Why the Chinese Dissatisfied with Black Myth: Wukong
thechinaacademy.org
Telling Wukong's story is to narrate the story of our times.

According to “Xiaoting Xulu,” Emperor Qianlong of the Qing dynasty ordered Zhang Wenmin to produce a performance, “The Peaceful Raft of Ascension,” depicting the Journey to the West. The script, written by Zhang, was crafted to uphold the idea of “domestic peace,” using the play to reinforce the Qing dynasty’s rule. After Wukong’s defeat by Buddha, the creators added a celebratory scene titled “Taming the Greedy Tiger and Bringing Peace to Heaven.” Wukong, referred to as “the Greedy Tiger,” was portrayed as the disruptive force and enemy of the Qing’s order. The theme of “suppressing the rebellious” ran throughout.

Sounds familiar to Western media tropes regarding revolutionary villains.

  • RION [she/her]
    ·
    9 days ago

    I get the argument, but the title feels a little odd given how hugely successful it's been in China, which they even reference in these last two sentences:

    And the fans of the “Black Myth” can only gloss over the narrative shortcomings by boasting the game’s sales and overwhelming positive ratings. All of these just highlight how significant the story issues were.

    Overwhelmingly positive ratings would imply most people are satisfied, no?