When Xiaohongshu Creates a "Pain Island" for Anime and Manga Fans

The three-day “RED LAND” Open World Adventure Island event on Xiaohongshu has come to a close.

A few days ago, I traveled 1,968 kilometers to attend this grand event. In a shaded pavilion, I happened to meet a group of friends who had also come from thousands of kilometers away—they had crossed mountains and seas from Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia just to set foot on this island.

Just as the slogan “Welcome Home, Eternal Protagonists” seen everywhere on the island suggests, over the course of those few days, this industrial fishing island became a temporary “pilgrimage site” for anime and manga enthusiasts. And they truly became the “protagonists” of history, writing a brand-new chapter for this island.

01

An Industrial Anime Open World

Although I had long been aware of the lineup of IPs and the map layout featured at the Xiaohongshu exhibition, the moment I actually set foot on the island, I was still stunned by the scene before me.

Giant heroes from *Honor of Kings* and cartoon characters from *Egg Party* stood in striking contrast to the massive cranes along the shore; abandoned red-brick walls and old factory buildings were transformed into game and anime exhibition halls.Enthusiastic gamers weaved through the scene, breathing new life into this traditional industrial island steeped in history.

The shipbuilding docks and old factory buildings visible across Fuxing Island once represented the cutting-edge technological achievements of China’s fishing industry and stand as a significant milestone in the history of China’s fisheries development.RED LAND followed the historical traces of Revival Island to create this large-scale gaming and animation theme park. The island features three major exhibition areas: “Turning Point Airport,” “Rebirth Arena,” and “Daydreaming Forest.”

“Turning Point Airport” is located in Shipyard Park, where not only do the two major hit IPs—Tencent’s *Honor of Kings* and NetEase’s *Egg Party*—stand tall with large-scale merchandise displays, but Mihoyo’s *Genshin Impact**Zero Zone*, and *Honkai: Star Rail*, all from miHoYo, are gathered together in the same exhibition area for the first time and open to the public.

The “Rebirth Arena” is set up inside a warehouse on Fuxing Island.Since the warehouse setting closely resembles the one in *Peacekeeper Elite*, the game’s exhibition booth has been cleverly integrated into the space—with airdrop crates and bicycles arranged throughout, blending the in-game warehouse seamlessly with the real one, leaving visitors momentarily unsure whether they’re in the game or in reality.

Meanwhile, the lush, tree-lined Revival Island Park has been transformed into the “Little Forest of Daydreaming,” bringing together IPs with a more traditional Chinese aesthetic, such as *JX3*, *Nikai Wujian*, and *Nishuihan*.

Beyond the “comic convention” format, RED LAND aims to create an immersive, offline open world.

At the entrance, players arriving on the island will receive an exclusive identity—Connoisseur, Victor, Traveler, Explorer, or Experiencer—with each of the five identities corresponding to a distinct gameplay experience.

Of course, once you’re on the island, regardless of your role, you’re sure to find something to enjoy.

As I weaved through the lines at the various booths, I heard some people say they’d come to try out new games, others to see their favorite streamers, and still others to check out the music festival… It seems everyone can find their destination in this open world, and each person is an integral part of REDLAND. As netizens have said, this place is like a real paradise.

The organizers built the framework of this paradise, while the “stars” who arrived on the island filled in the details with their creativity: “blending into the Pidgeotto squad,” completely customizing suitcases into “air-conditioned cars”… All these imaginative ideas made this extravaganza even more vibrant.

In fact, the decision to charter an entire island to host REDLAND in the sweltering heat of August sparked quite a bit of controversy during the event’s promotional phase. But once you actually set foot on the island, it’s easy to see just how thoughtful the organizers were: the welcome goodie bags handed out at the entrance were fully stocked with heat-relief items like cooling patches, mini fans, and chilled towels—all of which could be replenished or exchanged at any time within the venue;Free water stations and medical aid stations were visible everywhere on the island, and pre-packaged sanitary pads were even provided in the restrooms. On the second day of the event, to help cool things down, staff even placed ice blocks along the pathways.

At that moment, an immersive anime paradise was truly born on this traditional industrial island.

