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The Switch and PS5 versions of the indie game Keep Driving are not coming out in Japan or South Korea. Swedish developer Y/CJ/Y revealed the news, and the reason is blunt: the game failed to pass age rating review in both countries.
The flagged content was drugs, cigarettes, alcohol, and slot machines. The developer’s comment on it is pretty striking: “We weren’t even allowed a banner image with cigarette smoke in it (holding a gun is fine, though).”
There are no release plans for Japan or South Korea at this time. The release is also delayed in the rest of the Asia-Pacific region with no date given. Everywhere else, the console versions are still on track.
There is a silver lining, though. You can buy the Steam version without any trouble from Japan, and as of October 2, 2026, it’s 30% off in the autumn sale. I’m looking at this one as a Steam Deck game. Let’s walk through it.
Why aren’t the Switch and PS5 versions of Keep Driving releasing in Japan?
Because it couldn’t pass age rating review in Japan or South Korea. Drugs, cigarettes, alcohol, and slot machines were all flagged as problems.
What developer Y/CJ/Y (listed on Steam as YCJY Games) shared is refreshingly specific. Their comment on how strict the review process was is on the record.
We weren’t even allowed a banner image with cigarette smoke in it (holding a gun is fine, though)
Source:Game*Spark (comment from Y/CJ/Y)
That one sentence distills the whole warp in the rating criteria. Depictions of firearms clear the bar, but cigarette smoke can’t even make it onto a banner. Vices of daily life get policed harder than violence does. Keep Driving is a game about a road trip in the early 2000s, so cigarettes and alcohol are the very air the setting breathes. Cut those out and you’ve got a different game.
Here’s the region-by-region breakdown.
| Region | Status of the Switch and PS5 versions |
|---|---|
| Japan | No release planned at this time (failed age rating review) |
| South Korea | No release planned at this time (same reason) |
| Rest of Asia-Pacific | Release delayed (no date given) |
| All other regions | Still scheduled for release |
Worth keeping in mind: “it failed review” does not mean “the game is extreme.” Shootouts and gore are not what this thing is selling. The accurate way to read it is that the axis the review runs on simply didn’t line up with the nature of the game.
Can you play Keep Driving in Japan? Steam pricing and current sale
The Steam version is available in Japan with no issues. As of October 2, 2026, it’s normally 2,000 yen (about US$13), marked down to 1,400 yen (about US$9), a 30% discount (converted at 153 yen = US$1).
The 1.0 Steam release landed on February 6, 2025, Japan time. Per the store information pulled from the Steam API, development and sales are handled by YCJY Games (publishers listed as YCJY Games / Kepler Ghost), and the only supported OS is Windows.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Steam release date | February 6, 2025 (Japan time) |
| Regular price | 2,000 yen (about US$13) |
| Sale price | 1,400 yen (about US$9), 30% off, as of October 2, 2026 |
| Supported OS | Windows |
| Steam user reviews | 93% rated Very Positive |
That 30% cut is part of the Steam Autumn Sale 2026, which runs until 2:00 a.m. on October 9, Japan time. If you can get an indie with a 93% positive rating for 1,400 yen (about US$9), there’s not much point holding out for a console version. Or rather, the Japanese console release isn’t happening, so this is the only door in.
Prices and discount rates move around, so check the store page before you buy (as of October 2, 2026, verified on the Steam store).
What kind of game is Keep Driving? Inside the simulation RPG
Keep Driving is a simulation RPG set in the early 2000s, where you take the first car you ever bought and set out on a road trip toward a festival.
The map is a procedurally generated pixel-art open world. Routes are yours to choose, and you can pick up hitchhikers or customize your car along the way. The distinctive part is its unusual turn-based “combat” — not fighting, exactly, but a turn-based system for working your way through the troubles and situations the road throws at you.
The listed inspirations are Oregon Trail II and FTL: Faster Than Light, which makes the lineage clear: managing resources and your own condition while pushing forward on a journey. There are multiple endings, and a single run takes roughly one to four hours.
That one-to-four-hour run length is a smart piece of design. The game is built around replaying a road trip, so your route choices and your mix of hitchhikers make every run a different drive. It’s also exactly the right length for taking out on a Steam Deck.
Steam reviews sit at 93% Very Positive. What that number tells you is that a niche premise still earns its reviews if the craft is there. The fact that it failed a ratings review and the quality of the game itself are two completely separate conversations.
Is pulling a release over age ratings unusual?
Overseas indies getting stopped by Japanese ratings isn’t unprecedented. What makes Keep Driving unusual is that it wasn’t stopped over violence.
The flagged content was drugs, cigarettes, alcohol, and slot machines. Every one of those sits on the “bad habits of everyday life” side of the ledger, and every one of them turns up naturally as background texture in a road trip story. The developer writing “holding a gun is fine, though” is an honest reaction to that asymmetry.
One more thing that bugs me. Worse than the lack of a Japanese console release is that it compounds with the game being Steam-only and Windows-only. Anyone who wants to play it portable is left with a Steam Deck or something similar, and anyone whose main machine is a Switch simply can’t get to it. That part is a genuine shame.
For what it’s worth, coverage has also pointed to the game’s Xbox store page in Japan. Availability varies by region and platform, so if you’re curious, check the latest on each storefront yourself.
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Keep Driving’s canceled Japanese Switch and PS5 release: everything we know
To recap: Swedish indie studio Y/CJ/Y has revealed that the Switch and PS5 versions of Keep Driving will not be released in Japan or South Korea. The reason is that the game could not pass age rating review in either country, with drugs, cigarettes, alcohol, and slot machines flagged as issues.
There are no release plans for Japan or South Korea at this time, the release is delayed in the rest of the Asia-Pacific region with no date given, and all other regions are still scheduled. The Steam version is purchasable in Japan; the 1.0 Steam release was February 6, 2025, Japan time, and the price is normally 2,000 yen (about US$13), dropping to 1,400 yen (about US$9) during the autumn sale, a 30% discount, as of October 2, 2026, verified on the Steam store. Steam reviews are 93% Very Positive. The game is a simulation RPG set in the early 2000s, with runs of roughly one to four hours and multiple endings.
“We weren’t even allowed a banner image with cigarette smoke in it (holding a gun is fine, though)” — that one line says all of it. Violence clears review; depictions of everyday habits don’t. That asymmetry is what kicked a road trip game out of the Japanese console market. I understand the developer choosing to pull the release rather than edit the game; it keeps the core of the subject matter intact. Luckily, this isn’t a dead end for players in Japan. The Steam version is right there, and it’s 1,400 yen (about US$9) in the autumn sale right now. For a 93% positive indie at that price, there’s nothing to deliberate over.
The sale runs until 2:00 a.m. on October 9. Waiting for a Switch version is no longer on the table.
Nokko Oda
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