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Uma Musume Producer Akihiro Ishihara Leaves Franchise, Cygames
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
The official website for Cygames' Uma Musume Pretty Derby franchise announced on Wednesday that the franchise's content producer Akihiro Ishihara resigned from his position and from Cygames as of the end of April. Ishihara said in a message that he began working on the franchise in 2016, when the franchise only had the main characters Special Week and Silence Suzuka. He said that he sees a bright future ahead for the franchise, and that he saw it as a good time to step down as content producer.
The franchise's concept begins with Uma Musume (Horse Girls), girls endowed with excellent running capability, and who aim to become top idols and compete in the national sports entertainment show "Twinkle Series." Players take the role of both teacher and trainer for the girls in the Nihon Uma Musume Training Center Gakuen (Japan Horse Girls Training Center Academy) and help them make their debut.
The franchise has a planned smartphone game that was originally slated for release last winter, but was delayed. The 13-episode Uma Musume Pretty Derby television anime in the franchise premiered in April 2018. Crunchyroll streamed the series as it aired in Japan. Jet Kuma and Satoshi Itō's Umayon spinoff four-panel manga is also inspiring an anime project.
Prior to working on Uma Musume Pretty Derby, Ishihara worked on The IDOLM@STER franchise. Ishihara directed the original 2005 The IDOLM@STER arcade game, and directed most of the various incarnations of the game on arcades, consoles, and smartphones until he resigned from Bandai Namco Entertainment in January 2016.
