Katsuhiro Harada’s involvement with the Tekken series has given him the opportunity to journey across the globe and connect with fans from various countries. Although he feels fairly comfortable with reading and writing in English, he has confessed to occasionally having trouble deciphering informal messages from overseas supporters, pointing to a comical mix-up over a 2019 cookout invitation as an example.
Following the reveal of Leroy Smith as a Tekken 7 downloadable character in 2019, a group of enthusiastic American fans extended an invitation for a cookout to Harada. However, he misinterpreted the gesture, mistakenly believing that he had somehow upset his African American fanbase.
It was around this period that Harada noticed the slang term “cooked” gaining popularity online. The word is used to describe individuals or situations in a severely negative state. Harada frequently encountered this term when countering articles that appeared determined to demonize video games. Whenever he successfully refuted such arguments, fans would often reply with “cooked.”
Armed with this understanding, Harada assumed that “cookout” was an intensified version of “cooked.” Instead of recognizing the fan invitation as a casual gathering, he thought they intended to “give him a hard time and roast him.”
Eventually, someone clarified that a cookout invitation is considered a great honor within the African American community, akin to being trusted enough to join an event exclusive to close friends and family.
Another example of Harada misinterpreting American slang occurred when fans repeatedly called him the “fxxking GOAT” and filled his posts with goat emojis. What was intended as high praise was initially perceived as an insult, with Harada thinking people were comparing him to an animal. Notably, whenever faced with what he believed to be “hate” (though it turned out not to be in either case), Harada’s immediate reaction was to educate himself about the culture to avoid similar misunderstandings in the future—an approach that has earned him praise from many fans.