Luckin Coffee Rides High with Black Myth: Wukong

On August 20, 2024, Black Myth: Wukong—China's first AAA video game inspired by the classic novel Journey to the West—officially launched worldwide. The game became available on platforms such as Steam, PlayStation 5, Epic Games Store, and Tencent WeGame. Within just an hour of its release, Black Myth: Wukong attracted over 1.04 million concurrent players on Steam, topping the platform's "most-played games" list. By the evening, concurrent players on Steam surpassed 2 million, making it the day's most-played game and ranking third in Steam's all-time records. In just one day, the game sold over 4.5 million copies across platforms, generating more than 1.5 billion yuan in revenue.

In anticipation of Black Myth: Wukong's launch, savvy Chinese brands leverage its hype in promotional campaigns. For example, on August 19, Luckin Coffee introduced the Black Myth Coconut Cloud Americano, featuring themed tote bags and cup sleeves, and limited-edition 3D posters for specific coffee sets. Shortly after the campaign launched, peripheral products sold out in Luckin Coffee's stores nationwide, and even caused ordering system to crash. The company quickly issued a restocking notice, stating that the demand far exceeded expectations and announcing restocking plans to meet consumer needs. Luckin Coffee’s CGO shared on social media that the purchasing power of male customers was unexpectedly strong, outperforming ten Father's Day promotions combined. Industry insiders note that this collaboration between Luckin Coffee and Black Myth: Wukong could be the most successful since its partnership with Kweichow Moutai in Sept 2023, which achieved an impressive sale of 5.46 million cups with revenue exceeding 100 million yuan on the first day.

Beyond consumer brand tie-ins, stocks linked to Black Myth: Wukong have shown sustained momentum. Additionally, the game's richly detailed environments, inspired by real-world locations, have drawn significant attention to the tourism sector. Tourism authorities in regions such as Shanxi and Chongqing have capitalized on the game's popularity to attract visitors.

Disclaimer: All images used in the article are from the Internet.