Kotaro Uchikoshi 成立新游戏工作室 CRASH KEYS

Zero Escape and AI: The Somnium Files creator Kotaro Uchikoshi has announced and opened his new game studio, CRASH KEYS. CRASH KEYS draws on Uchikoshi’s extensive experience and unique creative vision with new original projects in the works. New details about the upcoming projects will be revealed at a later date. 

CRASH KEYS is looking for investment partners who share the studio’s vision and help grow its projects. Information about the studio’s business strategy, project concepts, and investment opportunities are available upon request to interested companies and investors. 

The studio’s tagline reads, “Some locks can only be opened with broken keys. All creation begins with destruction. Crash your rusty old keys. Beyond the door lies a world yet unseen. We CRASH KEYS. Shattering conventions to unlock the unknown.”

The founding members of CRASH KEYS include:

Kotaro Uchikoshi (CEO and Deadass Underrated Director)

A delightfully offbeat game designer known for unconventional adventure titles such as Ever17, the Zero Escape series, and the AI: The Somnium Files series. His inventive narratives combine intricate branching structures, mind-bending twists, sci-fi and philosophical themes, earning him acclaim worldwide.

One of his signature works, 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, won IGN’s “Best DS Story” award in 2010. Its sequel, Virtue’s Last Reward, also garnered numerous accolades from international gaming media, including GameSpot’s “Handheld Game of the Year” award in 2012. The game was even nominated for “Best Narrative” at the prestigious 2013 Game Developers Choice Awards, further cementing his international reputation.

A founding member of Too Kyo Games, he served as scenario director on The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, released in 2025. The game received an “Award for Excellence” at the Japan Game Awards 2025, as well as the “Scenario” and “Rookie” awards at the Famitsu Dengeki Game Awards 2025. It also earned nominations for “Best Storytelling” at the Golden Joystick Awards 2025 and “Best Writing in a Game” at the New York Game Awards 2026, receiving widespread acclaim in Japan and around the world.

Akira Mine (Would-Be Anonymous Writer)

After years of writing RPG scenarios at a certain company, they’ve recently worked on The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy and Danganronpa 2×2. When it comes to character portrayals and dialogue, they’re the type of writer who keeps rewriting until they’re completely satisfied. They’re particular about their craft, but their wallet is entirely at the mercy of their faves.

Perhaps because they follow their curiosity wherever it leads, their own life is the one thing that never seems to go according to script, which is a bit of a headache. Still, they’re having a pretty good time.

Muri Sasaki (Murderously Riveting Scriptwriter)

In addition to writing for anime and games, they work on indie games based on their own original concepts and scripts, including Seifuku no Ojisama and Hornet the Vanguard.

They also contributed to designing the gameplay sections of Uchikoshi’s Zero Escape and AI: The Somnium Files series.

With the wonderfully selfish mindset of putting their characters through trials while keeping as much peace and quiet as possible for themselves, they craft stories filled with surprises and heart.

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