Kotaro Uchikoshi is one of the minds behind last year’s incredible visual novel and strategy game The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, but you might also know him for his work on the Zero Escape and AI: The Somnium Files series. It turns out Uchikoshi had been working in secret for the last year on a new game at a new studio he founded, but the reveal of these two pieces of information isn’t good news, as Uchikoshi has taken to social media to reveal that the game the team had been working on has been “suddenly canceled.”
Uchikoshi posted a lengthy Twitter announcement, revealing that he had formed a new studio called Crash Keys in March of 2025 “specializing in video game design, direction, and narrative writing.” He doesn’t get into the specifics of what happened, but he says that the game the developers were working on was canceled and now it doesn’t have any projects lined up. The initial plan was to announce the company alongside the canceled game in 2027, but now, plans have changed and Uchikoshi is asking for clients to reach out with possible work for the team, lest the company “literally crash into a million pieces.” The company now has a website with contact information as Uchikoshi seeks a new project for Crash Keys.
Hi everyone, how's it going? Honestly, I'm not doing well at all… Why, you ask…? Because the game our whole team had poured our hearts and souls into for about a year and a half was suddenly canceled…!! I mean, I lost my job overnight. Talk about a bolt from the blue…
So…
— Kotaro Uchikoshi Eng (@Uchikoshi_Eng) October 14, 2026
My staff and I might end up scraping by selling round stones we pick up down on the river bank. So please, we’re begging you… help us!! You’re our last hope!! We realize this is a lot to ask, but with your support, we sincerely hope to fill this still-empty “WORKS” section with projects we bring to life together.
The company’s member list includes Uchikoshi as well as writer Akira Mine (Hundred Line, Danganronpa 2×2) and scriptwriter Muri Sasaki (Zero Escape, AI: The Somnium Files), so it seems like a small team at this stage, all of whom have been in Hundred Line developer Too Kyo Games’ orbit. Last year, Too Kyo Games CEO and Hundred Line co-lead Kazutaka Kodaka said that the game’s surprise success helped the company stay afloat after accumulating a great deal of debt getting the game out the door; hopefully something swoops in and similarly saves Crash Keys now that its debut project has been shelved.
Update, 10/14/26, 4 p.m. EST: It looks like this might all be a big hoax. Fans are speculating that the cancellation announcement could have actually been the kick-off for an elaborate ARG teaser for a new game, perhaps even a new Zero Escape. That’s because, in searching through the Crash Keys website, folks are finding what appear to be hidden messages and though they look like gibberish at first glance, fans have been working to decode them. One makes a reference to Santa Claus, which is seemingly also a reference to the character Santa from the first Zero Escape game. Elsewhere, one of the messages outright says that the Crash Keys website is a “facade.”
fully cracked:
WE ARE CRASH KEYS, AN ORGANIZATION FORGED TO REWRITE SEVERAL
ILL-FATED FUTURES. WE SEEK COURAGEOUS ALLIES. YOU ALONE CAN
SAVE THE WORLD. WE IMPLORE YOU TO LEND US YOUR STRENGTH.
(1/3) https://t.co/EmQXhU2AEd— Switchpalacecorner (@SwitchPcorner) October 14, 2026
UNDOUBTEDLY BE CARRIED OUT IN THIS UNIVERSE AS WELL. WHAT IS WRITTEN ON THIS SITE IS BUT A FACADE, AND OUR TRUE PURPOSE LIES IN THWARTING THE PLOTS. WE SEEK COURAGEOUS ALLIES. YOU ALONE CAN SAVE THE WORLD. WE IMPLORE YOU TO LEND US YOUR STRENGTH.
— Switchpalacecorner (@SwitchPcorner) October 14, 2026
last Staff entry transposition cipher:
SANTA CLAUS
NUMBER THREE: CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
HE IS ALSO ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF CRASH KEYS. BOTH THE MASTERMIND'S CAPABLE RIGHT HAND AND A DEVOTED BIG BROTHER TO HIS SISTER. HIS SPECIALTIES INCLUDE TRADING STOCKS AND CARING FOR REINDEER.— Switchpalacecorner (@SwitchPcorner) October 14, 2026
As fans have been looking into those hidden messages, Uchikoshi posted a second tweet with a Q&A about the situation, clarifying that he is still part of Too Kyo Games, while also saying that he can’t say anything about the canceled game at this time. He does, however, argue that using AI might have helped the game stay afloat if humans did the creative work while AI handled “tedious tasks.”
Q: Why was the game canceled?
A: I apologize, but I can’t go into the details of that either. But on a more serious note, I think it’s fair to say that major changes in the game development landscape may have played a part. And what brought about those changes? Needless to say… AI (artificial intelligence).Advances in AI have made it possible for people to create games at a much lower cost. To stay competitive, mid-sized game developers like us need to find ways to cut costs. However, these days, using AI to make games is generally frowned upon, isn’t it…? Unfortunately, under these circumstances, we’re fighting a losing battle.
It’s often assumed that using AI could cause creators to lose their jobs. But the opposite can also be true. In other words, “not using AI” could also cause creators to lose their jobs. If using AI had been an option, perhaps the project wouldn’t have been canceled. Of course, humans would have handled all the creative work, leaving only the tedious tasks to AI. That way, we might have been able to cut development time, not staff.
Oh, and just to be clear, that doesn’t mean the budget was the direct cause of the cancellation. I’m just saying that if we’d been able to cut costs further, things might have turned out differently.
I thought some of you might have a few questions, so I've put together a little Q&A.
Q: Wait, so Uchi isn't with Too Kyo Games anymore?
A: I'm still part of Too Kyo Games, thanks to the kindness of its members. It's a bit like branching out on my own while staying connected to…— Kotaro Uchikoshi Eng (@Uchikoshi_Eng) October 14, 2026
