Gimmick 2
Image: Bitwave Games/Clear River Games

Bitwave Games has issued an apology to Gimmick's creator, director, and designer Tomomi Sakai for not connecting with him prior to the announcement of its sequel, Gimmick! 2.

Clear River Games, Sunsoft, and Bitwave Games announced the sequel during the Limited Run Games Showcase last week for Switch, PS5, PS4, Xbox consoles, and PC, leading some to ask whether Sakai would be involved in its production.

The Japanese developer, however, quickly clarified online that he not only wasn't involved with the new project but that he didn't actually know about the game's existence until it was announced:

"I've been receiving messages about the sequel to Gimmick!. While I'm honored that the original game continues to inspire, I want to clarify I wasn't involved in developing Gimmick!2. The news of this project was a surprise to me as well. Thank you for your support."

Tomomi Sakai
Image: TomomiSakai3

This led to some irate responses from fans, including the following from the YouTuber/streamer Gigaboots, which argued that the creator should have been consulted prior to the development of the sequel:

"Infuriated to hear that the original creator of Gimmick! only found out they were making a sequel DURING THE LIMITED RUN GAMES SHOWCASE. It's already insane to make a sequel to Gimmick! of all things, but to do so without any input from the creator? Disgusting."

Over the weekend, we reached out to Bitwave Games and Clear River Games to hear their side of the story and a spokesperson for Bitwave Games confirmed that neither party had tried to establish contact and recognized they could have handled the situation better:

"I'm sorry to say that neither Bitwave nor Clear River Games reached out to Tomomi Sakai. As huge fans, collaborating with them would have been an honor, but my understanding was that he left the industry years ago. We deeply respect Tomomi Sakai's creativity and acknowledge that Gimmick! 2 wouldn't exist without the inspiration their work provided.

"One of my colleagues has already issued an official apology (attached below). I recognize we could have handled this situation much better."

Gimmick 2 Apology
Image: Bitwave Games

You can read the official apology from Bitwave Games below:

"To clear the air: we owe an apology to Tomomi Sakai. While we licensed the IP for Gimmick!, we failed to connect with its original creator. We deeply respect Tomomi Sakai's work—Gimmick! 2 would not exist without him. In hindsight, we should've done better.
Much love"

Does Sakai not being involved dampen your excitement for the sequel? Or are you still going to pick up the game regardless? Let us know!