Sega is already working on replacing Pierre Taki in Judgement, Western release date unaffected
The Yakuza Team is already working on replacing actor Pierre Taki in Judgement.
Taki, who was arrested in Japan over alleged Cocaine use, caused Judgement to be pulled off sale in Japan. Taki plays Kyohei Hamura, and lends his voice and likeness to the in-game model.
But since the decision to take the game off shelves was never really intended to be permanent, the developer has already replaced him in-game. The Yakuza Team is currently working on implementing this change, replacing Taki with an original character.
Studio head Toshihiro Nagoshi confirmed the news to IGN, adding that the game's Western release date of June 25 remains unchanged.
"First of all we had to replace the character model and re-record all of the dialogue.
"But replacing the character model is only the start: We had to change all of the pre-rendered cut scenes Hamura appeared in; also, his face appears on some of the evidence that you present on your smartphone, so we had to replace those textures; and some trophies had to be changed too," explained Nagoshi.
Nagoshi, however, did not say how long this process will take, or when the game will go back on sale in Japan.