Rumble Roses character designer Shiro Kotobuki has passed away

Shiro Kotobuki, the artist behind character designs in the Rumble Roses series of fighting games, has died.

Kotobuki was left paralyzed from the neck down as the result of a road accident while he was at college, and started painting during his rehabilitation, learning to operate a digital brush with his mouth.

He went on to design the roster of games including Konami’s original Rumble Roses and Rumble Roses XX.

Kotobuki passed away two weeks ago from heart disease, his nephew announced on Facebook. He was 47.