这是Jaden的第49篇英语碎碎念
本文来自于网站“道”
这是一个向外国人分享
中国的新鲜事物的网站
文章介绍了最近大火的
微信小游戏“羊了个羊”
配合笔记食用，风味更佳哦 ~
Sheep A Sheep: A new elimination game (消除类游戏，如消消乐) on WeChat takes China by storm (=become popular，风靡，流行)
■ 国外比较出名的消消乐游戏是“糖果粉碎传奇 Candy Crush Saga”
■ 表示「风靡，席卷，流行」的N种表达，替换 popular
① xx becomes a craze
② xx mania is sweeping around China
③ xx takes China by storm
④ people are going wild for xx.
⑤ The craze for xx is certainly catching on
⑥ xx has taken off in a big way
⑦ xx has been sweeping China
⑧ xx has been all the rage
⑨ xx has a cult following among young people（有一群狂热粉丝，可以表示在某事物在某群体中很火）
⑩ has risen to be a national online sensation 火爆全网
Yang Le Ge Yang, which roughly translates to (=mean... in English，翻译过来就是) “Sheep A Sheep”, is a new match-tiles-style game (方块配对游戏，是上文的「elimination game 消除类游戏」同义替换)available on WeChat’s mini program (微信小程序) and has risen to be a national online sensation(=火爆全网) in the past few days.
■ sensation 引起轰动的人/ 事物
除了表示身体「感受刺痛、灼烧的感觉」，还可以表示「四肢的知觉」
由外到内，还可以表示内心的「直觉」
里外都感觉feeling都包括在内了
■ rise除了表示「数据数字的上升」，还可以表示「权力、官职、地位等的上升」
文中便是用了这个义项，表示游戏的流行度popularity的上升，也就是地位的上升
The game’s WeChat index (an indicator (=sign，指标) of a keyword’s popularity on Tencent’s super messaging app) rocketed (=increase)by nearly four times(上升四倍，by表示上升的幅度) in one day and hit 190 million views (=有xxx点击量/阅读量)as of (=截止) 15 September.
■ 表示「增加，上升」的N种表达，替换increase
① rise / spiral(螺旋上升) / accrue / augment / expand
② skyrocket/soar/surge/spike/hike/proliferate/swell/shoot up/go through the ceiling/go through the roof(这一串表示急剧上升)
③ build up / mount up / climb up / creep up(悄然上升) / tick up(略微上涨) / inch up(慢慢上涨) /
④ see a recovery/rebound/revival/rally / be on the rise
■ 获得阅读量/点击量 get
① xxx amassed 2.9 million views
② hit a billion views
③ garnered an accumulated view of 2.7 billion
④ has drawn in a whopping 2.6 billion views
Meanwhile, the hashtag for this elimination game (=关于xxx的话题标签) has drawn in (=draw/attract，吸引) a whopping (=very big，超高超大) 2.6 billion views on China’s biggest microblogging site Weibo and video clips (=short videos / short film / video footage，短视频)streaming (=play，播放) the play (这里指的是玩游戏的过程) which is circulating (=spread，传播) on the viral short video app Douyin (Chinese TikTok) has garnered an accumulated view (累计播放量) of 2.7 billion as of 16 September.
■ 在表达国内的社交媒体时，外刊作者会加一些修饰性内容，来解释给那些不太了解的老外
① China’s biggest microblogging site Weibo 微博
② the viral short video app Douyin (Chinese TikTok) 抖音
■ garner 原义是将物品存放于谷仓之中，有一种秋收冬藏 collect的意味，现在只用于表达「获得get」
This sheep-based passthrough (通关游戏，这个用法我怀疑作者自创的，谷歌并没有搜到相关表达)mini-game was developed by a Chinese start-up (初创公司), Beijing Jianyou Technology, which boasts that(=brag，自夸，是「说 say」的一种) “no more than 0.1% of players can get through all levels (=finish/pass all the levels，通关)” in the game’s introduction, with the second level being the most difficult to pass, according to eager players who have already taken the challenge (=accept/take on/take up/rise to the challenge / take up the gauntlet，接受挑战).
■ take up the gauntlet
在中世纪，一个骑士把铁手套扔在另一个骑士的脚下，以示挑战。如果对方接受挑战，就会捡起铁手套。
This has aroused (= sparked / start / develop / lead to / set off / trigger / give rise to / touch off / provoke / is the prime cause of / unleash / erupt /raise / arise / prompt / spur，激发，本质是「引发，引起，导致cause / result in」) the desire to win amongst (=among，在...群体中) many other young users, resulting in this Internet fever (=mania/craze/fad，热潮，狂热).
By allowing those who turn into a sheep to change their skin covers after a successful match, the game also provides players with a taste of customisation (源于动词customize，定制化), and its comic-like (=后缀-like表示「像...一样的」) art design coupled with (=along with)earworm (耳朵虫，表示洗脑的音乐，只和music搭配使用)background music has become another appeal (=attraction/draw(n.)/pull(n.)/magnet，吸引力) to China’s Gen Z users.
The game creates a strong sense of belonging by categorising (=divide/classify/sort out...into categories，把...分类)gamers based on the provinces they are from, incentivising (=encourage/push/embolden/energize/stir/propel/motivate，激励) individuals to win and bring honour to their regions.
In addition, game tools are another traffic driver (流量驱动，也就是「引流渠道/引流方法」) as users are encouraged to share the game on social media in exchange for desired tools to aid (=help) their play, which has furthered its digital reach (引流).
Although the game is free to play, game equipment plays a crucial role in generating revenue (=benefit / generate earnings / get payoffs / capture the return / make gains / gain revenue / reap the benefits/gains，获得收益) for the developer through its close ties to advertising. Users also have to watch in-app adverts (app内嵌广告) to win more powerful tools to get rid of (=overcome/remove/eliminate) obstacles in the matching process.
“The sensation of Sheep A Sheep indicates a consumer appetite (=desire / craving/longing/yearning for，强烈*，也可以理解为「渴望」) for ‘Hard Fun’ (difficult to win) style content in China,” said Liao Xuhua, cultural consumption analyst at the industry research institute Analysys.
However, concerns have also arisen around the sustainability (可持续发展) of this hyped (大肆炒作) game, due mainly to (=a main consequence of / mainly because of，主要因为) its low bar entry (=low threshold/bar，低门槛) and low development cost. This allows copycats (盲目跟风者) to soon follow, which has been proven by many similar mini-games.
■ Hard Fun，需要玩家花费大量时间、精力、金钱、体力等去学习、去完善技能的游戏，获得挑战乐趣，没有这个思路，羊了个羊就不可能火起来，Hard Fun不是为难而难，而是提供这种游戏体验，并在用户体验、广告装载率与装载量之间的平衡点。
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