Why is Black Myth: Wukong so popular?

"Black Myth: Wukong" is an action RPG developed by Game Science and is hailed as China's first "AAA game." The game is set after the Journey to the West story. Even after becoming a Buddha, Wukong refuses to be bound and resigns from his position after his master returns to the Tang Dynasty. He aims to live freely at Flower-Fruit Mountain, only to face suspicion from the Heavenly Court. The Four Heavenly Kings, Erlang Shen, and the Giant Spirit God lead heavenly troops to attack Flower-Fruit Mountain. During a fierce battle between Wukong and Erlang Shen, the once-vanished Tight-Fening Spell reappears, ultimately leading to Wukong's defeat and demise.

Its soul transforms into a giant stone, and its remains become six magical artifacts. The player character, known as the "Destined One," embarks on a journey to find these sacred relics and resurrect the Great Sage Equal to Heaven. The game consists of six chapters and features multiple endings, with each choice made by the player affecting the final outcome.

The "Destined One" wields the Golden Staff, which, like the one in the East Sea Dragon Palace, can stretch and retract freely. The staff can also change into various attack forms and utilize secret techniques, duplicate techniques, and the 72 Transformations spell. The game incorporates real-world natural landmarks, such as the Little Western Heaven in Shanxi, Nanchan Temple, Iron Buddha Temple, Guangsheng Temple, and Heque Tower, and integrates Buddhist and Taoist philosophy, allowing players to deeply explore the protagonist’s inner conflicts.

In 2018, the project "Black Myth: Wukong" was initiated, and after six and a half years, it was finally released. The founder behind it is Feng Ji, the founder and CEO of Game Science. His initial team almost entirely came from Tencent's internal game development studio. The seven core members left Tencent after the completion of the "Dou Zhan Shen" project to help establish Game Science.

Once the studio was operationally stable, they focused on developing single-player games, using the "Journey to the West" theme as a breakthrough. Through "Black Myth: Wukong," they aim to showcase the strength and innovation of Chinese games to the world.

The cultural intention of "Black Myth: Wukong" is to reinterpret Eastern mythology from a modern perspective. It has chosen its own path by retaining the core content of traditional culture while re-presenting "Journey to the West" in a way that is easily understood by global players. This approach seeks to break the traditional perception of Chinese culture among overseas users and present a more diverse and modern image of Chinese culture.