New Game from Yakuza Creator In Jeopardy as NetEase Plans to Pull Funding

The 2025 Game Awards brought us plenty of exciting new announcements and trailers. But for Yakuza fans, there was a clear frontrunner. Gang of Dragon, a new action-adventure game from Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi, made its debut during the Game Awards last year. The game made an impression with its gritty, action-packed trailer. Now, however, fans have reason to worry that Gang of Dragon may join the disappointing ranks of canceled games.

Gang of Dragon is being developed by Toshihiro Nagoshi’s studio, Nagoshi Studio. The studio is a part of NetEase, which has been funding the game’s development so far. However, a new report from Bloomberg reveals that NetEase plans to stop funding Nagoshi Studio starting in May. Unless the studio can secure new funding, this may mean that Nagoshi Studio will have to shut down and that Gang of Dragon could be canceled. Here’s what we know.

Gang of Dragon At Risk of Cancelation As Nagoshi Studio Loses NetEase Funding

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Nagoshi Studio was founded in 2021, when Nagoshi left Sega to pursue independent projects. The studio soon secured funding from NetEase, the publisher best known for live service titles like Marvel Rivals. But like many gaming businesses, NetEase has begun scaling back its operations. And that apparently includes the decision to stop sponsoring Nagoshi Studio and Gang of Dragon.

While disappointing, it’s not entirely surprising to see NetEase pivot away from a game like Gang of Dragon. Many of the biggest and most successful games under the NetEase umbrella are more live-service, gacha-focused titles like Where Winds Meet, Destiny Rising, and Marvel Rivals. A single-player action-adventure release like Gang of Dragon would be something out of the ordinary for the publisher. And now it seems that NetEase doesn’t want to take the risk in the current economic climate.

According to Bloomberg, the decision to stop funding Nagoshi Studio is largely due to the fact that completing Gang of Dragon will be more expensive than NetEase initially expected. The game is likely still fairly early in development, as we saw just a teaser trailer at The Game Awards, with few other details revealed. As of now, Gang of Dragon is not officially canceled. Instead, Nagoshi is working to secure new funding for his independent studio and its first game. This includes negotiating with NetEase regarding existing game materials.

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For now, we don’t know what this means for the future of the action-adventure game. From the sounds of it, Nagoshi is working to salvage the project. But this will likely require a new funder to acquire the rights to existing materials while also footing the bill for remaining development. NetEase has reportedly already made it clear that Nagoshi Studio must “pay its way out” if it wants to continue developing Gang of Dragon independently. And given the scope of the project, that won’t be cheap.

With his Yakuza track record, there’s no doubt fans are eager to see what Nagoshi can do with Gang of Dragon. In fact, there are already over 12K wishlists on Steam with just the one teaser trailer revealed. But whether this excitement from the Yakuza fanbase translates to a major publisher backing the project in a time where many gaming divisions are scaling back is a pretty big open question.

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