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Black Myth Wukong game producer shares salty post over losing GOTY at The Game Awards

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od-chan

Gold Member
There's a lot of ridicule regarding his statement, probably rightfully so, but I kinda appreciate it. It's at least somewhat honest, even if delusional. It seems genuine though, much more so than the corporate bullshit people usually spew, or the self gratiying crap someone like the BG3 guy says which might've as well been prompted by asking ChatGPT "what's something popular I can say the crowd will like?".

I don't know if I Wukong should've won, I know too little about the game. I'm certain Astro Bot should not have won though (even if it's a fantastic game), so I can kinda understand him being salty about that. He seems to come to terms with it though, and, again, while there's a lot of cringe there to be made fun of: I admire how invested he is.
 

Robb

Gold Member
Parroting the same "muh REAL GAMES" bullshit, Slimy is a confirmed clown at this point.
For how much they like to go "hurr durr it's a kid's game", they're definitely acting like children right now.
It’s also very funny to see people complain about a “no-name platformer that isn’t Mario” winning when there’s always this narrative that Nintendo gets bonus points for Mario/nostalgia and no other platforming game ever has a chance.
 

powder

Member
Pretty cringe and embarrassing for this guy, but I do agree there was a strong argument for Wukong winning GOTY based on the sheer amount of effort that went into it. Kinda feels like the initial drama around it and the US’s general “China bad” attitude in the media probably took it out of the running. Can’t have any potential controversy stink on our award show when we’re trying to make money here now can we? lol
 

thief183

Member
Maybe China should have his own government sponsored award shows then.
If that happens they will have 5 time the ppl watching and in 3 years we will become irrelevant.

Edit: BTW the salty stuff doesn't sound salty at all if we go and translate for ourselves.
 
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Cyberpunkd

Member
I’d like to say: This was no fluke. It’s the inevitable outcome of Chinese culture, Chinese talent, China’s business environment, China’s gaming industry, and gamers worldwide coming together.
Same culture that made the Chinese melt their pots and pans and starve to death as a result when they didn't have the tools to make food (The Great Leap Forward)? This one?

I am all for masturbating to beautiful pixels, but West needs to get this into their head - the only status quo China will ever be satisfied with is dominance over the rest of the world, in the best style of the Ming and Qing emperors of old.

Sorry if too political.
 

kurisu_1974

Member
If that happens they will have 5 time the ppl watching and in 3 years we will become irrelevant.

Edit: BTW the salty stuff doesn't sound salty at all if we go and translate for ourselves.

Yeah, no. Just because there is one half decent Chinese game ripping off superior Japanese games. And don't start on those fake anime gacha games.
 
Didn't read the whole post but yeah Astro winning is a joke. That's a nice little game but it's no AAA.
A game has to be AAA to win now? Not that a game is fun and really took advantage of the system it was on? Crazy thing is, take out Astro. There's no way it was beating Metaphor or Final Fantasy. Funny. Any other time people would run to a games critic score to justify why it should win. But I guess with BMW having the lowest score of all the games the goal post needed to be moved.

They won some awards. How could you not feel happy and grateful for that alone?
 

Rising_Hei

Member
This person should chill, It's a miracle that Wu Kong was even a nominee for GOTY, and other developers have also poured many years of their lives into their game.
He thinks he's the centre of the world or something. Look at Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, the team has been making awesome games for 19 years, made their greatest game ever, the GOTY of many games and it wasn't nominated, have you seen the RGG team behaving like a child? NO
 
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Wildebeest

Member
Taking the games awards that seriously is like thinking that wrestling isn't fixed and being angry about the results of some match. Voters for the game awards don't even have to do basic things like actually play the games.
 

Sentenza

Member
I just crossed a chinese bilingual commenter elsewhere saying that this whole polemic is complete bullshit, that the tone of the post is pretty much a clear self-deprecating joke, that this is really obvious to chinese readers and the whole "I wrote the speech two years ahead" should have been a dead giveaway.

