Dissidia Final Fantasy NT and Kingdom Hearts Composer Leaves Square Enix

In this final week of 2017, Dissidia Final Fantasy NT composer Takeharu Ishimoto has announced that he will be departing Square Enix at the end of this year. This is surprising news with the launch of Dissidia still to come in one more month. Ishimoto has a long track record of working with Square Enix that dates back to 2002.

The announcement was made on Ishimoto’s official Twitter earlier today. He tweeted out a photo of him posing with a Dissidia Final Fantasy NT stand, announcing his resignation. Thanks to Siliconera, we have a complete translation of his resignation tweet.

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“I’ve decided to resign from Square Enix where I’ve worked for many years, by the end of the year. I’m resigning of my own free will. Starting next year, I plan to start freelance work. Next year on January 11, Dissidia Final Fantasy NT will also release, so please support that as well. Thank you very much!”

長年在籍したSQUARE ENIXを年内で退職する事になりました。円満退社です。

来年からはフリーランスで仕事する予定です。

来年1/11発売のDISSIDIA Final Fantasy NTもよろしくお願い申し上げます。

ありがとうございました！ #DFF_NT #DFF_A pic.twitter.com/4cinFrykqx

— 石元丈晴 (@ishimoto_music) December 28, 2017

Ishimoto’s final composed title with Square Enix is the long-awaited Dissidia Final Fantasy NT that releases next month. He also worked on all previous Dissidia games in the series. His first title with Square Enix was the 2002 game World Fantasista.

Some of the most notable titles Ishimoto composed include the beloved prequel Crisis Core: Fantasy Final VII, the criminally underappreciated The World Ends With You, Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, and Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. For the full list of 16 titles former Square Enix composer Takeharu Ishimoto worked on, check below: