Masashi Hamauzu leaves Square Enix

[Genjuro]

I just saw this link and thought it might be of interest here:

http://kotaku.com/5452476/report-fin...es-square-enix

I guess he may be going freelance, which could be a good thing, what do people think?

[lgb]

hopefully it's like some of the other freelancers where they still hang out at Square a lot anyway

[Kaleb.G]

I don't give a damn about whether he ever goes back to Square or not. Half the games he worked on while he was there were nothing special anyway. I'd rather see him go freelance and compose for some good stuff. Same for Junya Nakano, who got even more of the shaft while he worked for Square in the last several years. I wish 'em the best with whatever comes next.

[Jormungand]

copypasting from another forum...

I knew it would happen some time, but not this soon. But this is perfect timing. And let's face it--the man can do whatever he wants. By now, everyone in the industry knows how much ass Hamauzu kicks.

Also, I'm sure he left the company on good terms. And he'll get picked up for future Square projects, if for no other reason than that they'd be stupid not to. The fact is, they know how much of an asset he was--not just as a composer, but as a highly disciplined musician who could arrange and orchestrate circles around his peers.

But, indeed, SE is now without any notable composers to their name. On the bright side, those who remain will have a greater opportunity shine and perhaps reach the pedigree their predecessors now carry with them as freelancers. Hopefully they're up for the challenge. But as it stands now, I can pretty much guarantee FFXV will be scored by someone outside the company.

[Blitz Lunar]

it's good that he's leaving on a high note. i have heard little FFXIII music at this time, but I'm sure it'll be up to his usual high standards. now he's leaving square i think it'd be nice to hear him work in a non-RPG capacity. his ear for rich harmonies really could lend itself to all sorts of exciting music for a variety of games. guess we'll see.

who does that make the seniormost composer at squareenix now? I thought it was still Junya Nakano but I just found out that he left last year as well :I

[Zanasea]

With so many high profile composers leaving their companies in the past few months (Hamauzu, Nakano, Yamane, Yamaoka...) and years (and most notably Nobuo Uematsu) and the foundation of Ge-On-Dan, the VGM field in Japan is probably moving from employees to freelance composers! It is for the best, I guess.

What saddens me is that many people--even game "journalists"--tend to think they are leaving because they are angry at their companies, not because they want to work as freelance composers.

[Mika]

More power to him.

[lgb]

Originally Posted by Zanasea

What saddens me is that many people--even game "journalists"--tend to think they are leaving because they are angry at their companies, not because they want to work as freelance composers.

this is why you ignore "many people", and "game 'journalists'" especially

[Jormungand]

Originally Posted by Blitz Lunar

who does that make the seniormost composer at squareenix now? I thought it was still Junya Nakano but I just found out that he left last year as well :I

Tsuyoshi Sekito.

[jdkluv]

With the advent of Crystal Bearers, I kinda hope Yamazaki will take a step up. He's certainly been there for many a year. And it turns out he's an awesome composer!

[Ramza]

Originally Posted by lgb

this is why you ignore "many people", and "game 'journalists'" especially

The game journalist in me just shed a tear.

It could very well be "both." Many people that have left S-E over the year have done so with a very clear sense of frustration. Just have a chat with Sakaguchi or Matsuno.

[Zanasea]

Originally Posted by Ramza

Just have a chat with Sakaguchi or Matsuno.

"Many" indeed.

There could be plenty of reasons, I remember Uematsu saying he was tired of going to Shinjuku every day after Square Enix moved their office there.

[Ramza]

Originally Posted by Zanasea

"Many" indeed.

Look, I just quoted two rock stars of RPG-dom. Have you considered the number of "grunt" staff that followed them out the door?

I didn't mention Tetsuya Takahashi and the rest of the Xenogears crew either.

[Zanasea]

As far as composers are concerned, I think only Hiroki Kikuta left Square because he was dissatisfied with their "new" direction (I mean, "new" ten years ago).

[Cedille]

While many people take this rather a positive news, I've thought it would also lead him to more obscure works (like this!) as well as occasional game projects, which I think is a dilemma for his über fans or collectors. As he was involved in at least one Ainu show or concert before even when he still belonged to Square Enix (he also seems to have distributed self-pressed CDs through his very private website, if he was ever Hamauzu), I guess his post-Square Enix career will be, well, more varied yet so personal.