Sega's leading game producer.

Born on May 10th, of 1958. Born and raised in Iwate prefecture, Japan. Majored in Electronic Science at Okayama University of Science. Joined Sega Enterprises in 1983.

He joined Sega as a programmer and a producer, and in his second year he created the first in the world simulation arcade game, "Hang On".

After "Hang On", as a pioneer of simulation games, he released many hit titles such as "Out Run".

He also set eyes on the high potentials of CG boards, and was the first to develop a title using the Model 1, a CG board in the forefront of technology at the time.

In 1993, he created a global sensation with the release of "Virtua Fighter", a 3D computer graphics fighting game. This Virtua Fighter series was highly recognized by the Smithsonian Institution, as an application which made great contribution to the society in the field of Art & Entertainment, and for the first time ever in the Japanese Game Industry, became a part of the Smithsonian Institution's Permanent Research Collection on Information Technology Innovation, and is now being kept perpetually at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington D.C.

He vitalized games both culturally, and technologically, and is a meritorious man in the Amusement Industry.

His latest title is "Shenmue Chapter 1 Yokosuka" which is a software for Dreamcast. A brand new genre was created with this title. The grand story, the incredible graphics, and the innovative system far exceeds any previous games.

His latest arcade title is "F355 Challenge", a racing simulator created upon a strong partnership between Ferrari. This game is drawing much attention not only from the game industry, but also from the automobile industry.

Currently, he is creating "Shenmue 2".