Key People

Yuzo Koshiro

Composer · Programmer · Co-founder of Ancient Inc.

Born December 12, 1967, Yuzo Koshiro is widely considered one of the most gifted composers in video game history. A child prodigy who began programming at age ten, he co-founded Ancient Inc. with his sister Ayano to create games and music that matched his uncompromising artistic vision. His Streets of Rage trilogy remains his most celebrated work.

Koshiro's genius lay not merely in his musical sensibility but in his technical mastery. Rather than using the commercial music tools available in the early 1990s, he wrote his own sequencer software in C on an NEC PC-88 computer. This bespoke tool gave him control over the Yamaha YM2612 FM synthesis chip at a level no commercial application could approach - and the results speak for themselves.

"I was listening to a lot of dance music from Detroit and the UK. The Mega Drive chip was capable of that kind of sound if you understood how to control the FM parameters at a low level. Most composers at the time were using the chip like a simple synthesiser - I wanted to use it like a proper studio instrument." - Yuzo Koshiro, Red Bull Music Academy

Motohiro Kawashima

Composer · Ancient Inc.

Motohiro Kawashima co-composed the soundtracks for Streets of Rage 2 and Streets of Rage 3 alongside Yuzo Koshiro. While Koshiro's tracks tend to be the most analysed, Kawashima's contributions added stylistic breadth to both soundtracks. His tracks on SoR2 - including some of the more atmospheric and experimental pieces - complement Koshiro's dominant techno/house direction with variety and texture.

Working within the framework Koshiro established, Kawashima demonstrated his own mastery of FM synthesis composition, producing tracks that sit comfortably within both soundtracks' distinctive identities.

Ayano Koshiro

Game Designer · Producer · Co-founder of Ancient Inc.

Ayano Koshiro co-founded Ancient Inc. with her brother Yuzo and has been instrumental in the development of the company's titles. As a game designer and producer, she shaped the design philosophy of Streets of Rage 2 and Streets of Rage 3, helping to balance the expanded mechanics and character rosters that defined both games.

The Koshiro sibling partnership - Yuzo handling music and technical implementation while Ayano focused on game design and production - was one of the most productive collaborations in 16-bit gaming.

Noriyoshi Ohba

Director · Sega AM7

Noriyoshi Ohba directed the original Streets of Rage for Sega AM7, establishing the foundations of the series. His direction created the template for the vigilante beat 'em up that Ancient would later build upon - the three-character roster, the urban crime narrative, the two-player co-op focus, and the emphasis on variety across eight distinct stages.