NetEase's Onmyoji (阴阳师) studio just fired off a cease-and-desist letter to Tencent's Honor of Kings (王者荣耀), accusing the mega-popular MOBA of ripping off character skin designs. Honor of Kings responded with an absolutely savage official statement that went for a triple kill — calling out Onmyoji for 'trying to clout-chase,' 'maliciously dragging competitors down,' and telling them to 'focus on their own game.' Shots fired, and the gacha community was here for every second of it.
Honor of Kings' official statement in full.
But the real bombshell? The statement allegedly hinted that Onmyoji's side was running a coordinated astroturfing campaign, paying '20 RMB per post' to spread negative PR about Honor of Kings. NGA forum users lost it: one top reply read '20 RMB per black-PR post? NetEase really went all out' — using the derogatory nickname '肛易' (Gang-Yi, a vulgar pun on NetEase/网易 that implies their tactics are disgusting). Some users even half-joked about signing up: 'Wait, 20 bucks per post? Where do I apply?'
Many players actually gave props to Honor of Kings for clapping back. One highly upvoted comment said 'King absolutely cooked! Though it probably gave ZEN even more to milk' — 'King' (小王) is the community's affectionate nickname for Honor of Kings, while 'ZEN' refers to NetEase's studio responsible for Onmyoji's development. The sentiment was that while the response was satisfying, it also gave ZEN more ammunition to play the victim. A screenshot was attached showing what appeared to be ZEN's reaction.
Related screenshot.
The comment section was overwhelmingly Team Grab-Popcorn. 'Fight, fight! I want to see a river of blood' captured the mood of most bystanders. One Onmyoji player wailed: 'How am I supposed to keep playing Onmyoji?! This is so embarrassing! We look like monkeys jumping around in their face' — using '吗喽' (ma-lou, internet slang for monkey) to describe Onmyoji's behavior as cringe. Even their own playerbase was mortified.
Naturally, the real question on everyone's mind was legal firepower. 'Let's be real, even if this goes to court, the Nanshan Invincible is no joke' — '南山必胜客' (Nanshan Invincible / Nanshan's Sure-Win Customer) is the community's meme name for Tencent's legendary legal team. Based in Shenzhen's Nanshan District, Tencent's lawyers have an almost flawless win rate in IP lawsuits. Another user added: 'I genuinely want to see the Nanshan Invincible in action, even though TiMi is based in Chengdu' — TiMi Studio Group (天美) may be headquartered in Chengdu, but it's still under Tencent's corporate umbrella, meaning Nanshan's legal juggernaut would still handle any lawsuit.
Community investigators also dug into the lawyer named on the cease-and-desist. One user checked the bar association's official registry and found that the lawyer in question only obtained their practice license in August 2022 — meaning they'd been practicing for barely over a year at the time the letter was sent. The implication was clear: this legal threat might not carry much weight.
The lawyer's practice information as verified by community investigators.
As for NetEase's PR strategy (they're also nicknamed '猪场' / 'Pig Farm' due to the company's actual pig farming business), one commenter summed up a widespread frustration: 'Fight fight, I want carnage — and while you're at it, please wash away Pig Farm's 'green tea' Weibo vibes. Every single one of their game accounts on Weibo reeks of that same manipulative energy.' In Chinese internet culture, '绿茶' (green tea) describes someone who acts innocent and harmless on the surface while being calculating and manipulative underneath — a style many players associate with NetEase's social media presence.
This corporate cage match between two gaming giants is still developing. Will Onmyoji's cease-and-desist hold any legal water? Can Honor of Kings' astroturfing accusations be proven? Will the 'Nanshan Invincible' actually enter the ring? The gacha community has pulled up their chairs and is waiting for the next episode.
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