China receives economy boost from Black Myth: Wukong release

CGTN Europe

China’s national economy is being boosted by the enormous success of the country’s first ever AAA video game production, 'Black Myth: Wukong'.  #wukong

Transcript

00:00Meet Sun Wukong, a fictional 16th century monkey king whose video game rebirth is helping

00:08to boost China's economy. Sun is the titular hero of Black Myth Wukong, China's first AAA

00:15game and a certified smash hit. Within just three days of its release on August 20th,

00:21more than 10 million units have been sold. Now the game's become so popular, it's helping

00:27to drive a wave of business opportunities across multiple sectors. Take consumer goods

00:32for example. Although you might expect computer merchandise to be in high demand, other more

00:37surprising co-branded goods are also selling out fast. From hot coffee to stamps, bikes

00:44to clothing. Black Myth has really exceeded our expectations. For example, we've released

00:50the products for about a week or so, and the whole thing has sold almost as much as the

00:55other series has sold in a year. There's also been a boost in tourism. In Shanxi province,

01:02where most of the game is based, they're seeing a surge in Wukong-inspired travel, with gamers

01:07checking out architectural marvels at sites including the Yuangang Grottoes and the almost

01:131,000-year-old Yingjiang Wooden Pagoda. We came from Beijing and were astonished. The

01:20cultural confidence of the Chinese people needs to be learned and understood by our

01:23generation so as to be passed on. The tour guide was also talking about a Black Myth

01:29Wukong special tour. We are looking forward to it. Meanwhile, there's also been a surge

01:35in bookings at hotels that cater to gamers. Operators say many of their multi-person rooms

01:41have been sold out since it was released, even with some rates priced at more than double

01:46the normal level. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. Black Myth's breakthrough

01:51could now inspire a new era for China's gaming industry, with a focus on even bigger, more

01:57ambitious projects which offer huge rewards, not just to developers, but to the Chinese

02:03economy as a whole. Ray Addison, CGTN, London.

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