Maeda by himself is a crazy person. He goes off and does other projects on his own all the time, like manga, music compositions, whatever. That's his own thing. But when you pull two or more of Key's prominent staff members together, focusing on the roles their best known for, there definitely would be a desire to slap on the Key logo, because it's possible, and because it carries brand power.
"Angel Beats! with story and music by Maeda Jun of Key, Art by Na-Ga of Key, but not by Key" makes little sense.
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Key games have usually been defined by three main factors - story, character art, and music.
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I would argue most popular bishoujo game companies are defined by those three factors, because that's what they use to sell. Key has a unique approach to those components that makes them Key, same as Typemoon has a different approach to those components that make them Typemoon.
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As of now, he's trying to pass the torch onto a successor, which is why Itaru Hinoue is directing Rewrite.
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While he is, that is not why Itaru is directing rewrite. She's doing it because she's wanted to do this vision of hers for a while, and while Maeda and Na-Ga were off doing Angel Beats, they gave her the chance. She will not push to take over other projects in the same role once Rewrite is over.