Reports indicate a surprising situation at Huaqiangbei, Shenzhen’s world-renowned electronics market—sales of the PlayStation 5 are skyrocketing, led by Black Myth: Wukong.
According to Daniel Camilo on X, the “contagious wave,” sees consumers who often show little interest in gaming suddenly captivated by the exposure the game, which draws inspiration from the classic Chinese novel “Journey to the West,” is receiving in China.
This sudden surge in PS5 sales could potentially have far-reaching implications for PlayStation and its position in the Chinese market. However, while Sony might be in a celebratory mood following this unprecedented and unexpected win, this entire situation is a stark reminder of Xbox’s recent missteps.
Following the disappointing exclusion of Baldur’s Gate 3 from the Xbox Series S/X due to parity issues—Microsoft requires games to run well on both platforms—Microsoft now faces another major setback as it misses out on the Black Myth: Wukong phenomenon.
To no one’s surprise, this series of missed opportunities has left many Xbox players frustrated and questioning Microsoft’s commitment to delivering high-quality gaming experiences.
The company’s baffling inability to consistently deliver compelling experience has allowed Sony to strengthen its position, now even in a rare market where they were supposed to be on equal grounds.
The situation in China is particularly concerning for Xbox, as it represents a massive, relatively untapped market of 1.4 billion potential consumers. With the PS5 gaining ground rapidly due to Black Myth: Wukong’s success, Sony will benefit enormously if it can dominate this emerging console market, which it probably will, thanks to the China Hero Project.
Despite having the financial resources and potential to attract top talent, Microsoft has failed to capitalize on its flagship franchises like Halo and Gears of War and its recent attempts to acquire major publishers, totaling around $80 billion, have amounted to pretty much nothing.
Instead of releasing banger after banger or even investing money in third-party publishers that could potentially drive up sales—someone tell Phil Spencer that it’s still true that games drive console numberst—Xbox is instead investing in making its games available on other platforms while letting go of some of their acquisitions like Tango Gameworks even when they’re responsible for one of the few exclusives that were actually good.
For Xbox, the path forward remains uncertain. While Xbox still has loyal fans and Microsoft’s coffers at its disposal, it faces an uphill battle in regaining lost ground. The company may have to reassess its strategy, especially if, by the end of the year, the PlayStation 5 Pro comes out and becomes the preferred platform for both Black Myth: Wukong and Grand Theft Auto 6.
Looking ahead, the gaming landscape continues to shape itself into a new form, not unlike how Sun Wukong can’t seem to decide what form he wants to take when he wants to pummel gods, demons, and beasts alike with equal enthusiasm.
Nintendo’s anticipated Switch 2, rumored to offer PS4-like quality through excellent DLSS and custom Nvidia GPUs, could introduce a new competitor. This potential for a three-way competition could benefit consumers by pushing all companies to innovate and improve their offerings.
For now, it seems Sony and Nintendo have the upper hand, leaving Xbox with little choice but to play catch-up for the nth year in a row.
