Black Myth: Wukong—How This Chinese Monkey King Made Even Jaded ABC Gamers Sweat

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If you told my parents that a Chinese game would almost sweep Game of the Year at the same time their kid is still getting called “fob” in solo queue, they’d finally believe gaming isn’t just a waste of electricity. But here we are—Black Myth: Wukong didn’t just put up a fight; it made Western devs, and honestly, a whole Reddit worth of clowns, have to actually Google what “Sun Wukong” is. That’s how hard Game Science, a ragtag crew of ex-Tencent pokgai, stomped the field by mixing Journey to the West with full-on Soulslike banger action—and taught everyone in games a lesson about dreaming big and grinding even harder. Let’s give it up for our new sponsor for today:

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Game Science: The Real OP UnderDogs

So here’s the level grind: Game Science started as a literal pokgai crew—ex-corporate, no income, selling their homes, surviving on cup noodles and, no joke, Daoist willpower. Led by Feng Ji (the original “tryhard monkey king”), these dudes saw the Steam charts, realized Chinese players finally spending their parents’ money on non-mobile gacha, and went full-send: make a real AAA banger, no corners cut, for PC and console. First few trailers? Wild. Millions of views, global hype, and suddenly, everyone thinks China is about to export something besides TikTok spyware and bubble tea toppings.

Why Wukong Is Sweatier Than Your CS:GO Queue

Now, if you played, you know—this ain’t just a reskinned Sekiro. Black Myth: Wukong slammed with:

• Unreal Engine 5 eye-candy: Makes your RTX card actually worth 2 months of Uber shifts.

• Real Chinese culture: From shifu monk bosses to scenery straight outta Grandma’s Chinese soap operas (except now there’s particle effects).

• No scummy launch microtransactions: Full game = full game. Broke gamers rejoice.

• Balanced for sweats AND casuals: No gatekeeping unless you’re allergic to dodging.

• Global-ready: Proper English dubs/subs, so even my white friends can finally stop calling him “the Monkey Guy from League.”

Massive W: What the Industry Should Actually Learn

• Game Designers: If seven dudes in a rented apartment can nail AAA, what’s your excuse? Don’t just copy Zelda, blend real heritage and modern mechanics. Crunch sucks, but working on what you love with your people apparently wins.

• Game Marketers: Hype local, ship global. Leverage memes, trailers, and keep your game in the news cycle. Show your team eating cup noodles if you have to. Lean in to real stories—people respect struggle.

• Gamers & Influencers: Stop clowning on Chinese devs, play the damn game, and if it slaps, boost it. Some people only played “Journey to the West” through League or Fortnite skins—time to educate yourself and your community.

Wukong Proved: Don’t Sleep on Asian Gamers

This ain’t just fanboy hype—the receipts are there. Steam best-seller, 20 million units in one month, critical darlings, and it made all those big Western franchise sequels look lazy. Plus, thanks to Wukong, every Asian parent now has ammo to brag about “Chinese technology” when your controller bill comes in.

So, what’s the move? Subscribe to our PokgaiGamer YouTube channel—when this monkey king drops DLC, we’ll be there, dying for your entertainment (and for justice for all us juk sings who never got to be Monkey King in the school play). Smash that bell, follow our socials, and let’s build the sweatiest, most toxic, wok-pilled gaming crew North American cantonese nerds have ever seen.

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You want the same takes as IGN? Go buy more Lucky Cats.

See you in the queue, pokgais.