Resident Evil Creator Joins Forces With Stellar Blade Developer
- Shift Up acquires Unbound, gaining full ownership and publishing rights for future titles.
- Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami brings decades of AAA experience to the studio.
- The move signals a major push into global console and PC markets with original IP.
Shift Up has confirmed the full acquisition of Unbound, the Tokyo-based studio led by Shinji Mikami. The deal includes full ownership and publishing rights, giving Shift Up direct control over the studio’s upcoming projects across console and PC.
Shift Up first rose to popularity with Goddess of Victory: Nikke in 2022, before stepping into the console space with Stellar Blade in 2024. Mikami, known for directing landmark titles such as Resident Evil, Resident Evil 4, and The Evil Within, has played a defining role in shaping modern survival horror.
Shift Up CEO Hyung-Tae Kim said, in an official announcement: “I find it deeply meaningful to join forces with Unbound, which brings together a world-class development team led by CEO Shinji Mikami. This acquisition will serve as an opportunity to deliver the best gaming experience to users worldwide and further solidify Shift Up’s global development competitiveness.”
For his part, Mikami said “I sense strong synergy with CEO Kim, who is also an active creator, and I believe this is an ideal partnership that allows us to focus on creativity. We will do our best to create fun games so that both companies, working as one, can meet our fans’ expectations.”
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A Match Made In Gaming Heaven
Mikami, the man who also gave the world Dino Crisis and Devil May Cry, has been playing hard to get since leaving Tango Gameworks in 2023. While early rumors suggested he was starting a tiny boutique outfit called Kamuy, it turns out he had much grander ambitions. His real project, Unbound, has been secretly operating in Tokyo with a clear mission: making massive, high-budget games that are actually fun to play.
Since starting in 2013, Shift Up has steadily climbed from mobile hits like Goddess of Victory: Nikke to premium console releases like Stellar Blade. Now, by integrating Unbound, the company has one of the industry’s most respected directors and a highly experienced team on the payroll to accelerate its expansion into the global market.
For Mikami, it is a return to the big leagues without the corporate baggage of a massive Western publisher. Prior to this merger, Unbound had been hiring like crazy to build AAA original IP that aims to reflect Mikami’s past hits, where innovation and refinement were the whole point. While details on what would have been Unbound’s flagship game are thin on the ground, what is known is that the studio actually has multiple projects in development.
Shift Up Moves Forward With Project Spirits
Shift Up is not just banking on Mikami’s Unbound projects either. The studio is simultaneously ramping up production on Project Spirits—the ambitious title formerly known as Project Witches. While Unbound handles the Mikami-led projects, Shift Up is actively recruiting development staff to transform Project Spirits into a cross-platform blockbuster.
The game is described as an urban fantasy action RPG that utilizes Unreal Engine 5 to deliver high-fidelity visuals across PC, consoles, and mobile. With the rebranding from Project Witches to Project Spirits, the studio is signaling a shift toward a more expansive, spirit-focused universe that aims to replicate the worldwide success of Stellar Blade.
Between Miami’s horror-action DNA and the internal push for Project Spirits, Shift Up seems hungry to dominate every sub-genre of the action market at once.
