Top-tier e-sport video game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) releases the battle song "Hualian (Painted face)," which combines the melody of Chinese traditional Qinqiang Opera with rock'n'roll, on September 14, 2022. Photo: Courtesy of Perfect World
For the first time, top-tier e-sport video game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) has included a Chinese song in the game.
Instead of a pop hit or a contemporary classic, the developers turned to music from the traditional intangible cultural heritage known as Qinqiang Opera for inspiration.
Top-tier e-sport video game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) releases the battle song "Hualian (Painted face)," which combines the melody of Chinese traditional Qinqiang Opera with rock'n'roll, on September 14, 2022. Photo: Courtesy of Perfect World
Released on Wednesday, the battle song "Hualian (Painted face)," which combines the melody of Qinqiang Opera with rock'n'roll, will commemorate the 5th anniversary of the game's launch in China. This is the first song to include traditional Chinese elements that the game has added to its music library since CS:GO was first introduced to the world in 2012.
The game is operated in China solely by Perfect World esprots, and the release of "Hualian" means that players around the world can experience the sensational feeling brought by Qinqiang Opera, a treasure of traditional Chinese culture, while playing the game.
Also called Luantan (Lit: chaotic hitting) for its use of a wooden clapper, Qinqiang Opera mainly thrives in North China's Shaanxi Province, as well as the Northwest Chinese provinces of Gansu and Qinghai. It is considered as the most ancient and richest of all Chinese operas starting to prevail during Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
Global Times
Top-tier e-sport video game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) releases the battle song "Hualian (Painted face)," which combines the melody of Chinese traditional Qinqiang Opera with rock'n'roll, on September 14, 2022. Photo: Courtesy of Perfect World
