Yukinori Taniguchi

is a Japanese businessperson and auto racing driver. He founded Yuke's, a video game developer company, in Sakai, Osaka in 1993.

Early career

Taniguchi enthused about the game production at high school days and contracted with game company in Hiroshima thus he began professional career. He graduated from the high school in 1989 through studying in the United States and became the chief of the Osaka development department of Compile at the same time when he entered into Osaka Prefecture University (Engineering).

Yuke's

Professional wrestling

In 1993, Taniguchi founded his own company, Yuke's, at his apartment in Sakai, Osaka. He developed about 20 games until his graduation from the university. After the graduation, he hit on the development of professional wrestling games to make use of 3D graphics performance of PlayStation thus his company's Toukon Retsuden, put on the market from Tomy in 1995, succeeded and came to became a series.

The success of the Toukon Retsuden series made Yuke's obtain capital and the company developed Evil Zone the first game to sell under the name of the Yuke's. The game did not succeed in Japan but the loss has recovered by sales in foreign countries.

Because of the experience, he determined to aim at an United States market and developed WWF SmackDown!. The game that had been put on the market in 2000 not only was sold 2 million in the United States but also made success also in Japan. In Japan, the game contributed to the eminence improvement of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) that was the base of the game.

In 2005, Taniguchi bought a part of the stocks of New Japan Pro Wrestling that slumping business, and supporting management ardently. This action has raised his eminence among the professional wrestling fan in Japan.

Motorsports

Taniguchi supported Nobushige Kumakubo's Team Orange (Team Yuke's) in the D1 Grand Prix and Yuke's developed game series of the event.

He entered in some spec racing series as a driver. In 2005, he competed in Super Taikyu on Nissan 350Z with Tarzan Yamada and became series champion. In 2007, he competed in the Japan Le Mans Challenge, and won a race and became runner-up in the season.

On August 1, 2008, it was announced that Taniguchi entered World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) in the last stage of the 2008 season. [cite news | url =http://www.fiawtcc.com/fiawtcc/sport_sto1651973.shtml | title = JAPANESE DRIVER JOINS THOMPSON | publisher =World Touring Car Championship official website | pages = | page = | date =2008-08-01 | accessdate =2008-08-01 | language =]

References

External links

* [http://www.yukes.co.jp/hp/ir/?COM=ir_c_president As president of Yuke's] - ja
* [http://hercules.ose.or.jp/club/interview/cl-in-4334.html The Hercules Interview: Yukinori Taniguchi] - ja