BLACK MYTH WUKONG: WE TRIED IT FOR 2 HOURS AND IT LOOKS TRULY BEASTLY
Impersonating Sun Wukong conveys a feeling of unusual power. The monkey possesses a feral elegance when it fights, using its stick as if it were an extension of its limbs: a deadly dance that is anything but difficult to learn, because the sequence of blows is intuitive, the movements are excellently legible, and the timing response of always precise attacks. His enemies are certainly no exception, monstrosities belonging to Chinese mythology: they call them Yaoguai (as folklore teaches), they are divided into different ranks and can be devastating. Not invincible, mind you, yet dangerous if approached carelessly. The task of the Chosen One is to face them all, and defeat them, in an adventure inspired by the now famous Journey to the West. We began Son Wukong’s journey in Los Angeles , in a private event organized by Game Science, during which for just over two hours we were enthralled by a trial version that allowed us to explore the first chapter of the game (if look for another interesting action RPG, read our review of Phantom Blade Zero ). We’ll tell you right away, full of hope: if the definitive edition remains on the same quality level as this incipit, without wavering in terms of narrative or playful balance, Black Myth Wukong will be overwhelming . We really hope so.
BLACK MYTH WUKONG: WE TRIED IT FOR 2 HOURS AND IT LOOKS TRULY BEASTLY
Fight, Monkey!
A perception of total control: this is what you feel at first glance when impersonating the Monkey King. Black Myth is not a simple experience, but it never seemed unfair, or with a challenge rate set too high in a burdensome way. It’s a very well-studied balance, which gives the player a sense of genuine satisfaction. It’s inspiring, not frustrating . You fall, in Wukong, but you get up with the awareness that the test can be passed on the second or third attempt, never with too much laziness, never with too much diligence.
This sense of proportion is due to two primary factors, connected to the reasoned intuitiveness of the combat system and the crystal-clear movements of the enemies. The combination of light and heavy attacks makes the protagonist a warrior with powerful agility, very fast and agile, as well as very responsive: there is nothing too elaborate in the sequence of the Monkey’s blows, however the specter of banalization is exorcised by necessity to carefully consider the timing of attacks and dodges , also due to the progressive depletion of stamina.
Furthermore, although the enemies are affected by the heaviness of the blows, so much so that they literally feel the repercussions, stagger and interrupt the assaults, their aggressiveness makes them hostile and at times lethal, to the point of forcing us both to read their set of animations, both to adjust the steps of our death dance accordingly, and – if necessary – to not conclude a combo in order to dodge at the last second. You always fight at close range in Wukong, without the possibility of using long-range attacks, at least in the first few hours. Since the combat system is based on hand-to-hand combat, evasive maneuvers become essential , in the absence of a proper parry.
BLACK MYTH WUKONG: WE TRIED IT FOR 2 HOURS AND IT LOOKS TRULY BEASTLY
The protagonist’s stick can at most rotate to deflect the opponent’s arrows, but it is unable to absorb the blows. Only by continuing in the adventure will we unlock an ability capable of “blocking” the Yaoguai’s slashes, but apparently it will be a sort of power subject to recharge times, and not a move that can be performed in every situation. This is why we will always have to sprint to the side in a monkey-like manner, spin, jump and perform a perfect dodge to leave a residual image of ourselves, so as to confuse the enemy and take advantage of this to strike him vigorously. Precisely this combination of ease of execution and player skill allows Black Myth to instill the feeling of power we told you about at the beginning. The work of Game Science never seems to want to deviate from the path of martial spectacle, not even in the most technical battles, and for this reason it gradually introduces a series of additional talents, linked to the consumption of Mana. Since magical energy is recharged by resting at altars (aka bonfires), it will be better to intelligently dose the use of spells. These are very suggestive powers to look at and also very useful in battles: effectiveness and dynamism therefore go hand in hand , a further example of this apparent playful balance that we liked so much. We underline “apparent” only as a precautionary measure, hoping that the rest of the adventure will remain in the same vein as the introductory two hours. The first obtainable spell is connected to the Mysticism category, and allows you to immobilize the target for a few seconds : the saving effectiveness of such a power goes hand in hand with its pleasantness of use, given that it allows you to trigger even quite funny situations, including including the paralysis of a Yaoguai (with a very ferocious expression!) right in the middle of an attack.
He saved us several times from certain death, we admit it. In the demo there were also two other categories of magical skills: Enhancement , which allows you to increase Wukong’s agility – activating a sort of stealthy step to make yourself temporarily invisible – and Transformation , with which the warrior Monkey can transform into another creature, whose appearance is linked to the defeated Yaoguai who previously held its power . The transformation consists of a radical change of character: Wukong changes his appearance, size, movement speed and abilities for a limited duration, and can attack the enemy with unprecedented bestiality, also inflicting elemental damage. Furthermore, during the period of metamorphosis, the protagonist does not suffer damage to his primary health bar, and instead takes hits on the secondary indicator, which signals the residual vitality of the mutation. Its effectiveness is such that the recharge times are much slower than those of other spells, for reasons related to the balance of the experience.
On paper there is yet another branch, which in the test version at Gamescom 2023 was called Hair Magic and allowed you to summon duplicates of the Monkey on the field: in the first two hours of the demo, however, it was not yet available and therefore we believe it can only be obtained more forward during the progression (at this link you can find our test of Black Myth Wukong at Gamescom 2023 ). On the other hand – we remember – the last Cologne build was structured to propose four different moments of the game in different phases of the adventure, while in Los Angeles we tested Chapter 1 in its semi-final form. Speaking of forms: Wukong allows you to obtain three alternative postures, namely Smash, Pillar and Thrust, to be unlocked respectively at the beginning of the journey, upon reaching level 5 and then level 20. Considering the limitations of the demo, we were given way to get only the first two. Once learned, they can be alternated at any time, but the most significant variation between the Forms consists in the use of the heavy attack.
