Last summer, Black Myth Wukong emerged as a significant force in the video game industry. It demonstrated that it is possible to develop AAA games with a budget of only $70 million and achieve record-breaking sales. Concerning its sales figures, we previously noted that 20 million copies were sold within 15 days, but there have been no subsequent updates. We learned through Yang Qi’s (co-founder of Game Science and Art Director on the game) participation at the West Lake Art Forum, hosted by the School of Animation and Games in China, that Black Myth Wukong has now surpassed 25 million copies sold globally.
Yang Qi also notes that 30% of sales were made in the Western market, resulting in approximately 7.5 million copies sold within just six months. This performance is remarkable, surpassing some of the largest Western games. For example, God of War in 2018 exceeded 10 million copies sold in a year, while The Last of Us Part II took until 2022 to reach the same milestone, which was two years after its release. Black Myth Wukong thus demonstrates impressive sales velocity.
Considering the game’s price at $60, if we adjust it to $30 to account for Steam fees, regional pricing variations, and other factors, these 7.5 million copies would generate approximately $225 million in revenue. This amount is sufficient to cover three times the production budget of $70 million (including development and marketing expenses), indicating that Black Myth Wukong would still be a commercially successful venture even without contributions from Chinese players. Incorporating global sales figures highlights the game’s impressive performance.
