Hololive star Laplus Darkness goes on break for mental health reasons

Andrew Amos
Hololive VTuber Laplus Darkness in idol outfit

Hololive star Laplus Darkness (stylized La+ Darkness) is going on a break, just after her one year anniversary, for mental health reasons. The agency and VTuber announced the news on December 5, asking fans to be patient while the holoX leader recovers.

It’s been a big year for holoX’s Secret Society leader, Laplus Darkness. The rather forgetful VTuber has made waves in the space, boasting 870,000 subscribers across her first year with Hololive.

Laplus’ rise hasn’t been smooth sailing though ⁠— she has dealt with a number of health issues, and is now taking a bigger step back from all her activities following her one year anniversary.

The star’s hiatus was announced on December 5 by both Hololive and Laplus herself, citing mental health reasons.

“Since he has been suffering from mental illness for some time, [Laplus] has decided to take a break from activities for the time being to focus on recuperation,” Hololive said in a statement, according to a translation.

“I want to get well soon,” she added. “I want to do the streams I promised, with all the fun and interesting things, once I’m feeling better.”

It’s unclear how long the star will be taking a break for. With her anniversary activities out of the way, there’s a pretty clear schedule until holoFes 2023 in March. However after missing out on so much time with her fans this year, she has felt some pressure to keep active.

Laplus Darkness took a break across August and September this year after she became physically ill with a number of things, from a flu to a bladder infection. Back then she said she was “in good spirits, but my body can’t keep up.”

It’s the first major hiatus in Hololive this year for mental health reasons, with other creators taking smaller breaks to avoid burnout. Other stars, like Ninomae Ina’nis, Usada Pekora, and Hoshimachi Suisei stepped away for months at a time to deal with physical health problems.