Upcoming Soulslike Black Myth: Wukong looks to be all about magical monkey mischief

Store pages for action-RPG Black Myth: Wukong have just gone live on Steam and the Epic Games Store, along with some more information about what we can expect from the game.

The game was first revealed in 2020, before developer Game Science went mostly quiet. In January, Game First announced a summer 2024 release window for Black Myth: Wukong, and now we've got an official description from the developer.

Black Myth: Wukong is based on Journey to the West, one of the most famous Chinese literary works, which itself is an account of the Buddhist monk Xuanzang's pilgrimage across Asia entangled with Chinese mythology.

From the previous trailers for the game, we've seen just how amazing it looks in Unreal Engine 5 and the GIFs included on its Steam page are no different. What really stands out to me is the description of combat for playable character Sun Wukong, also known as the Monkey King.

Game Science says we'll have an arsenal of "spells, transformations, and magic vessels" to use, all of which are "iconic combat elements in Chinese mythology". What's more, player experimentation is encouraged as you can combine different spells, abilities, and weapons to find your own combat style.

This is all excellent news to my ears as the Monkey King is an extremely powerful and skilled fighter in Journey to the West, and I'm eager to see this translate into gameplay. Hopefully some of Game Science's personality comes through in Black Myth: Wukong, as the developer has become well-known for its monkeying around and humorous mid-development glitches.

While you wait for Black Myth: Wukong, here's our list of upcoming games in 2023 and beyond for the best new titles to play.