A new video game released on Tuesday, August 20, by a startup supported by Tencent, has rapidly ascended to become the most-played title on a prominent online platform, underscoring the increasing interest in games developed in China.
Black Myth: Wukong, inspired by the legendary Chinese figure
and the classic novel Journey to the West, achieved the top spot on Steam’s
most-played games list with 1.4 million concurrent players just hours after its
launch.
Game Science, the studio responsible for Black Myth: Wukong,
was established in 2014 by Feng Ji, a former Tencent employee.
The company has attracted investment from various sources,
including the Chinese tech powerhouse Tencent and mobile game publisher Hero
Entertainment.
Initially teased in 2020, the game has garnered
international attention as a significant high-budget project from China.
Pre-orders commenced on June 8, and the game dominated Steam’s sales chart in
China for the week of August 6-13.
The launch also generated considerable buzz domestically,
with Black Myth: Wukong trending on social media, ranking second on Weibo,
China’s leading microblogging site, and amassing 1.7 billion views.
Several major brands have capitalized on the game’s
popularity in their marketing strategies, with Lenovo Group, Luckin Coffee, and
Didi among those integrating themes inspired by Black Myth: Wukong into their
promotional efforts.