Hi! I'm on a Discord server with a LADS affiliate, so she brings us news as soon as her contacts inform her. To summarize a long story, what Infold did wasn't to appease CN girls, it was to 'appease the government'. The media was speaking ill of the game and of Valko, and the CCP or Chinese Communist Party was involved. From what I've been told, the government claims that otome games are to blame for the country's low birth rate. It's not just Valko that's at risk, nor just LADS, it's all female-oriented games in China. From what I understand, Infold is trying to become an IPO to be less influenced by the Chinese government. The images explain better what I'm saying, but I think it's no longer time for a boycott... Given that we are at risk of losing LADS, it's better to show support...
Thank you friend for sharing this to us. I’ve also come to the conclusion that Valko’s removal must’ve been an act to appease not the toxic CN fans, but to quickly placate their government.
I don’t know what actions to take at this point. If we stop boycotting, they will devalue global opinions even more, because they’ll think we’re so easily strung along. On the other hand, if we continue, there’s a chance- if all this is true- that Infold will not have the support it needs to move along with future decisions to improve and preserve the game. There’s rumors that they are trying to relocate in order to have more creative freedom with their game without being stifled by their government and now, the forever looming threat of censorship from their crazy, native fans. If this is all true, I would love to support them so they can do what they need to so we’re not given an EOS announcement. But we’re so left in the dark right now, it’s impossible to know what’s happening, and therefore how to act.
I really can’t help but feel like this is an irreparable hit to the game, but I pray Im wrong. From now on, Infold will be entirely at the mercy of deranged CN fans, and if these mentioned fans don’t like a creative choice from the company— more clearly, if it’s not about advancing their chosen LI— then they will band together again and launch hate campaigns; it doesn’t matter if what they’re saying is built entirely on lies or pieces of lore from the story/characters that are taken out of context- so long as they can get the attention of major news outlets and the literal CCP, then they’re happy to slander. Anything for their LI, right? Who they’re too stupid to realize is now just as much at risk as Valko- as is the whole of the game because of their selfish, psychotic actions.
The Love and Deepspace creative vision is damaged; without the intended 6th LI, the main story will suffer and reveal plot holes; we will never get answers for many things; and there will be a clear shift in the trajectory of the story to account for the fact a long existent piece of it was ripped out. The trust from fans is broken. The community is disgustingly divided.
There’s a decent chance, now that the literal CCP is scrutinizing Infold, that we will no longer get spicy, even mildly suggestive, or angsty cards. The moral grey areas of certain characters will never receive more subtance- I won’t be surprised if Infold has to completely scrap any little hint of an ambivalent moral compass for the LIs, which all of them have by the way, some more than others. No LI is safe. And no LI will really be the same anymore. It’s probable that the incredibly complex, detailed, often mature world of Love And Deepspace will be reduced to Cocomelon.
I truly hope the crazed CN fans are proud of their unreasonable, unhinged behavior, because it will punish them the most. If they were so obsessed with their LI to flag down the CN government with the goal to ‘correct’ infold into releasing content for their specific LI, then I can’t imagine what they’ll do if the game collapses because of them. These people really might have just ‘killed’ their beloved LIs 😂 All you can do is laugh because it’s so fcking unbelievable.
Now maybe I’m being positive but I hope all this isn’t the case. LADS officially deleted all promotional content for Valko, and reverted the marketing banners to the 5. However I highly doubt they actually wiped any files for Valko, and in my opinion it sort of feels like they’re holding back…? Like you say you’re going on a diet, but there is still cake in the fridge in case you change your mind. They didn’t fully delete the YT promotional content— his videos became unlisted which means if they decide they want to publicize it again, they can at any time. If you watched them recently, you can find them in your history. I assume they also simply shelved it on their other socials instead of flat out deleting.
I’ve heard rumors that Infold might go on a 2-month hiatus to restructure and save their game (+ move), which is preferable to it being nuked by insane cn fans. However, I still worry about the chance of us receiving a sabotaged, censored version of the game from there on. If Infold really does relocate, I think that’s their best shot. They won’t be so controlled by the government anymore and more importantly the psychotic parasocialites which their own devs labeled as ‘malicious individuals’. It applies distance and future prevention from the legal + political threats we’re seeing them experience now thanks to coordinated fans who know exactly where to hit (spots where it’s historically sensitive; where CN government is worried for their nations prosperity and image, etc) to get their way.
So sorry to ramble. But yeah, I don’t know what to do girlies 🤷♀️ I really hope infold relocates- however long that takes and whatever that looks like. Once they’re safe, I think they would love to release Valko as intended- and expand on their meticulously crafted story which he’s always been apart of. And if they do, I pray they continue developing characters with depth and flaws, which sometimes includes dark themes and uncomfortable topics. Ive always trusted and adored the creative vision the infold team had for LADS, but if this does blow over, and the solution is to minimize any mature content (whether it be morally grey, uncomfortable areas or suggestive cards), I will never redownload this game again. Because it has lost its artistic spark- which is crazy because I truly believe that’s not what Infold wants. They poured so much resources, time, effort, research, and their favorite- money- into Valko’s creation as well as the overall game. If the rumors are true, it’s due to their hands being tied by extremists + their actions that they just can’t fulfill certain intents / actions right now.
also a thought: if infold does have plans to relocate/improve, and desperately wants to keep their players to stay while they do so, that would give recent actions some context. For instance, giving out 30 free wishes across the span of a month— forcing you to log in continuously and be a recurring player. As well a new furniture set they’re releasing which is… surprisingly free. These are incentives to log in and stay. Now, this could also be because they know people are pissed about valko, and so they’re trying to do their ragebait-like damage control… but it also could be because they’re trying to tide players over while they fix things in the background?? Who knows.
- I also want to note that infold tore down the big poster of the LIs outside their building. Not just valko— all of them. This is all so confusing and sus.
- there are a lot of cn girlies who love valko too and want him back; they’re leaving chocolate and flowers for him. also some are backtracking on their hate. some wolfies have reached out to global fans encouraging us to continue petitioning and hold out for them- because apparently they also want to make it known they love valko but simply can’t right now because it’s a holiday(?) in china and they have to remain peaceful or quiet on social media until July 2. but anyways this is just more evidence that it was NEVER about valko, and the majority wants him. Infold wants him.
