Susumu Takajima/Blogs/May 6, 2017

Hi, this is Driller or Susumu Takajima here.

Over the weekend, for those playing Driller Engine Grand Prix 8, a lot of you began to notice that one of the game's most popular DLC characters, Honoka Kosaka, suddenly disappeared from the character select screen in the online mode. Why? Well, publisher Bandai Namco and developer Drillimation had to take her off the roster after we had received complaints from players in Europe and South America, who discovered offensive imagery in one of her animations. Don't worry, she will return after we make edits to the content in question.

In one of her taunting animations, she can be seen gripping her bicep and raising it up. While this gesture isn't offensive in Japan, this, in other territories, can be interpreted as Bras D'Honneur, which can be very disrespectful in Europe and South America. To make matters worse, she would do this if she succeeds in hitting an opponent with an item. With the BBC, as well as YouTubers and Twitch streamers bringing this to our attention, Honoka has been temporarily banned from being used in online matches until she is edited. We have taken immediate action upon sight and we apologize for any offense this may have caused.

This is Driller signing off.