Shinji Mikami thought Tango Gameworks would be safe from closure if they made Hi-Fi Rush games

rockpapershotgun.com:

Shinji Mikami, founder of Tango Gameworks, thought the studio would be "safe as long as they continued to make Hi-Fi Rush games." Mikami was asked about the studio's closure by Microsoft earlier this year, and its revival under new owners Krafton at Gamescom last month.

"I had thought the studio would be safe as long as they continued to make Hi-Fi Rush games. That’s one of the reasons I left Tango Gameworks. So I was surprised when the studio was closed down," Mikami told IGN.

"Now Krafton has taken over the business, so I feel like it worked out well in the end. I was reminded that if you make a good game, someone will pick it up. The hard work of the Hi-Fi Rush development team led to a new chapter for the company. I think that for a development studio, making a good game is more directly related to survival than making a popular game."

Mikami was being interviewed alongside fellow designer Goichi Suda, who called Tango Gamework's closure "a bolt from the blue." Suda and Mikami worked together on Shadows Of The Damned, remaster of which is being released later this year.

Mikami is best known for his work in the survival horror genre, directing Resident Evils 1 and 4 at Capcom and the Evil Within series at Tango Gameworks. He's spoken previously about wanting to leave Tango Gameworks long before he did in order to move away from the genre. It makes sense that he'd see the critical success of Hi-Fi Rush - a game which he mentored but did not direct - as the opportunity for him to leave with the studio's future secured.

Microsoft announced that they were closing Tango Gameworks alongside other layoffs and studio closures in May this year. In August, publisher Krafton acquired the studio and the IP rights to Hi-Fi Rush, with plans to hire back some of the studio's staff.