Python fails on startup with error: UnicodeDecodeError: 'mbcs' codec can't decode bytes in position 0--1: No mapping for the Unicode character exists in the target code page.
Japanese Windows 8, Vaio Ultrabook.
Problem occurs in recent builds up through Jun 19, (b49e6d0) going back as far as 2.63a (2.62 and previous versions do not have this problem with Python failing, however Blender itself crashes on startup in those versions if there are Japanese characters in the path to the Blender install directory).
I have tested with the Blender install directory placed directly under C:\ to ensure that there are no Japanese characters in the path to Blender.
Screenshot of Traceback on startup:
{F95322}