It was announced recently this week by Rabbit & Bear Studios that the studio head and scenario writer Yoshitaka Murayama passed away on February 6. The website details that the cause of his death was due to complications with an ongoing illness. The statement did not release full details about the said illness.
Murayama was in the process of working on the spiritual success of his well-loved Suikoden games, titled Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes. He is credited as the game designer and scenario writer. The announcement revealed that his work as a scenario writer for the game has concluded and they are saddened that he wouldn’t be able to witness the fans’ reaction when the game is released.
The studio will continue on preserving Murayama’s legacy and vision in the game and more information about the studio’s organizational changes and Kickstarter rewards will be announced in a later time. The studio also relayed the Murayama’s family’s appreciation for the and fan support. They family however requests some privacy during this very difficult time and requests for now mail, flowers, and any kind of offerings will be sent to them.
The role-playing game Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes (Hyaku Eiyūden) is slated to release on April 23 on the following platforms: PC via Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Epic Games. It was originally slated to be published last year but was moved to the second quarter of 2024 as the studio wants “ensure the best possible story” and “best game experience.”
The Kickstarter campaign for the game is the third most-funded game on the platform raising 481,621,841 yen (US$4,571,418) in August 2020. This is also the first collaboration with fellow Suikoden I character designer Junko Kawano in 25 years. Murayama was credited for writing the script while Kawano is credited as character designer.
The first Suikoden game was released in 1995 for the Sony PlayStation. Its sequel game was released in 1998, which followed five more installments and five spin-off games. Game publisher Konami announced in 2022 that they are working on a remastered version of Suikoden I and II. No further details yet as of press time for its release date.
