NUPIAO Editorial Team
It’s getting messy for Papergames. Their popular mobile hit, “Love and Deepspace,” has just stumbled into a massive controversy that threatens to derail its momentum.
The trouble started when a new character named “Ao Yin” was introduced. Players were floored—his rugged, Western-style look clashed hard with the game’s usual aesthetic. On top of that, expanding the gacha pool meant higher costs to pull characters, which instantly made wallets feel the pinch. The community vented their frustration loud and clear. But here’s the kicker: Papergames initially stayed silent. That lack of response only fueled the fire.
Yesterday, things got even worse. Users started pointing out inappropriate wording and sloppy copy within the game’s storyline. In response, the development team issued multiple statements, tweaked the controversial text, and apologized. But let’s be real—an apology didn’t stop the storm.
As of June 30th, the fallout is undeniable. Official social media accounts across the board are seeing subscriber numbers drop. A flood of paying players have announced they’re “stopping spending and logging off.” Meanwhile, app store ratings for “Love and Deepspace” have crashed to between 1.6 and 1.8 stars. Right now, the topic is dominating trending lists everywhere you look.
On the evening of June 30th, the official Weibo account finally dropped a heartfelt letter addressing the chaos. The message? They are canceling the launch and development plans for the new male lead. Moving forward, no new male leads will be added. However, other gameplay features planned for the Version 6.0 update will still go live as scheduled. The entire team is now doubling down on refining the stories of the original five male leads to ensure a better long-term experience. To make up for the mess, every player is receiving 30 “Deepspace Wishing Tickets.”
Founded back in 2013, Papergames built its empire on two major franchises: the Dress-Up series and the Love & Producer series. For years, titles like Accord of Fashion (Miracle Nikki) and Love and Producer have been the gold standard for female-oriented games in China, generating steady revenue. Public data shows nearly 400 million registered users globally across their portfolio, with 2024 revenues hitting close to $1 billion. When “Love and Deepspace” launched in 2024, it broke records immediately, raking in over 600 million yuan in its first month globally (with more than 100 million yuan coming from overseas).
Just recently, this IP was flexing its muscles. A collaboration with the tea brand Jasmine Milk White sent sales through the roof, trending hot online. During the promo, “Love and Deepspace” jumped 24 spots on the free download charts. But just like any content product, when the pressure hits, quality control issues come flooding out.
Look, balancing diverse player tastes is tough—it’s a constant struggle for any developer. Handling feedback is part of the job. Remember when the Version 3.0 update of “Love and Deepspace” faced complaints about its mode settings? That happened before too.
But what makes this week different is the speed. In just seven days, the conflict exploded into a full-blown “quit-the-game” wave. This rapid escalation points to a deeper issue: a “growth crisis” in Papergames’ globalization strategy.
Papergames is known for being the queen of otome games, but that specialization comes with a downside: product homogeneity. Especially in the last couple of years, “Love and Deepspace” has carried the financial weight of the entire company. In this specific niche, content similarity and competition from all sides are making the waters rougher.
According to Gamma Data’s “2025 China Game Industry Trends and Potential Analysis Report,” the market for female-oriented games in China reached 8 billion yuan in 2024, a staggering 124.1% year-over-year increase, far outpacing the overall market growth.
While“Love and Deepspace” still holds the crown, giants like Tencent and miHoYo are diving headfirst into this space. Take Tencent’s Light and Night, for instance—it’s already a blockbuster with stable revenue. As audiences splinter, female-oriented games need to invest way more effort into long-term operations.
This pressure forces companies to constantly refresh characters inside the game, hunt for new growth drivers, and explore second curves in international markets.
Compared to Papergames’ earlier works, “Love and Deepspace” has accelerated its overseas expansion significantly. Since its global launch, it has topped free and paid charts in the US, Japan, Singapore, and beyond. Data from Sensor Tower reveals that in May 2026, overseas revenue for “Love and Deepspace” exceeded $22 million, bringing total global earnings to nearly $1.1 billion. During the anniversary event, Papergames even organized offline interactive events abroad.
Looking at this crisis, “Love and Deepspace” might face a prolonged period of lost revenue and brand damage. The bigger lesson here is stark: for Papergames, focusing solely on business model resilience isn’t enough anymore. Especially in the world of female-oriented gaming, player sentiment and community atmosphere are the true lifeblood of a product—and they ultimately determine how long a game can survive in the market.
