Black Myth: Wukong is a groundbreaking action role-playing game (RPG) that has captivated the gaming community since its announcement. Developed by the Chinese indie studio Game Science, the game is based on the iconic Chinese literary masterpiece Journey to the West. However, it reimagines the tale of Sun Wukong, the Monkey King, with a darker, more mature narrative. Featuring stunning visuals, a compelling story, and engaging gameplay mechanics, Black Myth: Wukong is poised to set a new benchmark for the action RPG genre. This detailed review will delve into every aspect of the game, exploring its story, gameplay, graphics, sound, and more to provide a full understanding of what makes it so special.
1. Story and Setting
The game draws heavily from Chinese mythology, centering around Sun Wukong, a legendary figure known for his extraordinary abilities and rebellious spirit. While it respects the essence of Journey to the West, Black Myth: Wukong introduces fresh twists and a more somber tone, setting it apart from traditional adaptations. The game’s narrative revolves around Wukong’s journey through a perilous world filled with mythical beasts, ancient ruins, and supernatural challenges.
The world is richly detailed and expansive, inviting players to immerse themselves in its lore. From sprawling forests to snow-covered mountains and eerie caves, each location is crafted to tell its own story. The interplay between light and shadow adds to the immersive atmosphere, making the world feel alive and dynamic. Wukong’s interactions with NPCs further enrich the narrative, offering glimpses into the world’s history and its complex web of conflicts.
Game Science has also hinted at multiple endings based on the choices players make throughout their journey. This level of interactivity adds depth to the storytelling, encouraging players to explore different paths and outcomes. The narrative’s pacing balances intense action with moments of quiet reflection, allowing the story to breathe and resonate.
2. Gameplay Mechanics
Combat System
The combat system in Black Myth: Wukong is both challenging and rewarding. It combines fast-paced action with strategic depth, requiring players to adapt to their enemies’ behaviors and patterns. Sun Wukong’s legendary staff, the Ruyi Jingu Bang, serves as the primary weapon. Its ability to expand, shrink, and multiply adds versatility to combat, enabling players to perform a wide range of attacks.
Wukong’s transformations are a standout feature, allowing him to morph into various creatures and objects. For instance, he can transform into a cicada to evade detection, a stone to ambush enemies, or a ferocious beast to overpower foes. These transformations not only enhance combat but also play a crucial role in exploration and puzzle-solving.
The game’s skill tree system offers players the freedom to tailor Wukong’s abilities to their preferred playstyle. Whether focusing on brute strength, stealth, or magical prowess, the customization options ensure a unique experience for every player. The combat’s fluid animations and responsive controls further elevate the gameplay, making each encounter a thrilling challenge.
Exploration and World Design
Black Myth: Wukong features a semi-open world design, encouraging players to venture off the beaten path. Hidden secrets, powerful enemies, and lore-rich artifacts await those who take the time to explore. The environments are meticulously designed, blending natural landscapes with fantastical elements. Players will traverse dense forests, desolate wastelands, and ancient temples, each brimming with detail and atmosphere.
The game’s world is also populated with diverse enemies inspired by Chinese mythology. From grotesque demons to ethereal spirits, each foe presents a unique challenge. The AI is notably intelligent, adapting to players’ strategies and forcing them to think creatively.
3. Graphics and Visual Design
One of the most talked-about aspects of Black Myth: Wukong is its visuals. Powered by Unreal Engine 5, the game sets a new standard for graphical fidelity in the action RPG genre. Every frame is a visual masterpiece, showcasing the capabilities of next-gen technology.
Art Direction
The game’s art direction is a blend of realism and fantasy. The environments are lush and detailed, with dynamic weather effects and realistic lighting creating an immersive experience. The character designs are equally impressive, capturing the essence of Chinese mythology while adding a modern touch. Sun Wukong’s design, in particular, reflects his dual nature as a fierce warrior and a cunning trickster.
The visual effects during combat are spectacular, with spells, transformations, and weapon strikes rendered in stunning detail. The use of color and contrast enhances the game’s aesthetic, making every battle and exploration moment memorable.
Performance
While the game shines on high-end PCs and next-gen consoles, its demanding system requirements may pose challenges for players with older hardware. However, Game Science has implemented optimization features like DLSS and ray tracing to ensure a smooth experience on compatible systems. The developers have also promised continuous updates to address performance issues and enhance stability.
4. Sound and Music
Sound Design
The sound design in Black Myth: Wukong is nothing short of exceptional. Every audio element, from the clash of weapons to the ambient sounds of nature, contributes to the game’s immersive quality. The sound effects are not just aesthetic; they play a functional role in gameplay, providing audio cues for enemy attacks and environmental hazards.
