Summary
Voice actress Atsuko Satou, known professionally asAtsuko Tanaka, has died at 61. She leaves behind a massive legacy in video games, including numerous entries in theFinal FantasyandBayonettaseries.
Tanaka started voice acting in video games in the ’90s, with her first credited performance being the role of Lisa in the Japanese version ofNight Trap, an interactive moviegame for the Sega CDfrom 1992. Since then, she had played a wide variety of roles in over 160 games.
Atsuko Tanaka Passed Away From Undisclosed Illness
Tanaka passed away on August 20, aged 61. Her death was confirmed by her son, voice actor Hikaru Tanaka, on social media. Tanaka said that his mother passed away peacefully, succumbing to an illness that he would not disclose as per her wishes. Her battle with the mysterious illness lasted for nearly a year, Tanaka said. He also thanked his mother’s fans and colleagues for their support over the years, urging them not to forget “the characters that she poured her love into,” according to a machine translation of the recently shared statement.
Atsuko Tanaka leaves behind a legacy spanning four decades and multiple media formats, ranging from video games and movies to live-action and animated TV shows. The most recently released gaming project that she worked on was theBandai Namco-published fighting gameJujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Clash, which hit the store shelves in February 2024. She also played Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn and Ultimecia in the Japanese versions ofFinal Fantasy 14andDissidia Final Fantasy, respectively. Her final performance will be released posthumously as part of#Compass 2.0: Combat Providence Analysis System, an anime based on aJapaneseMOBA#Compassthat is currently targeting a 2025 launch.
Machine Translation of Hikaru Tanaka’s Tribute to His Mother
Japanese gamers may also recognize Tanaka asKaine fromNieRand its remake, Cassandra Pentaghast fromDragon Age 2, Trish from theDevil May Cryfranchise, orThe Witcher 3: Wild Hunt’s rendition of Yennefer of Vengerberg. She also played Dorothy Fisher in the 2016 3DS exclusiveDetective Pikachuand Yodogimi inNioh. Furthermore, she joined theBayonettafranchise in 2014 as the titular heroine, whom she had portrayed in both the second and third mainline entries in the series. She also played Bayonetta in the Japanese versions ofSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, as well as the Switch-exclusiveSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate.
More recently, Tanaka had abrief stint inGenshin Impactas the alchemist Rhinedottir. Aside from video games, she provided dubs for nearly 200 live-action TV series and lent her voice for over 200 anime shows, in addition to voice acting in 40 featured films. Aside from her son, Tanaka is survived by her sister and husband.
Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy is a sci-fi fantasy franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed/owned by Square Enix. The series centers on role playing style games set in a science fiction and fantasy style worlds. The first game originally released in 1987 and since then, the franchise has spun off into other mediums like novels, CG films, and anime. The series has also branched into other video game genres including racing, fighting, rhythm, MMOs, and more.