Maybe it's just damage control, but take this information as you want.
 
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C7cif31.jpeg
 

SpearHea.:D

Member
Not cool at all.

Thats not the way of a man. He should be proud of what he achieved and should not be salty for just one award. Game sold gangster numbers and is loved by gamers. They achieved this on first AAA game.

Whinning like this will only make them look desperate and weak. Accept and move on.
 

phant0m

Member
They definitely deserved the win.

A no name 7 hour platformer that isn't Mario is not worthy of GOTY in a year this packed with greatness.

Astrobot has fun, free game of the month written all over it. Barely any effect to the current gaming cultural zeitgeist other than some onlookers say 'aww that's kinda cute'

Whereas Wukong has been so influential it has dudes like T Pain and David Banner talking about how inspired they were by it.

Really unsure how Astrobot and Balatro took spots from Silent Hill 2 and Helldivers 2.

I'm not the biggest fan of Helldivers 2 but there is no doubt it had a huge impact this year, and Silent Hill 2 remake is just...
amazing.

GTFO with this disingenuous bullshit. Astro Bot is twice as long as that, and if that's still "too short of game" to be GOTY for you then fine, but the blatant exaggeration kills any credibility you might have. Also, "effect on the culutral zeitgeist" is not the measuring stick for GOTY. Is it sometimes the case? Sure. It Takes Two won (deservedly imo) in 2021 - it's also "just a platformer" and didn't re-invent how we look at games as a medium or anything. It was just a great looking, well-designed platformer that was an absolute joy to play. Just like Astro Bot.

This board cares more about politics, than actual games. I try to stay away from certain topics, because those threads becomes obsessed me-too pile ons.
Feels like it's been that way a while, actually. GAF had an utter meltdown over the pronoun choice _option_ in Starfield that made zero difference in gameplay and you don't even have to see it after the character creator. This board also has a really hard time separating the difference between "things I don't like" and "things that are bad" and loves to virtue signal how great they are at avoiding anything "woke". You'll see a screenshot of some cringe dialogue line and then 20 people quote and say "not buying this now", never mind the gameplay or anything else it has to offer. Games have had cringe dialogue for 30 fucking years.

I don't know if I Wukong should've won, I know too little about the game. I'm certain Astro Bot should not have won though (even if it's a fantastic game), so I can kinda understand him being salty about that. He seems to come to terms with it though, and, again, while there's a lot of cringe there to be made fun of: I admire how invested he is.

What the fuck even is this? You haven't played Wukong, you call Astro Bot "fantastic" but "know" it shouldn't have won?
 

Xtib81

Member
And only AAA games are allowed to win GOTY? Is there a rule for that?
A game has to be AAA to win now?

The way I see things, yes. It should reward a game that's pushing the boundaries, that is ambitious in all aspects. Not that Wukong brings anything new to the table but it's a very ambitious title. Astrobot is a nice game with great ideas but that's a 10-hour-long platformer. Again, I'm not trying to convince anybody, I'm just giving my opinion.
 
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xanaum

Member
A sore loser, that's what it is. With all that Tencent and Chinese government money, they managed to make a product that won a TGA award even after rejecting Sweet Baby Inc's nonsense, and the game itself is a commercial success too. They should already be grateful.
 

Danny22

Member
Clickbaity headline. The actual paragraphs are quite nice to read and even inspiring in some ways.

Also nice to see that Game awards are so important that developers truly have started caring.

I imagine Geoff's show is on its way to being seen as legitimate as oscars are for people in hollywood.

As for the game, 'Black myth' was treated a bit unfairly by reviewers. USA has a very 'China bad' attitude that causes its journalists to see China's entertainment with a hyper focused critical eye. And I truly think the metascore would have been in the high 80s if Japan had made this game. And with international critics in TGA's lineup, as well as the 10 percent audience vote, I really think it came close to winning, much more than an 81 game would otherwise. Astro Bots a very joyful game and I predicted on GAF comment it would win the moment it released (don't know how to quote an old comment here but you can see my history) but it would have been interesting if wukong had won, imagine China would have adored it, and that admiration would have caught on US leaders. That would have been entertaining to see, games making an actual impact upon those not interested in it normally.
 