For example, with the Smash posture you perform an intense beating, while with Pillar the monkey positions itself on the top of its weapon to become immune to low attacks. The offensive tool to use – regardless of posture – will always be Sun Wukong’s staff, with its customizable appearance and effectiveness. Currently, it seems that the objective is to guarantee a constant improvement of the Monkey King’s typical weapon, thus offering a sufficient variety of offensive means starting from the evolution of a single instrument. To make you understand better: obtaining an upgrade after destroying a boss gave us the ability to create a snake-shaped mace, whose damage increased if you fought in puddles of water. We will therefore see what the assortment of weapons that Game Science has prepared for travelers will be.
BLACK MYTH WUKONG: WE TRIED IT FOR 2 HOURS AND IT LOOKS TRULY BEASTLY
Despite a very satisfying combat system, the actual usefulness of the Forms is a doubt that we still cannot completely dispel. Both in Cologne and in Los Angeles we did not feel the need to vary the postures to maximize the effectiveness of the combos against the multiple types of enemies that opposed our progress. We therefore trust that, as Wukong’s journey continues, the importance of “forms” will gradually become more concrete. The progression as a whole also moves in the same wake of uncertainty: apart from the usual and predictable benefits due to the permanent increase in Health, Mana and Stamina, the diversification and usefulness of the talents that can be acquired in the skill trees that make up Wukong’s skills, divided not only on the basis of the Form, but also in macro sectors including the hero’s martial skills and his survival skills. There are quite a few items to purchase with the Spirit Points that are earned by leveling up, but their number does not seem overwhelming. Has the team also chosen the path of balance in this case, avoiding the excessive accumulation of potentially useless skills?
The hero and his enemies
The opportunity to experience the opening hours of Black Myth clarified some key points about the nature of the production. While the demo in Cologne in 2023 hinted at some more connections with the works of From Software, we can now tell you with certainty that Wukong cannot be defined as soulslike in the strict sense , and only shares with them some timid, now inflated stylistic features, such as the rest at the altars where restore the mana, restore the health bottle (not divided into flasks, but indicated by a single container that empties with each sip) and reallocate the Spirit points. The price to pay is the rebirth of defeated enemies in the surrounding areas, but only basic level ones. The most obvious points of contact with Miyazaki’s masterpieces stop here, because Black Myth avoids chasing other forced similarities.The beauties of Unreal Engine 5We don’t know what the configuration of the PC on which we tried the demo was. However, we looked at the graphics settings, and all the options (from textures to anti-aliasing, passing through the quality of reflections) were set to maximum, specifically under Cinematic, with DLSS and Frame Generation active. Observing it at full power, Wukong leaves you stunned, not only for the visual impact of the settings and effects on the screen, but also for the rendering of the animations and creatures. Unreal Engine 5 really shows what it’s capable of. Unfortunately we don’t have the faintest idea how Black Myth runs on consoles…
Game Science is an action RPG divided into fairly large settings, where some secondary paths are hidden, but with a navigability of the scenario that is not very labyrinthine, whose cost/benefit ratio is much more permissive than that typical of a “Souls”. Death does not entail the loss of experience points already earned, nor the need to return to the place of death to recover resources. The only penalty is represented by the halving of the “Will” points , a spiritual currency which is also used to create new clothing components, from headdresses to sandals, passing through tunics: near the altars (apparently distributed with a good frequency) we will therefore be able to create and wear clothes and accessories that increase the basic statistics of the warrior, as well as buy potions to sharpen the attack power and medicines to increase resistance to alterations, i.e. the typical ones linked to frost, heat, electricity and poison. The developers do not seem intent on offering users a game that is too hardcore , so much so that during the test it was suggested to us that the structure of the level design includes the presence of torches (or – more generally – light sources) along the areas that can be visited, strategically positioned to indicate to the player which is the main path to follow, without being too invasive. Exploration is however encouraged by the presence of secondary missions offered by NPCs and optional clashes. Wukong pays great attention to the creation of the Yaoguai, all divided into (for now…) three ranks of increasing value: the basic one is followed by the Elite level, above which sits the King rank.
BLACK MYTH WUKONG: WE TRIED IT FOR 2 HOURS AND IT LOOKS TRULY BEASTLY
The reason for such meticulousness lies in the fact that most of Wukong’s battles are fought against bosses. The common monsters that populate the scenarios, i.e. the lower-ranking Yaoguai, are mostly short interludes and small skirmishes, which separate us from the next big enemy, be it primary or optional. To give you proof of the fact that it is a game based above all on boss battles, just know that in two hours we found them – and beat them! – seven (and they weren’t even all those present in the demo). Each of them, in addition to being conceived with an applause-worthy design, possessed unique movesets and characteristics, such as to make each duel never identical to the previous one. There were very agile and graceful adversaries, gargantuan and rabid beasts, sorcerers who exploited magical deceptions, colossal priests who used their faithful as a source of healing or as fire bombs, and much more that we do not want to reveal to you. In boss battles, Black Myth therefore shows off the versatility, dynamism and precision of its combat system, engaging and galvanizing us at the same time . It is precisely because of this balance between immediacy and accuracy, not entirely subject to tremendously challenging constraints but not therefore inclined to excessive banality, that we await with sincere curiosity to discover how epic Sun Wukong’s “Journey to the West” will prove to be.