Summary
Black Myth: Wukonghas captured gamers' attention since its reveal four years ago. All the released footage looked impressive, which led some players to doubt whether the actual game could live up to the hype. Despite being the debut title from Chinese developer Game Science,Black Myth: Wukongdelivered exactly as promised. Players are impressed with standout features such astop-notch graphics powered by Unreal Engine 5,fast-paced and varied combat, and well-crafted boss fights with little to no repetition.
However, it’s clear thatBlack Myth: Wukongisn’t without its flaws, as certain aspects could have been executed better. Many players have already voiced their biggest concerns with this new action-RPG. With just a few minor tweaks and additions, the overall experience could be significantly improved. From the absence of a mini-map to the abundance of invisible walls that disrupt immersion, here are some issues that need to be addressed.
1Mini-Map
Some Areas Are Too Easy To Get Lost In
Unlike many action-RPGs or soulslikes,Black Myth: Wukongfeatures no map at all, leaving players to explore its vast areas entirely on their own. While it’s clear that the developers aimed to encourage a sense of exploration without players relying on an artificial mini-map,this approach is a double-edged sworddue to the game’s level design. Early areas might feel relatively easy to navigate due to their streamlined nature, but by Chapter 2 — and especially in Chapter 3 — levels become far more expansive and layered, with numerous interconnected pathways and verticality. What makes this even more challenging is thatBlack Myth: Wukong’s environments tend to blend together, lacking distinct landmarks to aid in navigation.
As a result, requests for the addition of a mini-map have become prevalent within the community. With numeroushidden secrets, optional bosses, treasure chests, and collectiblesscattered across vast areas, the lack of any tracking system can frustrate players, especially when they’re searching for amissing meditation point. While fans have already created their ownexternal interactive mapfor the game, it would be ideal if the developers addressed this oversight in future updates.
2Clarity For Exploration
Invisible Walls Make Exploration Inconsistent
Another issue that hampers exploration inBlack Myth: Wukongisthe abundance of invisible walls, which break immersion and make navigating the game world even more difficult without a map. Frequently, players find themselves unable to progress despite the environment appearing passable. Conversely, some players might dismiss certain pathways, assuming they lead nowhere, only to miss out on hidden treasure chests or secret areas. This inconsistency makes exploration inBlack Myth: Wukongoccasionally feel lackluster, leading players to wonder how much better the experience could have been.
While it’s unrealistic to expect the removal of all invisible walls or significant changes to the environment’s design in a game as large asBlack Myth: Wukong, a mini-map that highlights actual routes and dead ends could provide a simple solution. This would ease exploration, especially for completionists.
3Quest Log
No Need To Indulge In A Soulslike’s Most Divisive Feature
Black Myth: Wukongisn’t a true soulslike game, but rather an action-RPG that borrows several familiar elements. However, sometimes this borrowing doesn’t fully work. FromSoftware’s games are known for their cryptic NPC quests that are almost impossible to decipher without a guide. Many games that follow the soulslike formula have adopted a similar approach,Black Myth: Wukongincluded. Although there aren’t too many side quests in the game, the ones that existare definitely worth completing, as they offer valuable rewards, including new spells.
A simple quest tracker or log to keep track of active side quests would be a helpful addition toBlack Myth: Wukong. It would make it easier to follow up on any NPCs worth revisiting and ensure that players don’t miss out on crucial rewards. There’s really no reason for the game not to have one.
4Trading With More Depth
No Options To Sell Unwanted Items Or Resources
The trading system inBlack Myth: Wukongalso could use some improvements that wouldn’t be difficult to implement. There are several NPC merchants in the game who sell useful resources, upgrades, and key items, with their inventories expanding as the game progresses. Additionally, the in-game store at Shrines (similar to bonfires) offers specific goods tied to the chapter area or secret locations, which makes shopping unnecessarily complicated. Moreover, players are only able to sell gold pieces or treasure statues to merchants, and nothing else.
Given the abundance of consumables and gathered resources, everyBlack Myth: Wukongplayer will have items they’d like to sell in exchange for Will (the in-game currency) to upgrade their gear or Cultivate Spirits. However, this option is currently absent. With just a few tweaks, more depth and convenience could be added to this system, allowing players to better manage their resources and enjoy a more flexible trading experience.
5Respec For Spirits
Most RPG Systems Are Flexible, Except For Spirits
Black Myth: Wukongfeatures excellent character progression, offeringseveral distinct skill treesfor staff stances, various spells and transformations, celestial medicine passive buffs, and more. What’s even better is that each of these systems is highly flexible, allowing for unlimited respecs with little to no penalty whenever players want to try something new. However, for some reason, this flexibility doesn’t extend to the Spirit Cultivation system. Onceplayers upgrade certain Spirits(and there are many), they cannot reclaim the resources spent to invest in newer options.
Whileplayers can always farm more Willand Blood of the Iron Bull from enemies, the ability to freely respec Cultivated Spirits — even if it only returns part of the investment — would be a valuable addition. It would encourage more experimentation with different Spirits and make this aspect of the game more dynamic and engaging.
