SNK CEO Kenji Matsubara Steps Down Amid Underwhelming Launch of Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves

SNK Corporation has announced that CEO Kenji Matsubara will be stepping down from his leadership position. He will move to an advisory role where he will "continue to lend his expertise and vision" to the company.

This leadership change comes shortly after the release of Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, the first new game in the popular fighting series in 26 years. Despite heavy marketing efforts, the game appears to have underperformed in sales.

According to the company statement, "During his tenure as CEO, Matsubara has been instrumental in driving the company's growth and innovation." The board praised his contributions, noting that he "transformed SNK by expanding its development division and strengthening its sales and marketing functions, building it into a global publisher capable of competing worldwide."

Matsubara joined SNK in 2021 after an impressive career in the gaming industry. Before SNK, he served as president and chief publishing officer at Sega, where he worked from 2014 until his resignation in 2020, citing "personal reasons." His experience also includes 9 years as president and CEO of Tecmo Koei and leading the Japanese branch of mobile developer Zynga.

The timing of this leadership change has raised eyebrows in the gaming community. Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves was released on April 24, 2025, and Matsubara's transition was announced on May 12 - less than three weeks after the game's launch.

The new Fatal Fury game received substantial marketing investment, with advertisements appearing during WWE's WrestleMania weekend and across various digital platforms. The game even featured soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo as a playable character and boasted a soundtrack created by world-renowned DJs.

Despite these efforts, early sales figures suggest the game hasn't met expectations. Steam statistics show the game reached a peak player count of only 4,674. In Japan, one of SNK's key markets, the PlayStation version reportedly sold just 10,000 copies by the end of its second week, as per Famitsu.

The board has now appointed the Chairman to serve as interim CEO while expressing "deepest gratitude to Matsubara for his dedication and leadership during a transformative period in the company's history."

SNK's statement concluded with assurance that the company "remains committed to its strategic vision and is excited about the future as it enters this new phase of leadership."

As the dust settles, the gaming community now watches closely: Will Fatal Fury find its footing post-launch, or does this leadership shift hint at a broader pivot for SNK’s long-term roadmap?