In a new interview with Famitsu magazine, Akihiko Yoshida, the Bravely Default character designer, explains why he left Square Enix, as well as his future prospects.

According to Yoshida on the reason why he left:

As for the reason I resigned—I had always wanted a job where I could do both, develop games and draw. However, in recent years, those responsible for making games have more duties that require much more time, and after thinking about my desire to be in an environment that allows me to challenge more subjects, it resulted in my decision to resign, so I would no longer be bound by a company.

Yoshida confirms that he is now a freelancer worker and will continue to work with Square on the newly announced sequel, Bravely Second, due to a prior agreement with the series Producer Tomoya Asano. He also added:

While I don’t feel like I’ve accomplished too much thus far, after Final Fantasy III’s remake and Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light, this series [Bravely Default] gives me a great sense of fulfillment.