Square Enix CTO Yoshihisa Hashimoto leaves company

Square Enix CTO Yoshihisa Hashimoto has left the company citing personal reasons, Japanese site Game Watch reports. Hashimoto served as tech director on the successfully rebooted Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, and was overseeing development of the company's new Luminous Studio engine, which was first unveiled in 2011. According to the Game Watch report, Square Enix has put senior engineer Remi Driancourt in charge of its Advanced Technology Division and the Luminous Studio project, while Hideyuki Kasuga, lead programmer on Final Fantasy XIV, will take over as that game's technical director. Hashimoto will continue to advise the company after his departure. The Luminous Studio engine powers the "Agni's Philosophy" demo embedded in this story, which the company detailed at E3 2012, and plays some part in the development of the upcoming Final Fantasy XV, though it was originally developed using a different, custom engine.