Some audiences may not be familiar with the ancient Chinese novel Journey to the West, but there’s a great chance they’ve already been exposed to material inspired by it from anime like Dragon Ball and Gensomaden Saiyuki or movies like The Forbidden Kingdom.
The next big adaptation of the Journey to the West is Game Science’s latest title, Black Myth: Wukong. This title promises to take the Journey to the West lore and give it a modern, Elden Ring-inspired twist. With the game's extensive lore, some fans have been asking how faithful the story will be compared to the original novel.
What is the Lore Behind Black Myth: Wukong?
As mentioned, the game is based on one of the ‘great Chinese novels,’ more popularly known to wide audiences as Journey to the West. The novel tells the story of the Monkey King, Sun Wukong, who has fantastical powers and tries to go up against the gods.
For daring to defy heaven, Sun Wukong is imprisoned under a mountain for 500 years until he is freed by the monk Tang Sanzang. They go on a journey with other colorful characters to fetch a set of Buddhist scriptures from Tianzhu (what ancient China used to call India) to bring back to China and spread the teachings of Buddhism.
How is Black Myth Different from the Original Story?
When it comes to Black Myth, the story is a sort of sequel to the original Journey to the West. After Sun Wukong finishes his mission with Sanzang, Wukong achieves Buddhahood, but he rejects it, much to the dismay of the Celestial Court, which decides to imprison him again.
The main character of Black Myth, the Destined One, is then tasked by the Monkeys of Mount Huaguo to recover several relics left by the original Sun Wukong in the hopes of being able to release him from his stone prison.
This then leads to the main story of the game, which will have the Destined One going after several relics while at the same time facing some of the mythical enemies that Wukong went up against in the original Journey to the West. Not only will the Destined One face enemies, but he’ll also be meeting familiar allies.
Though he isn’t Wukong, the Destined One also has several powers, including shapeshifting into several different animals and turning his hair into clones of himself. He also has incredible strength, can change in size, and can fly on a cloud—essentially everything Goku from Dragon Ball can do.
So far, the game has been getting rave reviews. Besides all the fantastical elements the game has with its lore and story, Black Myth has also been praised for its complicated fighting mechanics, which add a lot of flavor to its soulslike aesthetic.
Black Myth: Wukong is available for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.