The name Kadokawa has been appearing across headlines lately, but many gamers may not know exactly why. While the company isn’t as recognisable as Nintendo, PlayStation, or FromSoftware itself, it sits at the centre of Japan’s entertainment industry. However, it’s also currently embroiled in one of the biggest shareholder disputes in the country. As battles between investors and high-ranking executives heat up, would all of this controversy affect Kadokawa Corporation’s most popular subsidiary — FromSoftware — creative freedom? Potentially influencing how the studio works on The Duskbloods or its next big project after Elden Ring?
Kadokawa Controversy Explained, and FromSoftware’s Response
The dispute centres on Oasis Management, a Hong Kong-based activist investment fund that recently became Kadokawa Corporation’s largest shareholder — surpassing Sony by increasing its stake to 13.76% in March 2026. Oasis has been publicly critical of the company’s leadership and launched a ‘Better Kadokawa Campaign.’ It encourages shareholders to vote against the current president, Takeshi Natsuno, at Kadokawa’s upcoming 24 June annual general meeting.
According to the fund, since 2020, Kadokawa has been ‘underutilizing’ its IPs, with FromSoftware being its most valuable subsidiary, but it isn’t generating as much profit as it could. It argues that the studio relies too heavily on external publishers such as Bandai Namco for Elden Ring, Nintendo for The Duskbloods, and Activision for Sekiro. These deals with third parties are said to allow those companies to take a sizeable cut of revenue, and FromSoftware should’ve aggressively self-publish its own games to maximize profit instead.
Kadokawa, however, disagrees. The company says publishing arrangements differ from project to project and can’t simply be replaced overnight. Domestically in Japan, too, FromSoftware takes care of all its publishing efforts. Kadokawa has expressed interest in expanding self-publishing as well, but it argues that such a transition needs to happen gradually.
Naturally, that has sparked concerns among fans. If shareholders start demanding higher revenue and profits, could that eventually lead to tighter corporate oversight or pressure on FromSoftware’s famously uncompromising design philosophy? The studio’s president and Elden Ring director doesn’t seem particularly worried.
Hidetaka Miyazaki addressed that concern when asked by Japanese outlet Denfaminicogamer. Miyazaki said he is generally satisfied with the studio’s current development environment and that developers are able to create the games they want ‘without excessive interference.’
“I am generally satisfied with the development environment that FromSoftware currently has. […] we are able to create the games we want to make freely without excessive interference,” explained Miyazaki. “I believe that maintaining such an environment in the future, allowing us to focus solely on game development as much as possible, is of utmost importance to both myself personally and to FromSoftware as a whole.”
Miyazaki’s comments appear to have eased concerns among FromSoftware and Elden Ring fans, at least for now. But to understand why the Kadokawa controversy has attracted so much attention in the first place, it helps to understand just how influential the company is within Japan’s entertainment industry.
What Is Kadokawa Corporation? Quick Overview of the Japanese Conglomerate
For many avid gamers, the Kadokawa name is best known as FromSoftware’s parent company. However, gaming represents only a small slice of what it actually does. Founded in 1945 by its namesake Genyoshi Kadokawa, it began as a traditional publishing company focused on books and magazines. But over the following decades, it successfully expanded into manga, light novels, anime, games, and even film, eventually becoming one of Japan’s largest entertainment conglomerates.
The Tokyo-based company is the publisher for the famous Famitsu and ASCII Media Works gaming magazines. But it’s particularly influential in the anime and light novel industries, publishing many of Japan’s biggest franchises, including:
- Re:Zero – Starting Life in Another World.
- KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World!
- The Rising of the Shield Hero.
- Overlord.
- Sword Art Online.
- Oshi no Ko.
In gaming, Kadokawa acquired FromSoftware in 2014; however, it’s far from the company’s only game developer. It owns Spike Chunsoft, best known for Danganronpa, as well as Acquire, the studio behind the Way of the Samurai series. The company has also collaborated extensively with Cygames, the creator of Umamusume: Pretty Derby and Granblue Fantasy.
Nevertheless, this isn’t the first time Kadokawa has found itself at the centre of a major controversy. In 2022, former chairman Tsuguhiko Kadokawa was arrested in connection with a corruption scandal surrounding the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Prosecutors alleged that the company paid approximately ¥69 million, or around £321,000, in bribes to secure favourable treatment as an official sponsor.
That history helps explain why Kadokawa’s latest controversy has attracted so much attention. The company sits at the intersection of publishing, anime, and gaming. No doubt any major shake-up to its leadership might lead to ramifications far beyond a single industry. And because of its position as FromSoftware’s parent company, Elden Ring fans and gamers are now paying close attention to how this will all unfold.
