Kenichi Sato has stepped down as the president and CEO of Bayonetta and Nier: Automata developer Platinum Games.

Platinum announced the news on its Japanese website (via Gematsu) and explained that Sato will remain on the Platinum board as an advisor moving forward.

Sato, who officially stepped down at the end of December and held the role since April 2016, will be replaced by company vice president Atsushi Inaba.

Outlining his approach to leadership in a letter from the president, Inaba said the Japanese company would continue to create games that deliver "innovative forms of play."

"That is the belief PlatinumGames was founded on. That is something that will never change. Games come in all different styles for all different kinds of people. At their nature, they are a true expression of liberty: thoughts come together freely to create an idea, to expand upon it, and then, to actually play it," continued Inaba.

"The real enjoyment from games comes from the freedom given to both the creator and user – which is why I believe them to be such an amazing form of entertainment. Approaching “fun” with complete sincerity has always been important to me. I believe every one of our staff take pride that they are entertainers, always attempting the perfect balance between play and professionalism."