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TO Chinese game Black Myth: Wukong has been the biggest hit of the summer, selling 10 million copies in just three days, according to its developer Game Science, with over 1 million people playing it every day on the Steam game store. China’s homegrown games industry is absolutely huge, but it’s almost entirely concentrated on mobile phones – this is the country’s first blockbuster console and PC game, which makes it very interesting in its own right. It’s also a blockbuster single-player game that comes after some high-profile multiplayer failures, suggesting there’s more to come. still There’s more of a market for these kinds of adventures than video game executives like to believe.
But Wukong has been grabbing headlines for other reasons too. In November, IGN made a report This article compiles crude and vulgar public comments from several Game Science staff members, some of whom are well-known in China’s video game industry. IGN also spoke to several women who expressed disappointment and despair at the pervasive sexism in video games and China in general. It’s a very interesting and well-researched article that doesn’t so much single out Game Science specifically, but rather places it in the context of a broader Chinese feminist struggle. But of course, it drew the ire of an increasingly vocal fringe of “anti-woke” gamers who have found a gathering place on YouTube and social media, some of whom accused IGN of trying to sabotage Black Myth: Wukong by making things up.
As a result, willingly or unwillingly, Black Myth: Wukong became something of a talisman for gaming’s culture wars. This wasn’t helped when, a few weeks ago, advance copies of the game were sent to streamers with guidelines prohibiting talk about Covid, the Chinese gaming industry, and “feminist propaganda,” alongside more usual prohibitions against fetishism and offensive language. It’s normal for advance copies of games sent to influencers (though not the press) to come with strings attached, but “feminist propaganda” was definitely a new one.
These guidelines may have had more to do with China’s anti-censorship rules than the science of gaming. Talking online about any of these topics can cause serious problems for people in the walled garden of the Chinese internet, and under Xi Jinping’s rule. Has imposed stricter traditional views The group has shown a dismissive attitude towards gender and sexuality, and has shown less tolerance for feminist activism, as illustrated by the arrest of the Feminist Five, seen as part of a wider anti-feminist campaign by many women writing from China. Despite all this, Game Science has steadfastly refused to address this controversy or distance itself from it. When asked about it by the Guardian’s Tom Regan at a preview event in the summer, it was given a evasive response.
The story of Black Myth: Wukong’s success has many layers, which is why it is so interesting. For 15 years, it was not even possible buy A video game console in China, as the government banned them over fears for the health of young people. Its gaming industry has historically been almost entirely concentrated on mobile phones and internet cafes, making Black Myth: Wukong a harbinger of significant change. The huge success of big Chinese gaming companies like Tencent, where Wukong’s developers used to work, is now funding developers around the world through investments; Wukong, by contrast, is an indie game.
Another layer: Wukong draws on Journey to the West, a cornerstone of world literature and a story all Chinese are intimately familiar with. As a result, it has also been embraced by Chinese nationalists and Inverse’s Shannon Liao. Suggested this week that such support may also be driving its success. (Liao was not impressed with the game itself, which she considers mediocre; our critic Patricia Hernandez, meanwhile, gave it five stars.)
Whether you think it’s a great game or not, it’s certainly one of the more interesting stories in a year filled with unusual successes, from Helldivers 2 to Palworld. While Helldivers revitalised a dull-sounding multiplayer shooter market and Palworld raised questions about the line between homage and plagiarism, Wukong has shown what comes with the global scrutiny that suddenly successful games inevitably receive.
What to play?
There haven’t been too many releases from Sony’s first-party studios this year, but Astro Bot comes out on Friday, and it’s the best platformer I’ve played in years. If you bought a PS5, you’ll know this adorable robot from Astro’s Playroom, a joyful (if brief) showcase of the PS5’s abilities and the PlayStation’s long history. Astro Bot expands this into a full-sized game, in which Astro and his hundreds of tiny robot friends crash-land their spaceship and end up flung across a small galaxy of planets that you explore in a DualSense controller-shaped spaceship. It’s absolutely packed with ideas, and pushes the PS5 even further. Stay tuned for the full review on Thursday.
Available in: PlayStation 5
Estimated playing time: 20+ hours
What to read
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Remember what I just wrote about the failures of high-profile multiplayer games? Well, Sony suddenly announced on Tuesday that it is pulling its new online team-based shooter. ConcordReleased just two weeks ago with reportedly very low sales, Sony has even gone so far as to refund everyone who bought the game.
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This month marks the 20th anniversary of the struggling rapper from the 2000s. Def Jam: Fight for New Yorka lunchtime competitive event in one of the newsrooms I worked in. Thomas Hobbs went in search of the people who made it to find out how the hell they did it and why we haven’t had a remaster or a sequel.
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ResourceThe studio behind cult hits Control and Alan Wake, has partnered with arthouse game publisher and filmmaker Annapurna to co-produce Control 2 and bring their gaming universes To television and cinema.
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The New York Times He recently published an obituary of Mabel Addis (£), who wrote an IBM edutainment title that was the first to have a story and characters: The Sumerian Game. This makes her the first female game designer, the NYT claims.
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Reader Adam ask:
“I play online with a friend regularly and we’ve been looking for a new story-driven online co-op adventure for a while now. We’re struggling to find something that fits into our short Friday night sessions. Any suggestions? As a kicker, something that allows him to be methodical and deliberate, and me to create an impulsive mess for him to clean up, would be ideal.”
I assume you’ve already played or rejected the great classics of two-player co-op history, A Way Out, It Takes Two, and Portal 2, and also the Borderlands series, if you like shooters and teen humor. And I don’t think Baldur’s Gate 3, which I’ve heard is enormous In co-op mode (much like its companion Divinity: Original Sin 2), it will fit into your short play sessions. (In fact, I know it won’t, because I’ve tried to play it with my partner and we just haven’t had the time.)
So I have two more suggestions: Stardew Valleyallowing for amazing creativity and fun diversions as you build your farm; and The world of Monster Hunterwhich has a good overall story, but will also let you defeat an actual dragon in 30 minutes. Your friend can be a gunner and you can run in with a giant sword and see what happens.
If you have a question for Question Block, or anything else to say about the newsletter, please reply or email us at pushingbuttons@theguardian.com.