The show has been criticized in the past for being a giant ad for future games, other non-gaming companies, and more. Host and creator Geoff Keighley has taken the feedback seriously and is always working to improve the show, though. Still, it’s not the most serious show in the world. The Muppets have showed up to crack jokes, there are big sales for video games during it, and many of the awards are given rapidly off stage with no speeches for the developers. It’s just a fun event for people who like video games and want to see some sort of recognition for the industry, but it’s not the end all be all.
However, this was a pretty big year for The Game Awards. Controversially, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree was nominated for Game of the Year despite being an expansion. Some other big titles like Silent Hill 2 were absent from Game of the Year. One game that fans were excited to see nominated was Black Myth: Wukong, a Chinese Souls-like from developer Game Science that released to massive player counts and a warm reception from players. However, Black Myth: Wukong didn’t win Game of the Year, that went to Astro Bot.
While other developers typically celebrate their peers’ success and cheer for them, even if they lose, Game Science reportedly didn’t do that. According to former Sony Santa Monica writer Alanah Pearce, the Black Myth: Wukong team were seen visibly crying when Astro Bot won Game of the Year. Pearce noted she’s never seen anything like that and that they were “definitely upset” that they didn’t win Game of the Year. While it’s understandable to be disappointed that they lost, this outward display of emotion over losing at The Game Awards is pretty unusual. Furthermore, Game Science CEO Feng Ji took to Chinese social media platform Weibo to express his disappointment and frustration with the lost in a big rant.
In a post translated by MP1st, Ji noted that he had written an acceptance speech for Black Myth: Wukong winning Game of the Year two years ago. The producer noted he was extremely confident in the quality of the game and felt like he traveled to Los Angeles for the award show for nothing. Similarly, he questioned the criteria for what makes a game eligible for Game of the Year, but noted the nominees were all exceptional. He ended the post by celebrating his team and emphasizing the power of Chinese culture and talent.
Of course, it’s important to remember that this was a translated post, so some of the context may have been lost in translation. Regardless, it all makes for an incredibly interesting response to an awards show. It’s clear it meant a lot to the team and they have a tremendous amount of pride in Black Myth: Wukong, however, losing this award isn’t the end of the world. Black Myth: Wukong was a massive commercial success and enjoyed strong reviews too, which is really what matters most for a game studio that wants to keep on making games. Not only that, but this was Game Science’s first internationally released AAA video game. The fact it even got nominated at all is a triumph for a first time team.
Either way, with all of this confidence it’s likely Game Science will only use this as motivation to make its next game bigger and better. It’s expected there will be some kind of successor to Black Myth: Wukong, though it’s unclear if it will be a direct sequel or just something in the same style a la FromSoftware doing games like Dark Souls and Bloodborne. Black Myth: Wukong is also rumored to come to Xbox eventually, but nothing has been confirmed.
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Source: https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/black-myth-wukong-game-science-cried-lost-game-of-the-year-game-awards/
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