Black Myth: Wukong’s producer seems pissed he didn’t win Game of the Year

When you lose out on a major award after getting nominated, it is customary to hold a fixed smile, warmly applaud your successful rival, and never speak of it again. But nobody told Feng Ji, CEO of Chinese developer Game Science and producer of its hit game Black Myth: Wukong, which was defeated by Astro Bot in the Game of the Year category at The Game Awards on Thursday.

Feng posted a long reflection about Black Myth’s night at The Game Awards on Weibo, where he goes by Yocar. He acknowledged the game’s wins in the Best Action Game and Players’ Voice categories, but expressed disappointment and confusion at the GOTY loss, and admitted to writing an acceptance speech two years ago.

“The four nominations (Best Action Game, Best Art Direction, Best Game Direction, and Game of the Year) were a first for a Chinese game,” Feng noted with justified pride (via machine translation). “Yet, I must admit, there’s a sense of loss and regret. More than anything, though, there’s a letting go of illusions.

“The games nominated this year were all exceptional, but honestly, I still can’t figure out what the criteria were for Game of the Year,” Feng continued. “I feel like I came all the way here for nothing!”

It can be argued that Feng and the Game Science team must have had a pretty good grasp of the criteria for Game of the Year to reach the final six nominees. Black Myth: Wukong is notable as the first Western-style, AAA console game production to emerge from China, and if success at The Game Awards was part of the plan, then it seems to have hit the bullseye. But Feng was honest about craving — and even expecting — the top prize.

“Since last night, I’ve seen a lot of strong dissatisfaction and frustration in players’ comments — often expressed humorously or ironically, which made me laugh,” he said.

“I completely understand these feelings and share the frustration, because behind these emotions lies not pain or malice, but dignity and confidence,” Feng added. “When you’re so confident and yet don’t receive the recognition you expected, it’s natural to feel upset. […] In fact, I wrote my Game of the Year acceptance speech two years ago—only to never get the chance to deliver it!”

Salty! It’s true that the tone of Feng’s comments may have been lost in translation. (Polygon cross-referenced two machine translations, from ChatGPT and Google Translate.) You can find some comments online saying that Feng’s original Mandarin post comes across as humorously self-mocking — and others saying it sounds arrogant and bitter.

Feng’s unfiltered posting has gotten him in hot water before. Last year, IGN reported on an apparent culture of sexism surrounding Black Myth: Wukong, and noted the crude, sexist language that the CEO used in some of his social media posts.

But a passionate outspokenness is part of Feng’s online persona, and part of what excites Black Myth’s legion of fans. His post might seem like uncouth sour grapes and a breach of entertainment industry etiquette — but there’s a possibility that that’s exactly the point, and the desired effect.