Shinji Mikami opening new Tokyo-based studio, Tango
Shinji Mikami didn't just have a hand in bringing the Viewtiful Joe and Devil May Cry series to gamers. He also helped create the survival horror genre in 1996 through Resident Evil -- so the dude has a pretty impressive resume. Now, he's working with Platinum Games on Vanquish, the upcoming sci-fi shooter set in a fictional future United States in the grip of a cold war with Russia.
According to an interview in this week's Famitsu magazine (via 1UP), Mikami's also working on opening a new independent studio called Tango. His current studio, Straight Story, was formed in 2006 (shortly before Seeds shut its doors and became Platinum Games) and is currently contracted to work on Vanquish and that action-horror project with Grasshopper Manufacture. Upon completion of Vanquish, Straight Story will "fold up" and Mikami will focus on the now 13-strong Tango. Mikami wants to see Tango "grow to 100 people or so in five to seven years."
After Vanquish, Mikami will relocate from his current digs in Osaka to Tokyo, where he hopes to recruit some of the young up-and-comers Japan has to offer. As for Tango's first project, that's still up in the air. "I'd like to make a choice with the rest of the team as we grow our numbers," he said. "I've been speaking with a number of publishers as well, but we haven't signed any contracts yet."
