Chinese-made soulslike Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, set in historical China, is now owned by... Italians?
Overview & Key Takeaways
The property was purchased by 505 Games parent company Digital Bros., following the reported dissolution of original developer Leenzee.
We didn't care too much for Wuchang: Fallen Feathers when it released last year, but it was nonetheless a notable entry in what you might call the New Wave of Chinese Videogames: A game set in China, developed by a Chinese studio, that attracted global attention. It's a bit ironic, then—and more than a bit baffling—that the property is now owned by an Italian company called Digital Bros., parent of 505 Games.
Despite Wuchang: Fallen Feathers' well-documented woes, Digital Bros. indicated the game was enough of a success to make it attractive: It topped the Steam bestsellers chart when it launched, and has since sold more than one million copies, generating over €30 million ($35 million) in revenue, "confirming the strength of the product and its long-term potential."
That out-of-the-gate success may have faded quickly, but it prompted Beijing-based analyst Zhao Yi to hold it up as another example of the growing ability of game devs in China to compete on the global stage.
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"With continual advances in technology, Chinese homegrown games are becoming competitive internationally in quality of graphics, audio, and interactive design," Zhao told the Global Times. "Games including Black Myth: Wukong, built on cutting-edge engines with high-end visuals, are standing shoulder-to-shoulder with global blockbusters." Ah well.
Perhaps the sale has some connection to a controversial patch that rolled out for Wuchang less than a month after launch, which made sweeping changes to its story and even which historical figures you could kill, seemingly as the result of pressure from Chinese players.
The deal, in which Digital Bros. paid RMB 32 million ($4.7 million) for "full ownership of the IP," followed reports of trouble at Wuchang: Fallen Feathers developer Leenzee: A Gamersky report (via Inven Global) said game director Xia Siyuan had been laid off prior to the Chinese New Year (February 17 on Western calendars), while the rest of the team was dissolved after declining to transition to an outsourcing studio.
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