I finally finished Black Myth: Wukong in 2026, which means I am either late to the party or early to the nostalgia tour. Either way, I came for the monkey, stayed for the staff, and left with a notebook full of thoughts about Game Science's debut action RPG. The 2020 reveal trailer made people look; Unreal Engine 5 made people stare; my roughly 25-hour playthrough made me conclude that Game Science definitely had the chops, even if the game is less a revolution and more a very handsome buffet of ideas from Soulslikes, Nioh, Monster Hunter, and classic action games.
Story: The Monkey, the Myth, and the Menu Lore
Journey to the West is a 16th-century Chinese novel about Sun Wukong, a monkey born from a stone who learns tao, 72 transformations, combat tricks, and the secret of immortality. He gets absurdly powerful, challenges Heaven, loses, and leaves behind the artifacts that gave him strength. Years later, the Destined One, who looks exactly like Sun Wukong, sets out to recover those artifacts and learn how they shaped the lives of everyone touched by them.
Black Myth: Wukong is a concise retelling rather than a direct adaptation. If you know the novel, you will not be shocked by the broad strokes, but there are enough surprises to keep the journey entertaining. The writing changes tone by character and chapter, and it gets a little confusing at times, but the personable characters carry a lot of it. Chapter 2's main character, for example, delighted me with some catchy tunes in Chinese. The English voiceovers are competent, though I would still pick the original Chinese dub for the authentic experience.
What really impressed me was the world-building. Hidden inside the menu is a pile of information on the many Yaoguai the Destined One faces, and it paints a vivid picture of the beautiful, dangerous world they inhabit. Main story bosses get special cutscenes after defeat, using different animation techniques that etch them into memory. Game Science clearly poured love into the setting, and the whole experience benefits from it.
Combat: One Staff, Many Ways to Bonk
The Destined One has one main weapon: a staff. No greatsword, no dual blades, no gun that fires smaller guns. Every staff shares the same basic moveset, with a light combo string and a heavy attack that changes based on the chosen stance. You can switch stances on the fly, and each one changes the Varied Combo, a special combo started by using a heavy attack in the middle of a string.
The stances do not alter the moveset dramatically, but they make a real difference. Smash stance rewards timing the Varied Combo to intercept enemy attacks with increased staggering power, which reminded me of the counter-heavy Monster Hunter Longsword style. Pillar stance lets the Destined One climb on an extended staff to avoid ground attacks and deal damage from a safe position. Thrust stance gives longer-range attacks. It is a simple system, but it has enough wrinkles to keep my monkey brain engaged.
| Tool | What it does | My very scientific reaction |
|---|---|---|
| Smash stance | Varied Combo can stagger enemies | Big stick goes bonk 🐒 |
| Pillar stance | Climb staff, avoid ground attacks | Monkey elevator |
| Thrust stance | Longer-range pokes | Poking from a safe distance |
| Focus | Build charges with light attacks, dodges, and staff spin | Do not spam, my friend |
Focus is the anti-spam glue. Hitting enemies with light attacks and using the staff spin, which also repels projectiles, builds Focus until a charge is stored. More charges mean stronger heavy attacks and less charge time for better efficacy. Perfect dodges and other actions can also build Focus, so there are different ways to play optimally despite the single basic moveset.
Spells add more flavor. They belong to three types and let the Destined One parry enemy attacks, immobilize enemies, create duplicates, and so on. Spirits are single attacks unleashed by transforming into defeated enemies, and they grant buffs that empower certain playstyles. Proper Transformations turn the Destined One into a defeated enemy for a longer time, with different movesets and abilities. Cooldown timers keep you from spamming them, which is good, because Black Myth: Wukong is not a very difficult game.
Armor sets grant buffs based on how many pieces you equip, similar to Nioh, and weapon upgrades use a weapon tree that is not too far from Monster Hunter. You craft gear at checkpoints using materials from the field and special items from bosses. It is familiar stuff, but it fits together nicely.
Difficulty and Level Design: Relax, It Is Not Elden Ring DLC
Most mobs are not a threat at all, and most bosses can be defeated on the first try. Only a few exceptions exist, and even then, a couple of attempts should be enough for experienced action game players. That may sound disappointing if you wanted your controller to file a complaint, but I found it refreshing. Enemy placement and some movesets are Soulslike in flavor, but no boss reaches the frustrating extremes of some Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree fights. I stayed on my toes without feeling cheated.
Regular enemy design is super varied, and main boss design is extremely good. That makes it easier to forgive a challenge level that sometimes feels too low. Chapter 1 is also the weakest part of the level design, mostly linear and not very inspiring. From Chapter 2 onward, locations get bigger, paths branch, optional bosses appear, and secrets reward thorough searching. Mind Cores, used to craft a special medicine unlocked in late Chapter 2, grant permanent stat boosts and introduce a sort of Soulslike leveling system.
Exploration is still limited. There is very little verticality, which is strange given how agile the Destined One is, and too many closed-off paths look explorable at a glance. The interconnectivity never reaches Lordran levels, but there are plenty of secrets for players who poke around. Those secrets also push playtime well past the main campaign.
Visuals and Performance: Pretty Monkey, Stuttery Monkey
Powered by Unreal Engine 5, Black Myth: Wukong looks great. Character models are highly detailed, and the environments fuse natural landscapes with traditional Chinese architecture in a way that gives the game a charming atmosphere. I did see vegetation shadow flickering now and then, which was distracting. Full ray tracing improves shadows and reflections, but the performance cost is big enough that I did not think it was worth it.
On my i7-13700F, RTX 4080, and 32GB RAM system, I could not average 60 FPS at 1080p native with everything maxed out and full ray tracing. The game supports DLSS, FSR, XeSS, UE5's TSR, and DLSS Frame Generation. With some tweaking and DLSS at Balanced, my system averaged 115 FPS in the benchmark. DLSS Quality would have given better image quality at around 90 FPS average, but for a fast-paced game like this, I prioritized framerate.
Traversal stutters are still a problem, and some last over one second, which is awful in combat. The benchmark tool is a little misleading because it shows no stuttering at all. This is the usual Unreal Engine 5 headache, and it keeps the experience from feeling as polished as the art direction suggests.
Final Monkey Business
Black Myth: Wukong could not have been a better debut for Game Science. It is not innovative, but it has great production values, fun combat with plenty of interconnecting mechanics, excellent enemy design, and a beautiful world. A challenge level that may be too low for some, an experience that gets a little stale over time, and PC stuttering hold it back slightly. Still, I would not be surprised if plenty of players name it their Game of the Year. My score would sit at 8.5 out of 10. The Journey to the West has rarely been this enjoyable.
