Veteran Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts producer Shinji Hashimoto has departed Square Enix after 27 years.
Breaking the news on social media (via Twitter translate), Hashimoto announced his plans to retire and leave the company on May 31, 2022, and said he intended to keep supporting Square Enix as a fan.
The long-serving producer joined Square Enix in 1995. During his tenure, he worked as a producer or executive producer on almost every single entry in the Final Fantasy franchise from Final Fantasy VII onwards.
He also helped create the Kingdom Hearts franchise, working on the series from its inception in 2002 through to the release of Kingdom Hearts III in 2019.
Hashimoto racked up other notable credits, working as an executive producer on additional projects including The Last Remnant, Chrono Trigger, and The World Ends with You.