Hiroshi Ono aka Mr.Dotman has passed away. Known for his work on Galaga, Xevious, and many other Namco classics

Publication date of the original Japanese article: 2021-10-18 13:12 (JST)
Translated by. Ryuki Ishii

On October 18, Team Dotman announced the passing of Hiroshi Ono. He was 64 years old at the time of passing, on October 16. He had been fighting illness (suspected to be Autoimmune hepatitis) as of late, and a crowdfunding campaign for the production of a documentary film examining Ono’s life, had just launched a few days ago.

Hiroshi Ono joined Namco in 1979, and worked as a graphic designer for many classic titles including Xevious, Galaga, and Dig Dug. He left the company in 2013, and launched his own pixel art/product brand called Mr.Dotman. He is a renowned figure in the industry, and many fans refer to him as the “god of pixel art.”

The aforementioned crowdfunding campaign just launched a few days ago, by the fan/volunteer group called Team Dotman. According to their announcement, the future of the project is currently under discussion, and they intend to report back to the backers as soon as possible.

Ono’s motto was to put his heart and soul into each dot/pixel, and his contribution to the dawning age of video games in Japan, will be remembered. In response to the sudden news of his passing, a number of fans and industry figures are expressing their condolences to Ono, including Katsuhiro Harada, the series producer of Tekken, who tweeted: “may you rest in peace, Hiroshi Ono senpai.”