Visionary Game Designer Kenji Eno Dead at 42

Innovative video game designer and musician Kenji Eno, best known for his work on the horror adventure series D and D2, died yesterday from heart failure in Japan. The 42-year-old's death was confirmed in a statement from Fyto, the developers behind his WiiWare title You, Me and The Cubes.

During his career, Eno created the company EIM, and during its brief run he created music for the NES titles Casino Kid 2 and Panic Restaurant. His most biggest video game output came with the creation of WARP Inc., the developer behind the titles D, D2, Enemy Zero, and Real Sound. WARP, which mainly created games for the 3DO Interactive Player, also was the home for Fumito Ueda, who served as the designer for the revered titles Ico and Shadow of the Colossus.

With Eno's lifelong fascination for music, Real Sound was created as a title that appealed to visually impaired players who craved for an audio driven experience. The title was initially released for Sega Saturn but was later available for the Sega Dreamcast.

Although he also worked on the iOS titles One Dot Enemies and Newtonica, it was his dark vision behind the D games which are a true mark of his unconventional aesthetic.