After a four-year wait since its 2020 announcement, Black Myth: Wukong is finally here (at least on PC)! Read on for a summary of early reviews and a look at the recent controversy surrounding review guidelines.
Black Myth: Wukong's PC Debut
The anticipation surrounding Black Myth: Wukong, fueled by its 2020 trailer, has largely been met with positive critical reception. The game boasts an 82 Metascore on Metacritic based on 54 reviews.
Reviewers praise the game's exceptional action gameplay, emphasizing precise and engaging combat complemented by brilliantly designed boss battles. Stunning visuals and hidden secrets within its beautiful world further enhance the experience. The game's adaptation of the Chinese mythological tale, Journey to the West, has also received acclaim, with GamesRadar+ describing it as "a fun action RPG that feels like a modern God of War game, but through a Chinese mythological lens."
While PCGamesN considers it a potential Game of the Year contender, some criticisms persist. Common concerns include subpar level design, uneven difficulty, and occasional technical glitches. The narrative structure, similar to older FromSoftware titles, requires players to piece together the story through item descriptions, which some find disjointed. Importantly, all early access reviews are for the PC version; console performance (particularly on PS5) remains unknown.
Controversial Review Guidelines
(Image source: SteamDB)
The release has been overshadowed by reports of controversial guidelines issued by one of Black Myth: Wukong's co-publishers to streamers and reviewers. These guidelines reportedly restricted discussion of "violence, nudity, feminist propaganda, fetishization, and other content that instigates negative discourse." This has sparked significant debate within the gaming community, with some criticizing the guidelines as censorship while others remain unconcerned.
Despite the controversy, pre-release Steam sales statistics show Black Myth: Wukong as the platform's top-selling and most wishlisted game. While the lack of console reviews creates some uncertainty, the game's launch is anticipated to be substantial.
