ouka and planned to close the studio.

Visions of Mana director Ryosuke Yoshida has departed NetEase to assume a new position with Square Enix. In a statement on X/Twitter, Yoshida thanked NetEase and his development team for their support, but confirmed he quit the Chinese megacorp at the end of October and will join Square Enix in December.

Visions of Mana is the latest game in the cult-favorite Mana series, and just one of the many JRPGs from Square Enix released in 2024. It earned mostly positive praise from longtime fans, but now the game director behind the title has announced that he's transitioning to a new role at Square Enix after leaving developer Ouka Studios behind.