Black Myth: Wukong developer Game Science is reportedly trying to ban content creators from discussing certain topics in exchange for game codes.
In a leaked document, which at least one content creator has publicly stated they received from Game Science, there is a “do’s and dont’s” section, telling those who receive a code what they cannot discuss in their content. Here, the document informs those with Black Myth: Wukong codes that they cannot include “politics” and “feminist propaganda” in their coverage of the game, among other topics.
Seems reasonable. They are to review the game so the player know what’s the game like.
That’s all mainstream reviews have been for AAA games for the last decade+ anyway.
What all obedient reviews have been, yes. And those are the reviews you’ve been seeking out and watching.
Oh no! You can’t talk about politics. When talking about the game. Who haves nothing do to with politics.
Why you need to talk about that stuff. If the game about is not about that stuff?
Because I am a believer in death of the author. That means that a developer doesn’t get to decide what their game is or isn’t about.
A dev could have put in a theme unintentionally. Does that mean you are not allowed to talk about it?
Why do they get to decide what a work of art means to me?
Why did they forbid talking about stuff that isn’t about the game? Why do they need to talk about this stuff?
The game studio brought this up, not the reviewers. The reviewers are just pointing out that the devs are clearly woke obsessed piss babies that can’t not talk about politics, even when it doesn’t have anything to do with their game.
If the same document forbade reviewers from talking about, say, white replacement (which I don’t personally believe btw, just trying to hold up a mirror, here), I’m sure you wouldn’t be crying censorship.
Red flag.
Not for most of the Dark Souls crowd.
But what I’m thinking is that they don’t really have much leverage, I don’t know who is expecting this studio to put out more than this one anticipated game before returning to relative obscurity. At most they can provide a shorter demo and deny the full game codes to reviewers that didn’t obey.
I was just going to write “China’s gonna China”, but then I remember this particular studio goes a little further than that:
In one instance, a lead is said to have written that men and women play different games because of “biological conditions”, following up his comment by writing: “Fck sissies, fck tragic love stories, fuck moon-lit peach blossoms and flute-playing scholars! […] Some things are just for men, their depression, their anger, their pain…”.
The studio is also said to have shared job recruitment posters that boasted “friends with benefits” as a job perk. Another was reported to have read, “Fatties should f*ck off.”
Charming.
So a 4chan edgelord is somehow running part of a company. Lovely…
I wasn’t aware that only men have depression, anger and pain. 🤔
This is fake.
https://x.com/JordanMiddler/status/1824864368342753719
EDIT: Seemingly different guidelines for reviewers and “influencers”? I’ll wait for the dust to settle on this one.
Ah yes, the undeniable proof that is a man’s word and a screenshot of a bullet points list without any context.
“GLHF has confirmed that the “Do’s & Don’ts” document was sent to Reinier and at least one other content creator by Hero Games, a developer and publisher that co-published Black Myth: Wukong according to a LinkedIn post from the company. Hero Games is also a major shareholder in developer GameScience, and as of a 2021 press release was the largest external shareholder of the company.
Reinier sent GLHF a copy of the email sent to content creators and we can confirm that it was sent from a company email address associated with Hero Games. The email signature also contained a Discord username, and the account associated with the sender is listed as a Hero Games employee on their profile in the official Black Myth: Wukong Discord server.”
Here’s the Forbes article: The Black Myth: Wukong ‘No Feminist Propaganda, No COVID-19 Discussion’ Email Is Real
