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In 2020, "Black Myth: Wukong" was questioned by netizens for "borrowing" the style, actions and settings of another game "Sekiro". The most important thing is that the art style of "Black Myth: Wukong" is similar to that of "Sekiro".

This topic was later extended to the level of cultural origins of China and Japan. Before and after this, "Black Myth: Wukong" was criticized by netizens for "insulting women" and "insulting China". It can be said that "the Monkey King has not yet been born, but the steel has already been tempered a hundred times."

On August 20, 2024, "Black Myth: Wukong" was launched. As China's first 3A game, the cumulative sales on all platforms exceeded 4.5 million copies on the first day of its launch, with total sales exceeding RMB 1.5 billion. The number of simultaneous online players on the STEAM platform exceeded 2.2 million.

Three days later, this domestic game, which took seven years to develop, was reported by multiple bloggers for plagiarism. Even some American and Korean netizens joined in, concluding that Black Myth: Wukong had "borrowed" the creativity of various Chinese and foreign people in all aspects, including modeling, scenes, composition, actions and music.

The criticism was directed at the game's producer Feng Ji and chief game graphic designer Yang Qi.

Feng and Yang were responsible for the "Douluo Dalu" mobile game project in 2009, and later resigned to start their own business. In 2018, they officially developed a single game "Black Myth: Wukong".

It is reported that the internal code name of "Black Myth: Wukong" is "B1", which means Black myth One.

"The first product in the Black Myth series"

In Feng Ji's plan, the "Black Myth" series is a "magical story about different legendary heroes in the Eastern mythology system." "Black Myth: Wukong" is just the starting point.

But now, the "man of destiny" has suffered another critical blow.

one

The road to launch

Let’s first look at the reasons why China claims that Black Myth: Wukong was plagiarized:

Netizen "Nanshan Zen" called out to Yang Qi, the creator of "Black Myth: Wukong", saying that the scenes in the game used the pictures he took, and hoped that the game developer would contact him as soon as possible. The blogger also shared the game screen and compared it with the pictures he took.

Chinese painting blogger "Sai Shang Li Yunzhong" posted a Weibo post with a picture of "The Remains of the Great Sage" from "Black Myth: Wukong", saying, "It seems that the Monkey King I drew has changed his equipment. Maybe he leveled up by beating monsters. So handsome."

Afterwards, blogger "Xuan鏐108" posted a comparison picture of Yang Jian's armband in the game and the armbands he had designed in the past, and lamented, "It's been plagiarized again. Is it so difficult to be original?" Then, a blogger released a video, using the video to compare the details of the character's armbands in the game "Black Myth: Wukong" with the blogger's past works one by one, to prove the plagiarism.

Let’s look at the release trajectory of Black Myth: Wukong:

The domestic mobile game industry has long been criticized for many things, the most concentrated of which is the highly "unified" game interface and poor interface experience. In view of this, "Black Myth: Wukong" released its first real machine demonstration video as early as August 20, 2020. A new real machine demonstration was released on August 20 of the following year.

On August 20 last year, the game organized an offline trial session in Hangzhou and a trial activity on Bilibili. At the same time, its store page was also launched simultaneously on Steam and Epic Games.

It was not officially released until August 20 this year.

Over the past five years, the game interface, character configuration, and music elements of Black Myth: Wukong have been continuously exposed. Given the speed of information dissemination on the Internet today, these elements should have been noticed long ago. Therefore, some people questioned why the "plagiarism" theory broke out again after the game was officially launched.

At the same time, Korean netizens posted that the game background music "Cloud Palace Swift Sound" plagiarized the country's BTS song, and even traced back to history, questioning whether the melody of "Cloud Palace Swift Sound" (a domestic music work in the 1980s) was "borrowed" from a BTS song? In addition, another overseas blogger questioned that "Black Myth: Wukong" plagiarized a certain American game...

For a time, the "internal and external attacks" pushed this game, which took several years to develop, to the forefront again.

two

Attack from both inside and outside

According to official data, the filming of "Black Myth: Wukong" was based on references to Chongqing Dazu Rock Carvings, Hangzhou Lingyin Temple, and 27 architectural monuments in Datong, Shanxi. Among them is a famous scenic spot that is suspected of "plagiarism".

