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Double Dragon creator Yoshihisa Kishimoto dies at 64: how outlets remembered him

Yoshihisa Kishimoto, the Japanese designer who created Double Dragon and the Kunio-kun series, has died at the age of 64. His son, Ryubo, said he died on 2 April 2026 and that the family held a private funeral, VGC reported. Gematsu said the series' official Kunio-kun account shared the announcement.

Kishimoto began at Data East in the early 1980s, working on the 1984 laserdisc arcade games Cobra Command and Road Blaster. At Technos Japan he designed Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun (1986), released in the West as Renegade, and then Double Dragon. VGC said Kunio-kun introduced belt-scrolling, letting players move freely in all directions, and that its series led to River City Ransom.

“We are deeply grateful for all the kindness you showed him during his lifetime.” — Ryubo, Kishimoto's son, via VGC

How each outlet framed it

• VGC — the inventor of a genre, listing Double Dragon 2, 3 and 4, Super Dodge Ball and the WWF arcade games, with a tribute from WayForward.
• Time Extension — the full career, including China Gate and The Combatribes, his freelance work as Plophet, the company he founded in 2010 and his consulting role on Double Dragon Neon.
• Gematsu — his recent work, directing Double Dragon IV and co-directing Stay Cool, Kobayashi-san!: A River City Ransom Story.

Where the details differ: Gematsu said the son posted on Twitter, while VGC and Time Extension cited Facebook. Time Extension printed the date as “04/02/2026”, which it noted could be read two ways; VGC and Gematsu gave 2 April. No outlet reported a cause of death.