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Buggy Loop

Member
Omg, a new page of non-sense

This thread is on the wrong premise, again due to shit translations.

Just like IGN's gamescience hit piece


In this case

The original article was humorous, relaxing, soothing, respectful and self-reflecting throughout, but a few translations (like that "freaking nothing" sentence) failed to convey the joking and self-mocking tone, and accidentally portrayed Feng Ji as being bitter. I've seen many got misled in the comment section. Dangerous mistranslations like these can make him a crisis!
 
They definitely deserved the win.

A no name 7 hour platformer that isn't Mario is not worthy of GOTY in a year this packed with greatness.

Astrobot has fun, free game of the month written all over it. Barely any effect to the current gaming cultural zeitgeist other than some onlookers say 'aww that's kinda cute'

Whereas Wukong has been so influential it has dudes like T Pain and David Banner talking about how inspired they were by it.

Really unsure how Astrobot and Balatro took spots from Silent Hill 2 and Helldivers 2.

I'm not the biggest fan of Helldivers 2 but there is no doubt it had a huge impact this year, and Silent Hill 2 remake is just...
amazing.
No name platformer? Going by that description, Wu Kong is just a no name action adventure game. Astro Bot at least had a game that came before it.

I think what's important to remember here is that games are by their definition something that you engage in for fun, not something that is influential. Having played both Balatro and Astro Bot, they certainly tick the 'fun' box so it's easy to see why they are so well received.

These awards are a fucking joke anyway and always cause disagreement. Who gives a shit what wins, it's not like it has any impact on your personal feelings towards a game.
 
This is dumb because

1. The game awards mean nothing

2. They're lucky it got nominated at all with all the (fictional) controversies surrounding it
 
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I had a great time with Black Myth Wokong, and I had a better time with Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and Astro Bot. Developers should stop thinking their games are the best thing since sliced bread. Plenty of great games were released this year. He should be excited that Black Myth even got nominated. There are plenty of other games that could have filled that spot.
 

Kronark

Neo Member
Man all this salt has been great. Everyone is shitting on Astrobot for being a clone of Mario but somehow forgetting Galaxy 2 came out in 2010, 14 fucking years ago, and it's not like Nintendo is replicating that level of quality annually (Odyssey was mid). Would Astrobot have won most other years? Probably not, I was skeptical about the GotY claims at release and it definitely would not have won 2022 / 2023 but people keep hyping 2024 up as some amazing once in a century year for games.

Real talk, it was a good year for releases but not an 11/10 year. Nothing that came out in 2024 is cracking the top 50 games of all time list, for me at least. It was a year full of enjoyable A and B grade releases but no S tier games. Fun to play but nothing I'm going to be raving about in 15 years. Balatro being up for GotY says more about what a weak year this was than about how good Balatro is when you consider how many other amazing indie games haven't been nominated in the past. Could you imagine the fucking salt from the Wukong / China crowd if Balatro had won over their precious sacred cow?

This entire shit fight seems to be more about fans fighting over which genre they like more or hardcore vs casuals than any merits of the games that were nominated.
 
MODS lock this thread please.

OP is just trying to paint a false narrative with awful translations.

The tone in the original post on weibo is quite positive, not salty at all. Although he is disappointed the game didnt win, he is proud of his team as the ultimate goal was to create a fun AAA game and they delivered. The comment about the writing the acceptance speech was done half jokingly. His message is basically you should go pursue your dreams, basically "hey look at us, we are nobodies and look at how we still manage to achieve success with our first game."
 

simpatico

Member
I can understand his feelings. AstroBot looks like an absolute hoot, but GOTY? Nah, more like fantastic side dish. That said, I'm still probably not giving it to Wukong. Its greatest accomplishment can probably be credited to Epic to some extent. However, a game I'm really hyped for is Black Myth Wukong 2. That I do expect to compete for a legit GOTY. Too many rough edges and sophomore design choices, but it showed a ton of promise in an enormous, well-funded, untapped dev market. I look forward to China's gaming output in the near future. We could really be looking at a creative renaissance.
 

fallingdove

Member
Game was good, not great IMO. Really impressive that the team was able to deliver a product at this level at this stage in their lifecycle though. Interested to see what’s next.

