‘Warcraft’ Movie Brings Out the Nostalgia in China’s Online Gaming Generation · Global Voices
Warcraft's poster. Labelled for reuse.
Warcraft, a Hollywood movie adapted from the famous multiplayer online game World of Warcraft (WoW), was released in China on June 8, and in the first five days, cumulative ticket sales reached $156 million there. In less than two weeks, the figure rose to $204 million. Meanwhile, in North America, the movie's debut weekend brought in about $24 million, and since its release has hit $44 million total. With global cumulative ticket sales at $412 million, that means China has contributed to about half of the movie's box office earnings. While the movie has been poorly ranked by western film critics, many wonder why it has surpassed other Hollywood movies in the Chinese market. The studio behind Warcraft, Legendary Entertainment, was acquired by Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda early this year. The local connection has helped the movie to develop marketing strategies that target the Chinese market and pull in a number of sponsors to boost ticket sales. A major strategy was to promote the movie as a kind of game festival for China's Warcraft generation to dress up or meet like-minded players.
‘This movie is about our youth’
Warcraft was first introduced in mainland China in 2005. At that time, Internet was having a profound affect on Chinese young people. 356
Online video games were new and appealing, not only for the games themselves but also for the opportunity they represented to set up a virtual community and make friendships. The game was banned briefly in China in 2009, but hardcore fans still managed to find ways to access it. In a decade's time, China has become one of the biggest markets for Warcraft, with approximately two and a half million players. A lot of nostalgia surrounds the game for players who have been with Warcraft since it was first released. During the movie's premiere week, in addition to professional cosplayers (people who dress up in costume and play the role of a character) appearing in major cinemas, some Warcraft fans also organized festival-like gatherings with game props and costumes in theaters. One user of popular Chinese social media site Weibo, @novapang, received a free ticket from his company and dressed up for the occasion with friends:
Image from Weibo user @Novapang
Another Weibo user, <PERSON>, reflected on the feelings of the Warcraft generation:
坐在电影院时就开始好激动 真的很激动 甚至眼泪挤一挤就能出来。05年开始玩魔兽，我是第一批老玩家，开始的一个蠢蠢的人类小牧师，一路加神圣天赋练到满级，这一路得多坎坷啊。不过认识了很多朋友。虽然现在已经不再联系，但是魔兽的日子里真的谢谢有你们陪我。陪我练级，陪我打副本[…]那时候真好。不过什么样的年龄就该做什么样的事情，那些美好会永远留在心里的某个地方。
Sitting in the cinema, I was overwhelmed and almost cried. I started playing Warcraft in 2005 and was among the first group of players. I started as a silly preacher [a role in the game] and fought my way to the top. I made so many friends in the process. Although I lost contact with most of them, I am really thankful for their friendship — they helped in training my gaming skills […] It was a great time. But we have to change according to our age and that golden time will still have a place somewhere [in our memories]. 49