Updated on March 3, 2026 at 11:13pm: Included Arknights departure.
Fans of Love and Deepspace are preparing for a major change.
The game’s Japanese voice actor for Zayne — known as Rei in the Japanese version — will officially step down this summer.
In a statement released by the developers on March 2, 2026 on the game’s official X account, it was confirmed that Takuya Satou will leave the role following the expiration of his contract.
| MORE VOICE ACTOR DRAMA Sylus voice actor returns — but not in Love and Deepspace |
Both parties reportedly reached a mutual agreement, and he will official step down from the role on June 7, 2026. No further explanation was given by either party.
What happens to Zayne’s voice?
The company added that details regarding Zayne’s future voice will be announced at a later date.
For now, that means one thing: Zayne will never quite sound the same again in Japanese.
It remains unclear whether the role will be recast immediately, whether existing lines will remain, or if future updates will introduce a new voice actor.
While contract expirations are a normal part of the voice acting industry, the departure of a lead actor inevitably changes a character’s identity — especially in a voice-driven romance game.
For many players, including myself, Takuya Satou’s performance helped define who Zayne was.
For now, all we can do is reflect on Satou’s performance and speculate about who could possibly fill the role.
LAD girlies will definitely miss Takuya Satou
Takuya Satou is a veteran voice actor known for his calm, mature, and emotionally layered performances — qualities that made his portrayal of Zayne especially beloved.
He’s no stranger to playing ikemen that ladies fawn over. Some of the notable ikemen he’s played includes Albert James Moriarty in Moriarty the Patriot, Ryunosuke Tsunashi in IDOLiSH7, and Caesar Anthonio Zeppeli in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure.
His deep yet gentle tone became closely associated with Zayne’s composed and introspective personality, making this departure especially impactful for long-time players.
Beyond our ice king, Love and Deepspace features a lineup of popular romance leads voiced by prominent seiyuu, who will hopefully continue in their roles:
| LOVE AND DEEPSPACE MALE LEAD | JAPANESE NAME | SEIYUU | OTHER FAMOUS ROLES |
| Xavier | Seiya | Yusuke Kobayashi | Subaru Natsuki (ReZero Starting Life in Another World) Senku Ishigami (Dr Stone) Arthur Boyle (Fire Force) |
| Rafayel | Homura | Shinnosuke Tachibana | Argenti (Honkai Star Rail) Luuk Herssen (Wuthering Waves) Alphinaud Leveilleur (Final Fantasy 14) |
| Sylus | Shin | Katsuyuki Konishi | Tengen Uzui (Demon Slayer) Enjin (Gachiakuta) Boothill (Honkai Star Rail) |
| Caleb | Mahiru | Kenji Nojima | Nobuchika Ginoza (Psycho-Pass) Mamoru Chiba/Tuxedo Mask (Sailor Moon Crystal) Shinsuke Kita (Haikyuu) Dr. Xeno Houston Wingfield (Dr Stone) Lee Seung-gil (Yuri on Ice) |
The game’s casting in every language, not just Japanese, has been one of its major strengths, helping it stand out in the increasingly competitive otome market.
Love and Deepspace is not the only game he’s pulling out from
Satou, who voices Midnight and 12F in Arknights, will be stepping down from these roles “due to various circumstances”, the official Arknights Japanese X account announced.
The developers apologized for any inconvenience or concern this may cause players and promised that details regarding replacement of the existing voice recordings will be shared once finalized.
Arknights is a free-to-play tactical RPG/tower defense mobile game that is developed by Shanghai-based studio, Hypergryph Network Technology. So far, the only apparent connection in the reasons behind his departure is that both games are developed by Chinese studios.
About Infold Games
Love and Deepspace is developed by Infold Games, the global publishing arm of Chinese developer Papergames.
Infold is best known internationally for expanding the Nikki franchise beyond dress-up mechanics into higher-budget, cross-media experiences. With Love and Deepspace, the company pushed further into 3D real-time interaction, blending sci-fi storytelling with romance-driven gameplay.
The title has grown into one of the most successful mobile otome releases in recent years, supported by high production values, cinematic cutscenes, and a strong voice cast.
Love and Deepspace is available to play for free on the Google Play Store for Andriod users and on the App Store for Apple users.
