Monster Hunter Director Replaces Capcom's Old Fighting Game Boss

It's been a busy year for Capcom, between the skyrocketing popularity of Monster Hunter: World and the constant upkeep of Street Fighter V. It seems that after the events of the last few years, the game company is looking to switch things up internally. Fighting games division head Yoshinori Ono is being replaced with Monster Hunter producer Ryozo Tsujimoto.

This recent employee shift was a long time coming, once you saw the signs. Back in 2014, Tsujimoto was promoted to Corporate Officer Head of Consumer Games Development Division 3 and he acted as General Manager of Department 3. Monster Hunter, at the time, was a smash hit in Japan. Tsujimoto's efforts would prove effective in later years, with the launch of Monster Hunter: World putting the franchise in the American eye like never before.

On the other side of Capcom's pool is Ono, Head of Consumer Games Development Division 2. Division 2 was their fighting game division. He would take a temporary leave in 2012 due to health issues, which delayed but ultimately did not hinder his career, as he held the title three years later. A far more influential event that set back his career was the lukewarm (practically abysmal) Street Fighter V launch in 2016, with the follow-up release of Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite in late 2017. The former, while selling over 2 million copies, failed to meet the sales goals set by the company. The latter did even worse - most in the fighting game community considered the fighting game a failure.

Not long after Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite's release, Ono's official job title would be changed to "General Manager of Department 2, Consumer Games Development Division 3" while Tsujimoto would be promoted to "Managing Corporate Officer, Head of Consumer Games Development Division 2 and Mobile Online Development Division" in April 2018.

So in short, The guy behind Monster Hunter: World is now the head of Capcom's fighting game division. While it isn't certain what this means for the future of games like Street Fighter, it's safe to say it won't be the same.

Source: Capcom Investor Relations Portal