Black Myth: Wukong is based on the classical Chinese novel Journey to the West, and in many ways, the game does a great job translating memorable characters and concepts from the novel. Although it takes place centuries later, Black Myth: Wukong includes plenty of surviving figures from the original story, many of whom the Destined One has to defeat to make it to the finish line. The way that the Destined One goes about vanquishing foes is fairly different from how the original Monkey King Sun Wukong did it, however, and typically a lot more methodical.

In Journey to the West, Sun Wukong's arc is more about learning temperance than it is about gaining power, as he becomes effectively invincible fairly early in the book. He's more than capable of squashing plenty of demons with a single blow of his staff, and many of the journey's obstacles rely on protecting his fellow companions or evading tricky, unusual situations. The slow power creep of Black Myth: Wukong leaves the Destined One to deal chip damage to many bosses, turning it into more of an underdog story with a soulslike penchant for punishment.

New Game Plus Makes The Destined One Hit Harder

No More Chip Damage In Boss Fights

Beating Black Myth: Wukong grants access to a New Game Plus mode called New Cycle, and jumping back into the modified experience brings the feel of combat much closer in line with Journey to the West. Like a typical New Game Plus mode, New Cycle lets the Destined One maintain the equipment, levels, transformations, and more acquired across the course of the playthrough. In retaliation, bosses hit harder, so the intent isn't to suddenly turn the game into a piece of cake.

Unlike some tough New Game Plus modes, however, New Cycle definitely makes the Destined One feel way more powerful than before. Bosses can be taken out in a fraction of the time that would be necessary to dispatch them in a standard playthrough, representing something closer to the proper strength of Sun Wukong. This comparison is helped by having Wukong's armor and staff, which the Destined One can keep after acquiring them in Chapter Six of the original playthrough.

Black Myth: Wukong's Easy New Game Plus Has Perks

No More Slow And Steady

Speeding through a replay of Black Myth: Wukong isn't going to appeal to everyone, but for Journey to the West fans craving Sun Wukong's proper strength, it could be a particularly exciting power fantasy. The increased efficiency also makes it easy to jump back in and seek out secret areas and bosses that were missed the first time through without having to commit to quite as long of an experience. Those still seeking to intensify the challenge can always downgrade to underpowered equipment, and respeccing even makes it possible to pull points back out of skills.

Repeated New Cycles continue to ratchet up the enemy difficulty without maintaining the same pace for the Destined One's scaling, so getting deep into the loop can bring things back around to being extremely tough.

For those who haven't read Journey to the West (or experienced the story in any of its other adapted forms), checking out the original text before embarking on New Cycle could be worthwhile. Although experiencing the full story and meeting every foe who appears in the game requires reading a four-volume translation, some abridged alternatives still offer highlights like the original encounters with the Bull King's family or Wukong's showdown with Erlang Shen. Although the in-game Journal does provide plenty of interesting lore, it tends to tell its own stories rather than recounting the original narrative.

Aside from starting a New Cycle, Black Myth: Wukong doesn't have any difficulty options, so getting to play a more efficient version of the game is something of a reward for initially conquering its mostly well-honed trials. Otherwise, the best option is probably to grind things out, as leveling the Destined One early could make him hit a good bit harder without having access to any prime equipment. The challenges of Black Myth: Wukong are worth it, but letting the Destined One truly go to town with his staff brings things closer to the Journey to the West experience.