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Game Science Is Reportedly Making Content Creators Promise Not To Discuss Feminism, Politics For Black Myth: Wukong Codes (www.thegamer.com)

submitted 4 months ago by Stopthatgirl7@lemmy.world to c/games@sh.itjust.works

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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.

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[-] Coelacanth@feddit.nu 115 points 4 months ago

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.

[-] Paradachshund@lemmy.today 69 points 4 months ago

So a 4chan edgelord is somehow running part of a company. Lovely...

I wasn't aware that only men have depression, anger and pain. 🤔

[-] magnetosphere@fedia.io 37 points 4 months ago

Lots of bigoted edgelords have lots of management positions… they just aren’t actually on 4chan.

[-] RangerJosie@sffa.community 34 points 4 months ago

Glad I never intended to give money to these assholes.

[-] Cadeillac@lemmy.world 37 points 4 months ago

With that attitude I won't even pirate it

[-] ShareMySims@sh.itjust.works 19 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

“China’s gonna China”

Fuck China, but I really don't see how this is specific to them. Lets not pretend this shit couldn't happen (and is happening) pretty much anywhere else on the planet.

[-] Carighan@lemmy.world 2 points 4 months ago

Some things are just for men, their depression, their anger, their pain…”.

I mean, you can just ask for suicide watch straight up, instead of veiling it like that?

[-] alcoholicorn@lemmy.ml 51 points 4 months ago

The guy who sent this was apparently using a gmail domain, not Game Science domain, this might be fake.

The article itself says that they never received any such requirements.

[-] BrowseMan@sh.itjust.works 5 points 4 months ago

And valid game keys so....

[-] MrGabr@ttrpg.network 33 points 4 months ago

Others have already pointed out important things about what the dev has said; I would like to add that the book the game is based on has a number of female characters which are simply not in the game.

[-] RangerJosie@sffa.community 24 points 4 months ago

Red flag.

[-] ampersandrew@lemmy.world 11 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

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.

[-] Stopthatgirl7@lemmy.world 4 points 4 months ago

It’s not.

https://x.com/paultassi/status/1825193786273681489?s=46&t=EUtgwMByNj4sQbVP9INV-Q

[-] Koen967@feddit.nl -1 points 4 months ago

Ah yes, the undeniable proof that is a man's word and a screenshot of a bullet points list without any context.

[-] Stopthatgirl7@lemmy.world 5 points 4 months ago

Here’s the Forbes article: The Black Myth: Wukong ‘No Feminist Propaganda, No COVID-19 Discussion’ Email Is Real

[-] Stopthatgirl7@lemmy.world 4 points 4 months ago

“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.”

Source

[+] Blizzard@lemmy.zip -53 points 4 months ago

Seems reasonable. They are to review the game so the player know what's the game like.

[-] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 55 points 4 months ago

Straight up saying not to say anything that paints the game negatively or might piss someone off; that's not telling people what the game is like.

[-] Chozo@fedia.io 28 points 4 months ago

You are confusing "review" with "advertise".

[-] MolochAlter@lemmy.world -2 points 4 months ago

That's all mainstream reviews have been for AAA games for the last decade+ anyway.

[-] Comment105@lemm.ee 3 points 4 months ago

What all obedient reviews have been, yes. And those are the reviews you've been seeking out and watching.

[-] MolochAlter@lemmy.world 1 points 4 months ago

LMAO way to assume shit about me.

I only go by steam reviews and gameplay videos/demos, if the games aren't recommended by someone I know personally.

Game journalism has always been essentially marketing, the publications are way too tied to the industry and way too dependent on advertising from the same companies and products they're supposed to be criticising, hence why big titles that get less than an 8 are equivalent to normal games getting a 2 or a 3.

Good games will rise to the top organically, some might get lost in the shuffle but it won't be the perennially 2 weeks late big budget crap apologists at whatever game """news""" publication you care to name to fix that.

[-] Carighan@lemmy.world 1 points 4 months ago

You must be reading weird reviews then. Probably too deep into the influencer-bubble, which granted with the proliferation of video reviews and the way algorithms work on Youtube and so on is sadly rather comment.

[-] Kowowow@lemmy.ca 25 points 4 months ago

So just really worried about right-wing cancle culture?

[-] Carighan@lemmy.world 1 points 4 months ago

I would quarantine that game in my review bucket based on it's isolation of specific trigger words such as 'COVID-19'. I'd rather talk about Winnie the Pooh, tbh.

[+] hal_5700X@sh.itjust.works -66 points 4 months ago

Oh no! You can't talk about politics. When talking about the game. Who haves nothing do to with politics.

[-] Stopthatgirl7@lemmy.world 36 points 4 months ago

Good to know you like censorship.

[+] hal_5700X@sh.itjust.works -45 points 4 months ago

Why you need to talk about that stuff. If the game about is not about that stuff?

[-] mosiacmango@lemm.ee 38 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

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.

[-] Gradually_Adjusting@lemmy.world 15 points 4 months ago

Forbidding people to talk about politics is inherently political, and therefore hypocritical.

[-] Cethin@lemmy.zip 11 points 4 months ago

Why do they feel the need to forbid that speech if it isn't related to the game. If the content of the game inspires people to discuss such issues then they should be allowed to discuss them. If it's extremely misogynistic, they should be allowed to point that out.

[-] Vittelius@feddit.org 9 points 4 months ago

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?

[-] Carighan@lemmy.world 0 points 4 months ago

Good to know you like censorship.

this post was submitted on 17 Aug 2024

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