Yuji Naka’s time with Square Enix is gonna go down in history at this rate. First, the Sonic creator released Balan Wonderworld with the company, a critical and commercial punchline that earned widespread scorn and only a couple ardent defenders. Naka was revealed to have left Squeenix shortly thereafter. Then he claimed he was fired six months before launch and started a lawsuit. And now… he’s in police custody for inside trading related to Dragon Quest. What are the odds!
FNN: Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office arrested 57-year-old game creator Yuji Naka in context of insider trading related to new installment from popular Dragon Quest franchise.https://t.co/KhsPBB676m
— Takashi Mochizuki (@6d6f636869) November 18, 2022
Japan Times offers more details — Naka apparently purchased about 10,000 shares in Aiming (a mobile game development company) for ¥2.8 million (about $25,000 at the time) in January 2020. He did so based on insider information about a Dragon Quest game being jointly developed by Square Enix and Aiming, which is… y’know, illegal. Also arrested for their involvement were Taisuke Sazaki, another former Square employee, and Fumiaki Suzuki, an acquaintance of Sazaki.
Jokes are already out in full force, as Naka’s history of jerkishness (and also people really not liking Balan) has led to many a jest, arguably some schadenfreude. We’ll be sure to report on any updates as they come to light.
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Written by Amelia Fruzzetti
A writer and Nintendo fan based in Seattle, Washington. When not working for NinWire, she can be found eating pasta, writing stories, and wondering about when Mother 3 is finally going to get an official localization.
