While not the most serious game, Astro Bot was considered a massive technical achievement for PlayStation, and many people were happy to see it win Game of the Year at this year’s Game Awards.
Though Astro Bot is getting its roses now, one team was apparently disappointed that they didn’t manage to get GOTY—and that’s the developers behind Black Myth: Wukong.
Black Myth: Wukong on GOTY Snub
Wukong director Feng Ji was apparently displeased that they didn’t manage to win the Game of the Year and wrote in a lengthy Weibo post (via VGC) about his disappointment. In a machine-translated post, Feng wrote:
“In the end, it won the Best Action and Player’s Voice, especially the Player’s Voice, which is gratifying. But I must admit that there are disappointments and regrets… The games nominated this year are all excellent, but I really don’t understand the selection criteria for this year’s Game of the Year. I came here for nothing!”
It’s worth noting that it does seem that Feng is writing in a kind of humorous tone, so a lot of his statement could just be him joking, but even some people who were actually at the Game Awards have confirmed that people from the Wukong team were outright crying when it was announced that Astro Bot won.
Astro vs The Monkey King
Wukong was a dark reimagining of the Journey to the West, an ancient novel about the Monkey King and his tiff with several gods. The story has been adapted across multiple generations, but Black Myth managed to put the story through a Soulslike-filter and has been commended for being able to incorporate a lot of the story elements while finding ways to implement gameplay based on Son Goku’s fantastical powers.
On the other hand, Astro Bot was considered a love letter to PlayStation, incorporating all the capabilities of the PS5 and the DualSense controller to deliver a masterfully designed platforming experience. Admittedly, it has been bashed for being a remake of Super Mario Odyssey.
It’s Still a Win
click to enlargeThough Black Myth: Wukong may not have won Game of the Year, the game still managed to nab some awards with Best Action Game and Player’s Voice Award. This award is voted for via online poll where players are asked which game they prefer the most as compared to the GOTY Award which is decided by people within the games industry.
It’s no secret that Wukong was a commercial success, and managed to sell over 20 million copies across PC and PS5. An expansion is even rumored to be releasing early next year, but so far, nothing official has been announced by Game Science.
Despite Wukong being a solid contender, a lot of fans agree that Astro Bot deserved the win. Though Wukong may have a more mature story and tone, the accessibility of Astro Bot feels like an achievement that many modern games haven't been able to match.
Black Myth: Wukong is now available for PS5 and PC. An Xbox Series X|S port is being planned somewhere down the line.
For more articles like this, take a look at our Gaming News and Black Myth: Wukong page.