Love and Deepspace, the 3D otome game from Papergames (Infold Games), is facing its biggest controversy since launch. The reveal of its sixth male romance character — Ao Yin, known globally as Valko — has triggered a backlash that has ripped more than a million followers from the game's official Chinese social media accounts, cratered its App Store rating to 2.0, and spilled from the internet into real-world protests outside the studio's headquarters.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Jun 22, 2026 | Ao Yin (Valko) officially revealed via livestream |
| Jun 22–27 | Rapid spread of criticism on Weibo, Reddit, X/Twitter |
| Jun 25+ | Giant Valko display installed outside Papergames HQ; offline protests begin |
| Jun 27–28 | App Store drops to 2.0; TapTap falls to 2.8; Android store at 2.6 |
| Jun 28 | Papergames publishes open letter apology; 20 free pulls issued to all players |
| Jul 9, 2026 | Version 6.0 "A Shattered Quiet" — with Valko — still set to launch |
"Official trailer "Chasing Night" for Valko — published June 22, 2026. 243K views and 22,000 likes as of publication, alongside a tidal wave of critical comments.
Why Fans Are Furious
The anger isn't really about a single character. Three grievances converged the moment Valko's reveal went live.
1. Design and concept mismatch
Valko is a 26-year-old tech conglomerate chairman who also leads a werewolf clan — a combination many longtime players felt clashed with the game's established aesthetic and world-building. His more Westernized visual design drew particular criticism from the core Chinese fanbase.
2. 500+ days without a main story update
The game's main storyline has gone more than 500 days without an update. Existing love interests — including fan favorites Caleb and Sylus — have not received new Bond Chapters. Fans who have spent months waiting for continuation found the high-profile launch of a brand-new character, rather than existing story content, to be a deeply personal dismissal of their investment.
3. Resource allocation and trust
The underlying complaint is not Valko himself — it's the signal his reveal sends. Players interpreted his lavish promotional rollout as evidence that the studio is prioritizing monetizable new characters over the narrative content they actually want. For many, Valko became the breaking point after years of accumulated frustration.
Offline Protests at Papergames HQ
As part of Valko's promotional campaign, Papergames erected a large Valko-themed display outside its company headquarters. The installation became a flashpoint.
Reports indicate that extreme protesters left the following items at or near the display:
| Item | Symbolic meaning |
|---|---|
| White and yellow chrysanthemums | Associated with funerals and mourning in Chinese culture |
| Glutinous rice and pomelo leaves | Used in traditional cleansing rituals — a curse-like gesture |
| Curse banners | Bearing direct insults toward the new character |
| Cow dung | Left inside company delivery lockers as a blunt statement |
Papergames reportedly tightened security around the office in response. Beijing Daily covered the events, framing them not as a character dispute but as a symptom of a long-standing breakdown in trust between the studio and its player base.
The Numbers
| Platform | Post-controversy rating / metric |
|---|---|
| Apple App Store | 2.0 |
| Android app store | 2.6 |
| TapTap | 2.8 |
| Weibo comment volume | ~300,000 comments |
| Chinese social media follower loss | 1,000,000+ |
Papergames' Response
The studio published an open letter on June 28, acknowledging communication failures.
""We sincerely apologize for the shortcomings in how Ao Yin was presented and how information was communicated." — Papergames official statement
The company distributed 20 free character pulls to all players and promised future story content for Caleb and Sylus. It did not, however, make any changes to Valko's scheduled July 9 debut.
The response did not satisfy the community. On Weibo, the highest-upvoted replies overwhelmingly called for Ao Yin to be removed from the game or demanded refunds. A prevalent sentiment: 20 pulls does not address the core complaint.
Both Sides
| Perspective | Position |
|---|---|
| Players | 500+ days of story neglect; new character prioritized over existing ones; demanding removal, refunds, or structural changes |
| Papergames | Launch schedule unchanged; apologized for communication; 20-pull compensation; promised existing character updates |
| Beijing Daily | "Ao Yin was the spark, not the cause" — frames the controversy as systemic trust failure |
| Global fans | Controversy has spread well beyond China; players citing a pattern of similar behavior stretching back to Love Nikki and Infinity Nikki |
Community Reaction
Reaction from the global gaming community has been split between sympathy for angry players and criticism of the protest methods.
- ▶"I don't condone the actions, but I'm also laughing at Infold — the writing has been on the wall for years" — widely shared sentiment
- ▶"20 pulls is not an apology, it's a shop coupon" — common dismissal of the compensation
- ▶"New romance character before the existing ones even have their stories finished? That's the real issue" — core fan complaint echoed globally
- ▶"This started with Love Nikki, then Infinity Nikki, now Deepspace — it's a pattern, not a one-off" — criticism aimed at Papergames' broader track record
- ▶"A 2.0 App Store rating means even casual players are angry, not just the hardcore base" — noted by industry observers
GamePeak Summary
| Angle | Key Point |
|---|---|
| Trigger | Sixth romance character Valko revealed June 22 |
| Root cause | 500+ day story drought + long-eroding trust exploded simultaneously |
| Scale | 1M+ followers lost; App Store rating 2.0; ~300K Weibo comments |
| Offline escalation | Funeral flowers, cow dung, curse items delivered to Papergames HQ |
| Studio response | Apology issued; 20-pull compensation; July 9 launch unchanged |
| Watch next | Player retention and Version 6.0 revenue after Valko's July 9 debut |
The Love and Deepspace controversy is a case study in how gacha game economies can fracture. When studios lean on new paid characters as the primary growth lever while leaving narrative content — the product players emotionally invested in — to stagnate, the friction eventually breaks containment. Whether the backlash translates into meaningful long-term player loss, or whether the community absorbs it as it has past controversies, will become clear when Version 6.0 launches on July 9. GamePeak will be watching.
Sources: Gaming on Phone, TechNode, Beijing Daily (via Xinwen BJD). Quotes drawn directly from published reports.