Wukong has style

 

Black myth is one of those games with a Legacy behind it, stretching out years to when an unknown developer put out a gameplay video that no-one could believe was real. A game that told us a great-looking Souls-like Sun Wukong video game created by Chinese developers and backed by no big studios could be real- it was enough to set this school boy alight. Because yes, I still attended School when this game was first teasing ankle back in those forlorn yesteryears. From a Chinese game developer it is almost unthinkable that anything resembling a real game could be made- who could possibly trust the kind of developers who wrote the book on crappy F2P microtransaction hellholes for an audience of addicts? Game Kitchen are apparently the name of these brave exceptions.

You see, even though China is one of those countries that restricts access to outside media for 'decency' reasons- very few actual gamers are held up such paltry provisions. Learning to sneak around the firewall is simply part and parcel for that audience and enjoying the high standards of the best of our industry is as much their right as anyone elses. So it doesn't matter if Dark Souls and God of War would have feasibly been sold in that sector of the world, or if misleading official statistics state that only sub-standard ripoffs and mobile trash thrive in the country- Chinese gamers know what's up and their developers, should they be given the greenlight, have so much to offer the rest of this special space of entertainment. And I like to think 'Black Myth' might open up a few of those doors.

Some weeks ago it finally came to us and Black Myth Wukong shot off like wildfire, selling 8 million in the first week and breaking Steam concurrent play numbers for a single player title- neatly stealing that throne from Baldur's Gate 3. A lot of those sales came right in China itself, demonstrating just how powerful a full-blooded video game can be on an audience ostensibly alien to it's kind- whilst also throwing a bit of a mirror at the rest of the world- why didn't more of us rush to buy this game? I had other expenses that month- what's everyone else's excuse? At the very least I have the game know and can say, though I've yet to finish the thing, that everyone should be playing Black Myth WuKong.

Firstly- it is not a Souls-Like despite what we all initially believed. I've heard it described as close to God of War, but I think there's a bit more RPG freedom in the way you build the playstyle as opposed to God of War. What this game is closet to in that regard would be something like Sekiro- although without the precision gameplay mechanics built into it's very structure and with a surprisingly forgiving slide to it's difficulty scales. Wukong is actually one of the easiest games of this style that I've played- but not in a way that's boring- but in a way that gives you the freedom to explore and experiment with your abilities, gear, spells and transformations without fear of screwing yourself over. Backed with a free reskilling option that fits in this style of game.

Speaking of the game's style I have to say wow- those cutscenes! It's not often that a modern Video game cutscene will blow me away through mere spectacle, but those that manage it join a very exclusive list. The modern Final Fantasies (15,16,7R) and Black Myth and... that's all I can think off from the top of my head. And a great cutscene goes a long way to setting mood and excitement levels, it has to be said! Seeing Wukong flying through the air exchanging staff blows with a mortal enemy or just seeing the incredibly intense introduction to a foreboding boss is just the icing on the cake. Stylish doesn't begin to describe these moments!

As for story I am actually quite taken with this Souls-taught kind of narrative exposition based on small anecdotes recovered from the slain that slowly lay out the story of the various forces that control these chapters of the world. All alongside much more straight forward cutscenes that tell an interesting enough tale on it's own to have me paying attention- although I'll have to dive a bit deeper to see if it's actually interesting all on it's own. There are sparks of something though- which is much more than I would have typically expected from a game like this from a first-time studio. Taking things without the easy-out of being 'pure action' is a testament to true ambition.

But what really sung out to me was the sheer pursuit of artistic excellence which forgoes the typically gross trappings of generalised acceptance. When I weigh up every decision with 'is this what general audiences usually respond to?' I'll only ever come up with a game barely able to compare with anything but Ubisoft slop. There was absolutely no reason for every single chapter finale of Wukong to be presented with a simply gorgeous animated music video exploring the stories of figures of importance throughout that chapter. But it sings of a spirit of artistry implicit with this game.