Music
The game’s soundtrack is a masterpiece in its own right. Composed using traditional Chinese instruments like the guzheng and erhu, the music captures the essence of the game’s setting. The compositions range from haunting melodies during exploration to adrenaline-pumping tracks in combat, perfectly complementing the game’s tone.
5. Technical Features
Unreal Engine 5 and Innovations
Black Myth: Wukong leverages the full potential of Unreal Engine 5, incorporating features like Nanite and Lumen to deliver unparalleled visuals. Nanite ensures detailed models without compromising performance, while Lumen provides realistic lighting and shadows that react dynamically to the environment. These technologies combine to create a visually stunning and technically advanced game.
Platforms and Accessibility
The game is set to release on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. Accessibility options include adjustable difficulty settings, customizable controls, and multilingual subtitles. While these features enhance inclusivity, the lack of cross-platform saves is a notable omission that may disappoint some players.
6. Pros and Cons Summary
Pros:
Stunning visuals powered by Unreal Engine 5.
Engaging and strategic combat system.
Rich narrative rooted in Chinese mythology.
Unique transformation mechanics.
Immersive sound design and culturally authentic music.
Expansive and detailed world design.
Cons:
High difficulty level may deter casual players.
Demanding system requirements.
Lack of cross-platform save functionality.
Final Thoughts
Black Myth: Wukong is more than just a game; it’s a cultural phenomenon that redefines what an action RPG can achieve. From its breathtaking visuals to its intricate gameplay mechanics, every aspect of the game exudes passion and craftsmanship. While it may not be perfect, its ambition and execution make it a must-play for fans of mythology, challenging gameplay, and cinematic storytelling.
As we eagerly await its release, Black Myth: Wukong promises to be a landmark title that will leave an indelible mark on the gaming industry.
Joguei pouco, mas acredito que seja o suficiente para fazer um comentário sobre o jogo. Desde o começo o jogo te coloca numa dimensão incrível e isso vai melhorando conforme o jogo passa, gráficos incríveis, lutas maravilhosas e memoráveis, mecânicas que vão aumentando e te possibilitando uma gama gigante de possibilidades. Justamente por não ser o meu estilo de jogo favorito, esse jogo em específico me chamou bastante a atenção e eu até o momento estou gostando muito. RECOMENDO
glitches with almost every boss. Invisible walls everywhere. Storyline is dumb and doesn't make any sense. It is like the developers asked elementary kids for ideas on bosses and where to put them in the map.
So I wanted to see what all the hype was about, but I just don't see it. The gameplay is just horrible. Everything about it is frustrating. Spongy enemies, unfair attacks, enemies can interrupt you mid-spell, wasting a charge and mana. Why do skills require BOTH charge and mana? Who the hell knows. Bosses combo you and you can't even dodge out of it. Your heavy attack animations is so incredibly slow compared to the bosses to the point of being absolutely useless. By the time you finish it they can dodge it, come back in range and dodge again.Inconsistent difficulty spikes. You beat one boss in a single try, then get stuck on the next one for 3 hours. And when you get stuck there is no side content you can do. You can keep trying the same bullshit boss or grind the same basic enemies over and over again to get maybe a 10% health boost. Progression and leveling are no help at all - all the bonuses you get barely matter.The whole game feels like playing Elden Ring as underleveled character. This is not something I would recomment to anyone, even if you like a challenging game.
Next gen graphics, beautiful story-telling that made me play the game twice to get the true ending, and great RPG elements with some of the best fighting I've experienced in a game. Looking forward to more from the developer!
The good. Visually this game is a masterpiece. The character designs are great, voice acting is good and that's it for me. Not a bad game at all. It's just boring, clunky, unbalanced and grindy for no reason at. It's not very well optimized for performance and it just feels stiff. There not much to do other than go from boss to boss, which feels more like a chore than anything fun and ultimately feels like they're there to just there to pad the play time. Dodging, which is only way to avoid damage is very unbalanced. For a monkey he's not very agile. You do unlock other abilities to avoid damage, but when used have a cool down timer, even though you have to spend mana to use them.This game was definitely overhyped. I'm not saying it's not worth the money. I just think this game should have stayed in the over a while longer. Luckily this is a PC game and it has a healthy modding community with a ton of QoL improvements. Ultimately if you like punishing Souls games, you'll like the vanilla base game. If you want a fun and fair game that doesn't make you grind, just mod the game.
This game is extremly fun than I've Expected. Good game for a new "Soul like" players. But this game is have some small issues like Crashes or Texture cant load in time.
An incredibly well made game. Graphics are beautiful, boss fights are tricky yet rewarding, and gameplay does not cease to amaze. 10/10, the best Steam game I have ever had the opportunity to play. A must-buy.
