An anthropomorphic monkey and a campaign against “feminist propaganda” sparked outrage in the video gaming industry this week, following the release of the most successful Chinese title in history.
Many players were enraged when the studio behind Black Myth: Wukong issued them a list of themes to avoid while livestreaming the game, including “feminist propaganda, fetishisation, and other content that instigates negative discourse”.
Nonetheless, within 24 hours of its debut on Tuesday, it became the second most-played game on streaming platform Steam, with over 2.1 million concurrent players and more than 4.5 million copies sold.
The game, based on the renowned 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West, is regarded as a unique example of popular media transmitting Chinese stories on a global scale.
What is the Black Myth about?
Black Myth: Wukong is a single-player action game in which players take on the character of “the Destined One,” an anthropomorphic monkey with mystical abilities.
The Destined One is based on Sun Wukong, often known as the Monkey King, a prominent figure in Journey to the West.
That novel, regarded as one of the greatest works of Chinese literature, draws significantly on Chinese mythology, Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhist folklore.
It influenced hundreds of international films, television shows, and cartoons, including the popular Japanese anime series Dragon Ball Z and the 2008 Chinese-American fantasy film The Forbidden Kingdom
Why is Black Myth such a tremendous success?
Black Myth, which was first unveiled in August 2020 with a massively successful teaser film, debuted on Tuesday after four years of anticipation.
It is the Chinese video game industry’s first AAA release, a term usually reserved for high-budget titles from prominent firms.
High-end graphics, intelligent game design, and intense buzz have all contributed to its popularity, as has China’s gaming community, which is the world’s largest.
“It’s not just a Chinese game targeting the Chinese market or the Chinese-speaking world,”
Haiqing Yu, a professor at RMIT University in Australia who studies the sociopolitical and economic implications of China’s digital media, told the BBC.
“Players all over the world [are playing] a game that has a Chinese cultural factor.”
This has become a significant source of national pride for the country.
The Department of Culture and tourist in Shanxi Province, which features several of the game’s locations and set pieces, produced a video on Tuesday highlighting the real-world attractions, resulting in a boom in tourist known as “Wukong Travel”.
Following the release of Black Myth, TikTok videos show tourists flooding temples and shrines depicted in the game, which one X user described as a “successful example of cultural rediscovery”.
Niko Partners, a business that investigates and analyzes Asian video game industries and consumers, stated that Black Myth “helps showcase Chinese mythology, traditions, culture, and real-life locations in China to the world”
Why has it sparked debate?
Ahead of the release of Black Myth, some content creators and streamers revealed that a company affiliated with its developer had sent them a list of topics to avoid discussing while livestreaming the game, including “feminist propaganda, fetishization, and other content that instigates negative discourse.”
While the exact meaning of “feminist propaganda” is unclear, a widely circulated report by video game journal IGN in November accused Game Science workers of sexist and unprofessional behavior.
Politics, Covid-19, and China’s video game industry policies were among the other topics listed as “Don’ts” in the document, which was extensively shared on social media and on YouTube.
The decision, issued by co-publisher Hero Games, has sparked outrage beyond China.
Several content creators declined to review the game, claiming the developers were attempting to suppress conversation and stifle free speech.
Others choose to directly disregard the warnings.
Moonmoon, a Twitch creator, launched a Black Myth stream titled “Covid-19 Isolation Taiwan (Is a Real Country) Feminism Propaganda”. Rui Zhong, another streamer, talked about China’s one-child policy on camera while playing the game.
On Thursday, Chinese social media company Weibo punished 138 individuals for breaking its restrictions while discussing Black Myth.
According to an article on the state-run Global Times news site, a number of the banned Weibo users were “deviating from discussing the game itself, instead using it as a platform for spreading ‘gender opposition,’ ‘personal attacks,’ and other irrational comments.”
Has this impacted the game’s success?
While the dispute has received a lot of attention in international media and online, it hasn’t harmed or detracted from Black Myth’s generally positive reception.
The game grossed $53 million from presales alone, with an additional 4.5 million copies sold within 24 hours of release. Within the same timeframe, it became the most popular single-player games ever launched on Steam.
Reams of comments have been left on platforms such as Weibo, Reddit, and YouTube, among others, congratulating the game’s success. Many argue that the controversy surrounding the game’s release has been exaggerated.
Ms Yu concurred, characterizing Black Myth as a “industry and overall market success”.
“When it comes to Chinese digital media and communication platforms, of course people cannot avoid talking about censorship,” she told reporters. “Black Myth exemplifies effective Chinese storytelling and global cultural influence.” I do not perceive any censorship there.”
She also stated that apparent attempts to influence or control what reviewers said were unlikely to have come from Chinese officials directly. Ms Yu stated that the list of “Dos” and “Don’ts” was created by a firm attempting to avoid difficulties.
“The company publishes their notification so that if somebody from the central government comes to speak with the company, the corporation may say, ‘Look, I have told them. I can’t stop people from saying whatever they want.
