Black Myth: Wukong is a fresh take on action and mythology. Developed by Game Science, this action RPG is based on the classic Chinese novel, Journey to the West. Players explore a captivating fantasy land as Sun Wukong, a legendary character known for his cleverness, speed, and unbreakable will.Black Myth: Wukong brings an ancient story to life for today’s audience. The game captures the heart of Chinese mythology, turning classic tales into an exciting digital experience. This fresh take appeals to both gamers and those who love great storytelling.
The game’s impact goes beyond its plot. It sets a new standard for action-adventure games, showing what’s possible with Unreal Engine 5’s prowess. We didn’t just feel like playing a game; we were fully involved in this stunning world, making us more engaged with the story and characters.In Black Myth: Wukong, we take the role of a mute monkey called the Destined One, who resembles Sun Wukong, the famous Monkey King from Journey to the West.

One of the most interesting things about Black Myth: Wukong is that it offers a Chinese perspective on a classic Chinese story. While many people have seen Journey to the West through adaptations from other cultures, experiencing it from a native viewpoint adds a new layer of authenticity and depth.

The game explores whether the Destined One is a reincarnation of Sun Wukong or one of his clones. This mystery drives the plot and leads to an exciting conclusion that wraps up the protagonist’s adventure.The story mainly tackles important themes like fighting against oppression, seeking one's identity, and dealing with fate. These themes are central to the gameplay.

The game features characters like Zhu Bajie, Kang Jinlong, and the Bull Demon King, who are well-known from Journey to the West. In Black Myth: Wukong, their roles and alliances might be different from what you remember from the original novel.Black Myth: Wukong nods to Journey to the West, but its story might be hard to follow for those not familiar with Chinese mythology. The game has six chapters, each focusing on universal themes like love, hate, and greed, and these chapters fit together to form the larger story. Despite the care and attention to detail, we think that the references and concepts from the novel and broader Chinese folklore may fly over the heads of those without prior knowledge.

The combat in Black Myth: Wukong is a key part of the gameplay, featuring a mix of attacks, dodges, and rolling. A key feature is the stamina system, which made us think twice about our attacks and defence.Black Myth: Wukong adds depth to combat with a range of spells and abilities. We were able to use Sun Wukong’s magical powers to change forms, each offering unique skills and benefits in battle. These include freezing enemies, summoning clones, or transforming into powerful creatures. Moreover, the game features many skills and spells, allowing us to create our combat styles and builds that fit our personal play style.
Black Myth: Wukong combines the tough combat of Soulslike games with a more accessible adventure style. Although it has challenging enemies and detailed combat mechanics, it also offers a sense of progress and ease that differs from typical Souls games. We think players will be able to battle mythological creatures with fun skills and transformations, but also be able to explore and enjoy the game without always feeling stressed, like in many Soulslike titles.We have played tons of Soulslike titles but Black Myth: Wukong is a special one. It has many Souslike elements but the game feels more like a God of War game.

Still ruling out its similarity with Soulslike would not be entirely fair. First of all, it has a lot of content just like your average Soulslike game.

It can easily take over 40 hours to complete the story and well over 90 to 100% complete the game. Black Myth: Wukong feels like a constant boss rush, keeping you on edge throughout. This can be a positive for some players, but others might find it challenging.We would say the game comes close to the FromSoftware quality in terms of boss fights and character designs. It does surpass the Japanese studio in terms of visual fidelity but the game has been in development for a longer time.

Besides that, it stands out as a top-notch AAA game, and we’re impressed by how well an indie developer handled their first major project. It almost feels unreal.

Black Myth: Wukong is a genre-defining title, with many good things about it.

●Great Combat: The game features fast-paced combat with a lot of variety. You can change stances by just changing the variety of your staff. Spinning the staff to deflect projects is as fun as it can get. So, the combat has been a major plus plus for us.

●Boss Variety: There are over 80 bosses and 160 enemy types in the game. So, fighting against everyone has been a treat for us. Many different types of bosses are fun to fight.

●Gorgeous World: This latest action RPG from Game Science isn’t exactly an open-world game but the linear path you follow and while doing some exploration you can see how beautiful the world is. It is truly a visual feast and can be compared with the likes of Hellblade 2 and Alan Wake 2.

Of course, no game can be without its flaws, and Black Myth: Wukong is no exception.

●Boss Rush: This game featuring Boss Rush might be a plus point for some people but it wasn't really for us. We like to explore someplace to the fullest and find the top dog of that place. That is more fun. For instance, exploring the Shadow Keep in Elden Ring DLC was pretty fun, and finding Messmer, The Impaler at the top of it was a memorable moment.

●Combat Can Get Repetitive: After playing the game for a long time we found the combat to get repetitive at some point due to it being a boss rush game. While we did enjoy the combat mechanics a lot there were some points where it was dreary.

Final Rating

After thoroughly playing Black Myth: Wukong and understanding the mechanics we are giving it a solid 9/10. The game while being a technical marvel and fun to play has its fair share of problems so it isn't perfect.

In terms of performance, there is a little stuttering but it didn't affect our gameplay that much. Also, we didn’t face any crashes playing the game.We are thoroughly impressed by how Game Science managed to create such a marvellous game without ever laying its hand on an AAA game before. The game is fairly enjoyable from start to finish. We had a blast playing this game as such an experience is pretty rare in the gaming industry and we were sure to savor it.