Wukong (or Sun Wukong) — a popular character from the 16th-century Chinese novel “Journey to the West”. The Monkey King is an important figure in movies, manga, and anime. For instance, the main character of one of the longest-running and most popular anime series, Dragon Ball, is Son Goku (the Japanese pronunciation of the name). As a child, Goku possessed traits of the Monkey King. Among them: an extending staff, a monkey tail, and the ability to fly on a cloud.
The Monkey King is also frequently used in games. Just look at the heroes in DOTA 2 and League of Legends — the most popular MOBAs!
A good interpretation of the novel “Journey to the West” is the game Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. It is an action-adventure game developed by the British studio Ninja Theory. The plot tells the story of a warrior named Monkey in a post-apocalyptic world. Having escaped from captivity, the guy meets a clever girl named Tripitaka. She places a headband on his head, and from then on, the warrior is forced to travel west with her. Otherwise, the headband will fry his brains.
The game turned out beautiful and unusual. The fates of the characters are interesting to follow. And Tripitaka became one of the most vivid companions I have seen in video games.
Hero's backstory
Wukong — the Monkey King, who was born from a magic stone. The carefree life among monkeys ended when the King came to know the fear of death. Thus, he set off on a journey where he learned advanced Taoist practices and attained his first immortality.
Upon his return, the Monkey King learned that his companions had been stolen by the Havoc Demon to be used as slaves. Wukong slays the demon and frees his friends, after which he begins the search for a weapon worthy of an immortal king. The search led him to an eight-ton magical staff capable of changing its size and shape.
Later it turns out that the Monkey King’s immortality was not recognized in Heaven. And this comes to light at the very moment Wukong drinks himself to death and ends up in Hell. Dissatisfied with such a turn of events, he crosses out his own name and the names of monkeys known to him from the Book of Life and Death. He thereby makes himself doubly immortal, and also grants eternal life to his subordinates and friends.
Wukong’s ambitions led him to Heaven, where he terrorized the locals and accumulated additional forms of immortality. This led to a war with the gods, which ended with numerous executions of Wukong. But no method was found that could kill the Monkey King. Only the cunning of the Buddha himself helped subdue the arrogant monkey and imprison the trickster beneath a rock for 500 years.
Wukong was freed from the stone prison by the monk Xuanzang. After which he tricked the monkey into wearing a magical headband that constricted the wearer’s head. This was a necessary measure, for otherwise the mischievous monkey would not obey. In this way, Wukong became Xuanzang’s bodyguard on his journey to the West. This adventure granted the Monkey King forgiveness of sins and enlightenment.
Black Myth: Wukong
So far, the project is known only from developer videos. The videos showcase beautiful and detailed locations. Creepy demons roam them, which the main character will have to fight.
Judging by the videos, the game took inspiration from the Souls series. The protagonist uses rolls and picks the right moment to strike the opponent with a staff. Having defeated a powerful enemy, the monkey learns to take on the form of the vanquished monster. The hero also uses numerous abilities, such as creating clones or transforming into a beetle, which allows sneaking past enemies unnoticed.
The protagonist of Black Myth: WuKong — the chosen monkey. This is just an assumption, but most likely, the protagonist is Wukong’s subordinate who decided to follow in his master’s footsteps. Why did I decide it isn’t Wukong himself? Simply because the Monkey King personally stopped the protagonist when he tried to finish off a boss.
Some fragments are shown from the perspective of Wukong himself. The mythical hero flies on a cloud and fights the celestial army.
At Gamescom Opening Night Live 2022, a new trailer for Black Myth: Wukong was shown. In the video, the chosen monkey was gathering mushrooms and roots, and praying at an altar. Another patch of mushrooms turns into a vicious demon — looks like those will be the game’s mimics! Later, the monkey fights a dragon boss attacking with lightning and an angle-grinder tail. There were also noticeable obvious weak points, the destruction of which significantly depleted the boss’s health bar
The protagonist himself is also interesting. Unlike the mischievous Wukong, the hero is gloomy and silent. The movements are refined and restrained, which is strange for a monkey, as even his enemies are more agile and expressive.
The protagonist’s transformation mechanics also look unusual. Wukong learned the technique of transforming into 72 forms. The chosen monkey, like the Monkey King, is capable of taking on the form of defeated enemies. In theory, this adds extra variety to the playthrough. But something suggests that most players will pick 3–4 convenient forms and forget about the rest.
Also, the videos lack the feeling that you are traveling. From the outside, it looked like a soulless monster hunt and resource gathering.
Analysis
If the final product matches what was shown in the trailers, the developers will only deserve praise. It is clear that the effort has led to the creation of a colorful game. Be it the environment or the combat – everything looks pleasant. The attention to detail is also pleasing. Like the moment when a wolf leaps across rooftops and tiles crumble under its paws.
However, if the game is inspired by Souls-series games, it looks easy. The enemies have a small set of attacks that deal little damage. And they look predictable. Despite its visuals, the game could easily become slow and tedious by the middle. And people will play through it just to collect forms and advance the story. But that’s not certain! The game is planned for release in 2023, and then everything will fall into place!