Black Myth Wukong has taken the gaming community by storm, becoming the game with the second-highest peak player count on Steam, just behind PUBG. Furthermore, the game crossed Elden Ring’s peak player on its first release day, so the comparisons between both games became inevitable. Elden Ring is a masterpiece in video game history, often dubbed the best game of all time, and crossing its peak player count on Steam while being a soulslike is no small matter.
As someone who has finished both games, I am taking the mantle of comparing both titles. Although I have tried to be unbiased, articles like these will always come down to personal preferences. So keeping that in mind, here is a complete comparison between Black Myth Wukong and Elden Ring to find out which one is better.
Spoiler Alert: This article may contain spoilers for both Elden Ring and Black Myth Wukong.
Lore and Storytelling
Although it pains me to admit it, as I am a massive FromSoftware Lore fan, but Black Myth Wukong completely wipes the floor in this aspect. Black Myth Wukong’s storytelling is a masterpiece, perfectly connecting the story with Chinese mythology with outstanding cinematic visuals. The side characters also have a lot more personality compared to Elden Ring, with Zhu Bajie becoming one of my favorite side characters of all time. The story of Black Myth Wukong is the centerpiece of the game and not an afterthought.
Compared to that, you have to work hard to get even half of the lore in Elden Ring. From reading item descriptions to tirelessly analyzing NPC dialogues, and still coming to the wrong conclusions! Don’t get me wrong, I love spending countless hours on FromSoftware lore videos.
However, for most casual players the story in Elden Ring is mostly an after-thought. And when it comes to quality, even George R.R. Martin’s lore must bow down to one of the best pieces of Eastern Literature, when implemented correctly like in Black Myth Wukong.
Winner: Black Myth Wukong
Combat: Mechanics and Build Variety
Black Myth Wukong’s combat is amazing and better than most other games I have played. However, it still doesn’t provide the combat experience of Elden Ring. The vast number of possible builds available in Elden Ring completely shames most Action Combat games out there.
When it comes to the fluidity of combat and responsiveness, I still think Elden wins over Black Myth Wukong, although not by a big margin. The combat in Black Myth: Wukong gives a lot more importance to visual cues and timing, instead of emphasizing maneuvering like in Elden Ring.
For example – I can dodge a large number of attacks in Elden Ring by simply maneuvering my character and using the environment without dodging. