Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
Project .hack was the first project of the ".hack" series. It launched in 2002 with the anime series ".hack//Sign" in April 2002 and the PlayStation 2 game ".hack//Infection" in June 2002. Project developers included Koichi Mashimo (Bee Train), Kazunori Itō (Catfish) and Yoshiyuki Sadamoto (Gainax). Since then, Project .hack has spanned television, video games, manga and novels. It centers mainly on the events and affairs of the prime installment of "The World". The franchise began internationally when Bandai announced .hack//Infection, which was released in 2003 and .hack//Sign got an English dub, which was released on Cartoon Network in the same year.