Posted in: Games, Indie Games, Video Games | Tagged: Black Myth: Wukong, Game Science, Hero Games

Black Myth: Wukong Criticized For "Feminist" & "COVID" No-Go Email

Game Science, the publisher behind The Black Myth: Wukong, is facing backlash over a restrictive email shared with content creators

The team behind Black Myth: Wukong is drawing criticism and backlash over a leaked email telling content creators what they can and cannot discuss. The rumblings started over the weekend when several journalists were contacted by streamers who had received a code for the game, sharing the info under anonymity. At the time, they had revealed a specific section of the agreement email outlining the "Do's and Don'ts" of what they could discuss about the game. This is normally standard practice for any company that sends out codes to streamers, as well as media/journalists, with guidelines of when you can discuss parts of the game and what they do not want to have shown/revealed to the public before the game is out. However, this particular set of requirements struck a chord with many.

Game Science's Extremely Weird List Of Don'ts For Black Myth: Wukong

As you can see from the image below, which was captured and posted on Twitter/X by Forbes' Paul Tassi as part of their coverage, this section of the email started going viral on social media as they outlined several specific "Don'ts" that you usually do not find in ANY agreement. Specifically telling content creators and streamers they could not talk about "feminist propaganda" and "fetishization," as well as using the words "Quarantine" or "COVID-19," and were forbidden from discussing the Chinese gaming industry. This info was spread around for several hours without a full copy of the info, primarily because those sharing it wanted to remain anonymous and not become blacklisted for sharing it. Eventually, someone discovered a Google Docs copy of the brief online, detailing the entire email in full from the marketing team of Hero Games and developer/publisher Game Science. The odd part, which many have noted, is that there are no embargo dates or restrictions on what content can be shown. These emails were also not sent to journalists for review purposes; this is simply what many content creators have claimed to receive.

Aside from the fact that the requirements are extremely weird and, in some cases, super insensitive, the reality of the situation is that the majority of content creators probably wouldn't have brought these subjects up in the first place or even thought about talking about them had the company not drawn attention to them in the first place. Is that true of all? No. There are creators and streamers out there who focus on those topics and include them in the discussion of whatever game they're playing when they apply it to the situation—as well as other topics that affect other titles not listed here. But for the most part, many of the recipients of these game codes would more than likely have played Black Myth: Wukong, had fun, maybe criticized the gameplay, and moved on to the next game.

As far as why the company brought up some of these topics, there are a few different reasons out there. First off, being a Chinese gaming company with a title that was developed during the pandemic, it's not too hard to draw a straight line to the idea that they just don't want the pandemic discussed in any way tied to their game. But why they would assume anyone would want to talk about the pandemic when playing this particular title is beyond us since it has no direct references to it. For those unfamiliar with the game, this is an action RPG that has been rooted in Chinese mythology as you play the role of the Monkey King, also known as the Destined One, Sun Wukong. Your quest is to uncover the truth behind a glorious legend that has been kept behind a veil of secrecy. All of which has nothing to do with COVID-19!

As to the "feminist propaganda" line, the company has been called out for misogynic comments in the past and for promoting a sexist culture within their workplace, which some outlets have gone to great lengths to track and explain everything for Western audiences. Some people on social media suggested it was to appease the Chinese government on censorship. However, the reality is that it probably has more to do with the company's past than anything involving their home country. 

All of that said, the company has already started heavily promoting the fact that several reviewers have already given Black Myth: Wukong high marks ahead of its release on August 20th. Whether or not they decide to address this situation or pretend like it doesn't exist remains to be seen as of the time this article is being written.

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