02

Solo Exploration on REDLAND

Among the many zones, the solo-play trial area caught my attention the most.

Previously, we’ve reported on numerous niche games that successfully promoted themselves on Xiaohongshu. These games—developed by small teams without the backing of major studios—have attracted a loyal following on Xiaohongshu through their unique creativity and authentic content, making a stunning “comeback” from obscurity to modest fame.

At REDLAND, after passing through the entranceway decorated with vegetable baskets, you arrive at the single-player game demo area—cleverly named “The ‘Not Lame at All’ Trial.”

The demo area features titles like *Box Bakery*, *Little Bookstore*,*Arya’s Reflection*, and *Lost and Found, Inc.*—all titles that have gained a following on Xiaohongshu. Also on display are *Assassin’s Creed: Shadows* and *Aihong: Ten-Day Diary of a Fallen City*, the latest release from Zero Creation Games, whose previous title, *Starving Souls: A Thousand-Li Journey at the End of the Ming Dynasty*, sold over a million copies.

The demo area was bustling with people, and long lines formed in front of every game. Players were intently engaged in the games, occasionally letting out exclamations of surprise or laughter; here, niche games received just as much attention as popular IPs.

Among them, the development process of *Box Bakery* was virtually documented in its entirety by Xiaohongshu users. At the event, many players heading toward *Box Bakery* had already played the game; they walked straight up to producer Wang Mango to chat: “I absolutely love this game,” “When will the demo be available again?” Their tone was as warm and friendly as if they were talking to a longtime friend—this is precisely the high player engagement fostered by Xiaohongshu’s marketing and promotion efforts.

In recent years, the number of gaming-related posts on Xiaohongshu has surged. During last year’s ChinaJoy, Xiaohongshu revealed that the platform had over 110 million gaming users, with daily impressions of gaming content exceeding 2 billion.More and more game developers are choosing to share their creative stories here, and players are eager to exchange gaming insights, forming a lively and authentic gaming community.

Wang Mango, producer of *Box Bakery*, once mentioned that she maintained frequent communication with Xiaohongshu throughout the development process. The platform not only provided traffic support and launched content calls for creators but also accompanied her to exhibitions such as WePlay, ChinaJoy, and this year’s RED LAND.

In a quiet corner, the “Cooking Archive” showcases outstanding fan-created works from Xiaohongshu.

While these works may lack the polish of professional teams, they are brimming with players’ most sincere passion for the game. This also reflects Xiaohongshu’s gaming ecosystem: it features not only outstanding creators but also exquisite fan-made content.

The relationship between developers and players is no longer merely one of supply and demand; instead, it has evolved into a virtuous, self-sustaining ecosystem—developers draw inspiration from players’ fan creations, while players find a sense of belonging by supporting developers. This mutual engagement brings the gaming world to life.

Epilogue

In this 2.5-dimensional world, enthusiasts of anime, music, games, and even history can all find their own niche and become the “protagonists” of this massive amusement park.

On August 10, as the event drew to a close, the NPCs on the island lined up to wave goodbye to everyone, saying “Bye-bye.” “I was bawling my eyes out when I left,” one netizen shared, and even hours later, that sense of reluctance to leave still lingered.

After the event ended, as I walked toward the subway station entrance, I saw a few young girls chatting with a staff member. The woman asked, “Was it fun?” The girls replied enthusiastically, “It was fun!” The woman smiled and said, “Then I’ll go check it out tomorrow, too.”

Transcending age barriers, this “anime convention” truly succeeded in breaking through to a wider audience.It was not just a celebration of anime and manga; it was more like a fusion and collision of cultures—when youthful anime and manga culture met ancient industrial history, when a niche hobby gained mainstream visibility, and people of different ages and backgrounds found a connection through this island.

Revival Island has been revitalized by this event, and anime culture has broken through the “dimensional barrier” in this kind of in-person setting, gaining greater understanding and acceptance from the public.Perhaps this is what makes RED LAND so special—it has not only created a theme park but also built a bridge where different worlds meet and blend, jointly crafting new stories. And such stories may unfold in even more places in the future.