We finally know what Black Myth: Zhong Kui looks like when someone actually picks up the controller.
Game Science has released around 15 minutes of gameplay, moving Zhong Kui beyond cinematic teasers and giving us the first proper look at how the studio plans to follow Black Myth: Wukong.
And perhaps the most interesting thing about the footage is how little it feels like a straightforward sequel.
The mythology is different. The protagonist is different. The fighting style has changed. Even the overall mood feels darker and stranger.
Game Science could have made Wukong 2.
Instead, it looks like the studio wants Black Myth itself to become the identity.
Forget the staff. Zhong Kui has his own way of fighting
Anyone coming directly from Wukong will notice the difference almost immediately.
Zhong Kui’s sword changes the character of combat.
Wukong’s staff encouraged sweeping attacks, movement and flashy combinations. Here, the fights shown in the demo feel tighter and more confrontational.
There is more emphasis on meeting attacks directly, reading an enemy and responding at the right moment. Parries and defensive exchanges appear to play a larger role, while supernatural abilities are mixed into the swordplay rather than replacing it.
It doesn’t suddenly turn Black Myth into Sekiro, and that’s probably a good thing.
What matters is that Zhong Kui doesn’t look like Wukong wearing a different skin.
He already has his own rhythm.
The weirdness might be the best part
The combat will naturally get most of the attention, but the creatures are what stayed with us.
Game Science once again seems completely uninterested in making its mythology easily digestible.
There are grotesque monsters, skeletal enemies, strange humanoid figures and encounters that become increasingly difficult to describe without simply saying: what the hell is that?
That’s a compliment.
One of Wukong’s greatest strengths was its ability to introduce players outside China to creatures and stories they may never have encountered before, without sanding away everything that made them unusual.
Zhong Kui gives Game Science an opportunity to go even further.
The legendary Zhong Kui is traditionally associated with ghosts and the capture of evil spirits, which opens the door to a considerably darker corner of Chinese folklore.
Judging by these 15 minutes, Game Science intends to walk straight through it.
It looks ridiculously good — but keep expectations under control
Yes, the visuals are impressive.
Very impressive.
Lighting cuts through fog and smoke, clothing and character models are packed with detail, and some of the larger encounters already have the kind of presentation you’d normally expect from footage much closer to release.
But there’s a reason we shouldn’t start pixel-counting yet.
Game Science has made it clear that this is work-in-progress footage.
We’re watching a controlled demonstration of an unfinished game. We don’t know how it performs across an entire level, what hardware was used to capture everything we’re seeing or how much the game will change before release.
So enjoy the eye candy.
Just don’t treat it as a performance review.
More importantly, it doesn’t look like Wukong 1.5
This is where Zhong Kui becomes genuinely interesting.
Following Black Myth: Wukong was always going to put Game Science in an awkward position.
Change too much and you risk losing what made the first game successful.
Change too little and Black Myth becomes predictable after only two games.
The studio appears to be choosing the more difficult option.
Instead of immediately continuing Wukong’s story, Game Science is using another figure from Chinese mythology and building new gameplay around him.
That tells us something about what Black Myth could eventually become.
Not one character.
Not one continuing story.
But a collection of action RPGs exploring different legends, characters and corners of Chinese mythology.
If that’s really the plan, Zhong Kui is much more important than simply being “the game after Wukong.”
It needs to prove the name Black Myth can carry a game on its own.
There are still plenty of questions
Fifteen minutes is enough to make a good first impression.
It isn’t enough to tell us whether the full game works.
We still don’t know how large the world will be, how exploration has evolved, how progression works or whether Game Science has addressed some of Wukong’s weaker areas.
And then there’s the obvious question:
When can we actually play it?
There is currently no confirmed release date.
Game Science still describes Zhong Kui as being in development, so despite how polished this demonstration can look, it’s probably best not to start clearing your calendar yet.
The Ludavio Perspective
Game Science didn’t need to convince us that it could make another beautiful game.
We already knew that.
What we needed to see was a reason for Black Myth: Zhong Kui to exist alongside Wukong.
These 15 minutes finally provide one.
The sword combat has its own identity. The darker supernatural setting fits Zhong Kui perfectly. And the decision to move away from Wukong rather than immediately cashing in on his popularity is arguably the most exciting choice Game Science could have made.
There is far too much we haven’t seen to start calling it a masterpiece.
But there is enough here to say something else:
Black Myth might be much bigger than Wukong.
LUDAVIO — The Player’s Perspective.
Watch the gameplay here: