On Monday, still coming down from the unexpected high of The Game Awards, we alluded to an emotionally charged event that allegedly occurred in the audience. Former IGN and Sony Santa Monica writer Alanah Pearce says she saw at least one Game Science developer overcome with emotion and obviously weeping, this after Astro Bot plucked Game of the Year from Black Myth: Wukong's paws.
We didn't necessarily expect an update to this story. Yet, former IGN China editor-in-chief Charles Young responded to a viral clip of Pearce on X and escalated the matter, claiming that: "I was with the Game Science team the entire time during those days, including the TGA night. No one cried over this. In fact, I didn’t even see anyone crying at the event." Predictably, the comments are a dog's breakfast, and Young's defence of Game Science has resulted in a Community Note, which is just about as serious as things get on X.
In the interest of journalistic integrity, we never seek to tip the scale in any disagreement; that said, if Young was in the front row, like Pearce, he must have witnessed host Geoff Keighley get visibly emotional in front of more than 150 million people (allegedly), overcome by the prospect of an Okami sequel (he is one of us).