Curious if they’ll continue to explore the 4 chinese classics/Chinese history or if they’ll continue down will broaden their focus to include an original work. It sounds like more the prior than the latter given the nationalism on display in the director’s post but we will see.
 
Not sure which is sadder.

The fact that this whole drama started over meaningless title such as game of the year show award or triggered chinese fans review bombing Baldur's Gate 3 for mistranslation, and they can't dish out their hatred directly at Astro Bot, because it's PS5 exclusive.

I mean, I'm sure Black Myth is OK. Just prettier game that is carbon copy of Souls-genre and Sekiro did much better. But they are acting like Sven insulted their entire country and goty show is anti-china.
 
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MODS lock this thread please.

OP is just trying to paint a false narrative with awful translations.

I’m in no way trying to paint a “false narrative” — translation is the only viable option available to someone who doesn’t natively speak the Chinese language. Arguing over the translation accuracy is one thing, but it is the best option we have to understand if we don’t natively speak the language.

The tone in the original post on weibo is quite positive, not salty at all. Although he is disappointed the game didnt win, he is proud of his team as the ultimate goal was to create a fun AAA game and they delivered. The comment about the writing the acceptance speech was done half jokingly. His message is basically you should go pursue your dreams, basically "hey look at us, we are nobodies and look at how we still manage to achieve success with our first game."

Based on impressions from the translations I’ve seen and witness accounts from TGAs of some of the developers crying after Astro Bot winning GOTY (not crying in a joyful sense, but an upset sense), it’s not out of the realm of interpretation at all.

Additionally, this game producer should be fully aware of everything he says being potentially being spread online and speak carefully/accordingly.
 
I’m in no way trying to paint a “false narrative” — translation is the only viable option available to someone who doesn’t natively speak the Chinese language. Arguing over the translation accuracy is one thing, but it is the best option we have to understand if we don’t natively speak the language.



Based on impressions from the translations I’ve seen and witness accounts from TGAs of some of the developers crying after Astro Bot winning GOTY (not crying in a joyful sense, but an upset sense), it’s not out of the realm of interpretation at all.

Additionally, this game producer should be fully aware of everything he says being potentially being spread online and speak carefully/accordingly.
even if reading only chatgpt's translation at face value, to say he is salty is clearly taking things out of context. You are clearly twisting his words to paint a different narrative so you can have a clickbait title, and to do it despite not understanding chinese either makes your intention more malicious or that your reading comprehension is nonexistent.

He doesn't even mention astro bot at all. Other people thinking astro boy should win is other people's opinions, not his. You are associating other people's opinion as his and then parading them as facts.
 

geary

Member
I think this thread should be closed. It the exact thing that many blame twitter for it. Create drama where is not. Or at least the title should be changed….but the damage was done.

 
even if reading only chatgpt's translation at face value, to say he is salty is clearly taking things out of context. You are clearly twisting his words to paint a different narrative so you can have a clickbait title, and to do it despite not understanding chinese either makes your intention more malicious or that your reading comprehension is nonexistent.

The original post clearly notates that it is a translation (and also links the original text posted on Weibo). I simply posted a translation. To assume someone is being malicious without any proof is ridiculous. Additionally, my reading comprehension is just fine, as I was able to understand (and stated) that the post was a translation (ie. an interpretation).

Translation - The act of rendering into another language; interpretation (The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition).

You are associating other people's opinion as his and then parading them as facts.
That is your opinion, albeit extremely misguided.
 
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