Akihiko Yoshida leaves Square Enix after 18 years

The veteran artist who created characters for games like Final Fantasy: Tactics and Bravely Default has left Square Enix after 18 years with the company.

Akihiko Yoshida joined Square Soft in 1995 and nearly two decades later his portfolio includes work on Final Fantasy Tactics, Tactics Ogre, Vagrant Story, Final Fantasy XII, Final Fantasy XIV, and Bravely Default.

Yoshida’s creativity doesn’t stop with his art either – he chose to announce his departure in an art book, “The Art of Bravely”, that came with recently released Bravely Default: For the Sequel in Japan.

“This is a personal message of mine, but I’d like to say thank you for all the support these past 18 years,” Yoshida wrote, as translated by Silicon Era.

“I have decided to leave Square Enix, but I believe our relationship will continue going on.”

This apparently means that Yoshida has gone freelance and either expects or already has a contract with Square for the upcoming sequel, Bravely Second.

“And as long as I’m needed [laughs ,] I will continue working on the Bravely Default series,” he continued. “Thank you for your continued support.”