The game generated over 700 million yuan in revenue in its first year, yet the producer apologized to the players

On December 20, *Ask the Sword for Immortality* held its first-anniversary launch event in Hangzhou, where the Tea House and a large group of players gathered in person to witness this memorable celebration.

Surprisingly, as another major title in the cultivation genre from Gibit (development) and Thunder Games (publishing), the game has received a positive market response since its launch earlier this year. According to Gibit’s latest financial report, the game’s revenue for the first three quarters of this year has reached 713 million yuan, making it one of Gibit’s top three highest-grossing titles.

However, despite achieving such outstanding results, the first thing the producer did at the one-year anniversary press conference was to apologize to the players.

01

Looking Back: Owning Up to Mistakes

At the press conference, Shimizu, the producer of *Asking the Sword for Immortality*, summarized and reviewed the game’s operations over the past year. He revealed that the game’s user base has reached nearly 5 million since its launch a year ago. At the same time, he candidly acknowledged the game’s shortcomings, offered a sincere apology to players, and reflected deeply on the issues.

He admitted that while the game’s signature “3D sword-flying aerial combat” in *Asking the Sword for Immortality* has been well-received by many players, the game lacks distinctive features in terms of events and gameplay beyond aerial combat, leading to a homogenized experience. For this reason, in the updates released over the past year, the team has incorporated a wider variety of IPs and creative ideas in hopes of delivering a better gaming experience to players.

In addition, in August of this year, while fixing the "Fire Repair" bug, insufficiently thorough testing and evaluation triggered a chain reaction that severely impacted the gameplay experience for certain playstyles. Although emergency measures were taken afterward, Shimizu acknowledged that the incident exposed significant oversights in the team’s testing of the core combat system and communication with players, and that they will further strengthen these areas in the future.

In response to the controversy surrounding the “Shattered Immortal Realm” feature—which has drawn significant player feedback—Qing Shui offered a direct response. He explained that the team’s original intention in creating this feature was to introduce light-hearted competitive social interaction, but the actual outcome was severely at odds with the game’s core “relaxed, idle” tone, thereby negatively impacting the player experience. As a result, the team will exercise greater caution when designing new features in the future and will involve players earlier in the feedback and co-creation process for new content.

To more authentically demonstrate the project team’s consideration of player feedback, Shimizu cited the “Weekly Live Face-to-Face” sessions—which became a regular feature in the second half of the year—and shared actual screenshots from the office. During each live stream, the entire team watched together, engaged in quick discussions, and followed up with a debrief that same day to address player concerns and make necessary adjustments. Only by identifying problems can we improve them.Shimizu and the project team’s attitude of confronting issues head-on, actively reflecting on them, and their sincere respect for players make players feel valued. It also demonstrates the team’s determination to acknowledge their shortcomings and pursue long-term operation.

02

Looking Ahead: The game is about to receive an update

Based on this reflection, Qingshui has also outlined the future direction of the game: to create a cultivation world where “there’s always something to do when you’re online, and you won’t miss out on anything even if you leave the game running in the background.”

Specifically, the project team plans to further explore and experiment with game content in the future across three dimensions: theme, combat, and social interaction.First, regarding the "immortal cultivation" theme, the producer candidly stated that they aim to break free from the shackles of the typical "endless cultivation" cycle found in such games. They seek to create a unique gameplay experience for *Asking the Sword for Immortality*, allowing players to reach the "perfect" cultivation realm within the game and truly experience the thrill of attaining immortality. Once immortal, players will no longer worry about leveling up but will instead focus on comprehending the Three Thousand Daoist Paths and enjoying the carefree pleasures of immortal cultivation.

In terms of combat, future updates will place greater emphasis on providing players with more freedom and depth in strategic combinations. We will both revamp certain existing gameplay features and systems and continuously introduce new combat mechanics and systems, offering dedicated players greater depth in building their strategies while ensuring that casual players can still enjoy the game.

The social system emphasizes "casual" and "freedom," focusing on exciting sect tournaments, the laid-back "City of Immortals," and social networking to create a more human-centered gaming world.

Ultimately, the development team hopes that *Asking the Sword for Immortality* will always strike a balance between being casual and engaging. By continuously optimizing aspects that players have reported as burdensome—such as introducing auto-challenges, pre-made parties, and adding endgame progression milestones—the team aims to ensure that players maintain a sense of freshness toward the game without feeling overwhelmed by the demands of gameplay.

As we stand at the starting point of this new journey—our first anniversary—the official team has also announced several major updates:After a year of operation and exploration, the game has officially announced its upgrade and rebranding to *Ask the Sword of Immortality: Light Encounter*, clearly defining its development direction as a “low-effort, casual social cultivation mobile game.” In addition to the multiple rewards during the anniversary celebration, players are most excited about the official announcement of a collaboration between *Ask the Sword of Immortality* and the classic xianxia IP *Xian Ni*. The collaboration-themed server *Xian Ni: The Beginning* will launch first on January 1.On January 24, the official collaboration event will commence, introducing two sets of collaboration skins for Wang Lin and Li Muwan, as well as the themed ultimate treasures: the "Ten Thousand Souls Devouring Heaven Banner" and the "True Spirit Dharma Form."

In fact, when *Asking the Sword for Immortality* launched earlier this year, the industry was indeed holding its breath for the game’s success. After all, by 2025, the highly competitive cultivation game market had become fiercely saturated, with major developers scrambling to establish a foothold and top IPs flooding the market—making it incredibly difficult to break through and stand out.

However, based on the information revealed at this one-year anniversary event, it is clear that after a year of operation and refinement, the development team has not only achieved significant progress but has also identified a clear direction for the game’s future. We at the Teahouse look forward to *Asking the Sword for Immortality: Light Encounter* delivering an even more distinctive and relaxed “Journey of the Sword” to players in 2026, guided by thorough reflection and a clear roadmap.