For me, this game was disappointing. It's a repetitive smash button that tries to imitate Dark Souls and Sekiro. I lost the will to play after a little over 7 hours because it kept repeating itself: finish off some weak NPCs, then some boss. Charge your focus points, hit the boss to disable him, hit a quick sequence. Move away, use some magic to make room for the attack and repeat. It lacks optimization. My machine has more than 20GB of RAM, a 12th generation Intel 7 and it crashed a few times. The game is, yes, very beautiful and the Chinese mythology is very interesting. The dubbing is good, in English, but leaves the desired amount in pt-br. There are more than 100 bosses and I got past the first 20 without, basically, any difficulty. I expected much more for a game with this hype. I suggest getting it on sale or, if you prefer, Dark Souls and Sekiro are much better. Have a good day!
Had it on my wishlist for almost a year now, i bought it 2 days ago or so, it's a really cool game and awesome graphics but i'm not in the mood for ''difficult'' games atm like i used to. I might get the game in the future when i don't have other expenses to worry about because i really like the whole chinese mythology.
The combat is so shit its not even funny, sometimes you spells wont even do anything but you will lose mana. The perfect dodge is pretty pointless and the barrages of counter attacks makes having perfect dodges almost impossible.
Not a bad game, was able to get to the 4th "act"/chapter. Quit after they decided that they have to add platforming to the clunky movement...that archer on that ledge just made me alt+f4.
Kinda sad I wasn't able to enjoy the game as much as others did, given that I am a big dark souls fan, something in this game didn't click as much but still the boss fights were pretty good with some crazy fluid highlights (perfect dodging into perfect dodging feels pretty nice). And getting the game to run smoothly was a nightmare.If you catch it on sale like I did it's probably worth it, I am probably going to come back to finish it at some point.
would not recommend this game there is several bosses that are glitched for me where they can go out the fight zone so when you use your freeze move you cant hit them after would love a refund!
The game has a unique taste and a very good story line. However, like the game tells you in the beginning use a controller. Do use a controller as keyboard doesn't work well if you are not a pro.
Steam Deck OLED Review – Black Myth: WukongPerformance Note:
Black Myth: Wukong runs decently on the Steam Deck OLED. With some setting adjustments, I was able to average around 30 FPS from start to finish, making it a very playable experience on the go.A quick disclaimer:
Sharing opinions on games is always subjective, so this review is based entirely on my personal experience. For context: I don’t usually play action-fighting games, so this genre was outside my usual comfort zone.At the time of writing this, I still have the final boss and secret ending left to complete, but I’ve played enough to share my honest thoughts.Overall Score:
⭐ 7/10 – A solid and enjoyable game, with some rough edges.Pros:Boss fights were a standout – fun, challenging, and often unique. They kept me engaged throughout.Story and music were both quite strong. Some excellent atmosphere and world-building moments.Combat and progression felt satisfying, with a good rhythm to unlocking new powers and upgrades.Neutral (Depending on Play Style):You have a lot of build depth if you want to go deep: weapon types, transformations, gourds, curios, and more. But if you’re like me and prefer a simpler approach, you can stick with a standard build for most of the game and only tweak for tougher bosses.Armor sets generally looked and functioned well, but progression felt unclear. Many sets I unlocked were too niche or didn’t improve on what I was already using.Same goes for gear/upgrades – great for tinkerers, a bit overwhelming or unnecessary for those who like to keep it simple.Cons:Level/map design wasn’t my favorite. Chapter 1 had near-perfect pacing, exploration, and flow. But after that, the world opened up too much and felt bloated, with convoluted paths and overwhelming side areas.Staff progression system was frustrating. You need to craft the previous version of a staff before making the next one, and you lose access to the old one unless you downgrade. This hurt flexibility and punished experimentation.I’m calling this a negative, though others may disagree:
After missing secrets in Chapter 1, I turned to a guide to avoid missing anything else. That meant I lost the feeling of organic discovery, and my playthrough became more checklist-focused. If you’re planning multiple runs or love hunting for secrets, this might not bother you.A few puzzle-like moments felt unnecessary. Not a big issue, but I could have done without them.No difficulty settings. If you hit a wall, your only options are to change your build or look up guides. That said, even as someone who doesn’t play games like this, I made it all the way to the last boss – so it’s challenging, but doable.Final Thoughts:Black Myth: Wukong is a fun and rewarding action game, even for someone outside the genre like me. It's well worth picking up, especially on sale. And if you’re wondering how it performs on Steam Deck OLED, rest easy: with some tweaks, it holds 30 FPS consistently – which is good enough to fully enjoy the experience on handheld.
