Tekken 8 Roger Jr. Trailer Inspired by Viral Kangaroo Punch Video, Former Director Harada Reveals

Following Bandai Namco's announcement that beloved martial arts marsupial Roger Jr. will join Tekken 8 as part of the 'Season 3' DLC lineup, former Tekken director Katsuhiro Harada has confirmed he played a role in the kangaroo's clever reveal.

Debuted at EVO 2026, Bandai Namco aired a brief teaser for Roger Jr.'s return that clearly paid homage to a 10-year-old viral video from Australia, showing a man punching an aggressive kangaroo in the snout while rescuing a dog from its headlock.

"Back in September last year, when we decided to bring Roger back, I sent the team a YouTube link to 'that famous video' because I wanted us to recreate it," Harada wrote on social media. "Some of the younger team members had never seen it before."

"I wasn't personally involved in editing this video, but I heard yesterday that around springtime the team was actually hesitating over whether to include the recreation because they were running out of time. Apparently, [Tekken 8 game director Kohei Ikeda's] final direction was, 'We absolutely have to do it.'"

Harada admitted he had given up on the idea himself. "I thought, 'They probably won't do that gag anymore. They've probably forgotten about it,'" he continued. "So when I saw it yesterday, it genuinely made me smile. I thought, 'Ah, they actually did it!'"

Roger Jr. last appeared in 2007's Tekken 6 but was absent from Tekken 7. The Roger Jr. teaser appears at the end of the Bob gameplay trailer, with a note that fans can expect a full trailer at EVO France on October 11, 2026.

Harada announced his departure from Bandai Namco in December 2025 after over 30 years on the Tekken series. He has since founded his own game development company, VS Studio, in partnership with SNK Corporation (The King of Fighters, Fatal Fury, Samurai Showdown).

It was recently announced that fellow Tekken veteran Kohei Ikeda has also left Bandai Namco. Game director on Tekken and Tekken 8, Ikeda spent 20 years at the company.