In this regard, some netizens questioned whether this was an act of "scam", arguing that the angles are similar and the presentation effects are of course consistent. The opposing view is that the draft is a game promotional picture used by the game company during its publicity and distribution, the middle figure is a painting, and the sculptures on both sides are suspected of being photoshopped because the viewing angle and perspective are exactly the same.

Regarding the character design, netizens who support the game think that it is normal for the characters' movements and design to be similar in the countless drawings of "Journey to the West" handed down from ancient times to the present. Later film and television dramas also adopted the widely circulated classic shapes, so the claim of "plagiarism" needs to be discussed.

As for the "armor collision" design of Yang Jian's arm guard and other armor, it can be traced back to the decorative characteristics of armor making in the Tang and Song dynasties. The arm guard shown by the blogger and the Yang Jian arm guard in the game both conform to the armor buckle pattern standard of the Tang and Song dynasties, so it is difficult to determine whether it is "plagiarism".

In response to this, netizens who support Black Myth: Wukong formed the "pick-up porcelain theory":

He accused some people of being "jealous" of the game's popularity and angrily denounced the blogger for "bringing shame upon the country."

Netizens who hold opposing views hope that the game company will speak out as soon as possible to clarify the suspicion of "plagiarism" and demand "to produce evidence that the work was drawn earlier than the time the blogger accused it of."

So what are Feng and Yang, who are at the center of the public opinion vortex, doing?

According to industry insiders, the "Black Myth" series will be expanded into a trilogy, and the game studio has officially registered the trademarks of "Black Myth: Jiang Ziya" and "Black Myth: Zhong Kui", indicating that one day in the future, the "Black Myth" game series, as a form of cultural output, will open up a new channel for Chinese traditional culture.

Based on this ambition and market influence, shortly after the game was launched on August 20, CCTV News commented that Black Myth: Wukong has "an ups and downs story, magnificent graphics, exciting battles, and a full experience. It has attracted countless fans at home and abroad. Some overseas players who have been "hard-controlled" have already started learning Journey to the West... It shows the strong appeal of Chinese culture and its innovative ability to keep pace with the times."

Xinhua News Agency also commented that "this phenomenal product has opened the first year of domestic 3A games. While achieving a breakthrough in the Chinese game industry, it has also provided global players with a new way to understand Chinese culture. The popularity of Black Myth: Wukong is not just an accidental "out-of-the-box" for a domestic game. It is the inevitable result of cultural confidence, a new expression of the vigorous vitality of traditional culture, and has opened up a new channel for cultural output."

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs even commented that it "reflects the appeal of Chinese culture."

The author believes that amid the official praise and high expectations, Black Myth: Wukong should publicly respond as soon as possible to the doubts of many bloggers, either admitting or refuting them, so that this highly anticipated game can gain market recognition.

three

Who controls destiny?

Let’s put aside the game-level experience and technical flow such as “interface, map, achievements” for the moment.

Facing accusations of "plagiarism", "Black Myth: Wukong" itself carries not simple commercial attributes but cultural values.

Cultural value is the Achilles' heel of the domestic mobile game industry, and indeed all cultural products, which will be evaluated and even attacked.

From 2020 to 2024, "Black Myth: Wukong" went through more twists and turns than the journey to the West, from its online trial to its official release.

Although the initial evaluation of a game does not represent its final achievement, many classic games have faced various doubts and criticisms in the early stages of their release. That is why "Black Myth: Wukong" has undergone seven years of continuous online testing.

As an important attempt at domestic 3A games, its demonstration significance now exceeds the value of the game itself.

Not only does it have to be recognized by players, but it also has to face the scrutiny of domestic and foreign netizens on its presentation of details.

The author believes that this "plagiarism" public opinion can be seen as a driving force for the development of the industry for "Black Myth: Wukong" and even subsequent products. The public should also maintain a rational evaluation and sufficient patience.

This game will face more scrutiny in the global game market in the future and will eventually find its own place.

Experiencing doubts, facing doubts, and resolving doubts may be the "destiny" of this game.

I hope that this storm can finally come to a satisfactory conclusion, and I also hope that we can wait and see the "long journey to obtain scriptures" after the first release of the "Black Myth" series.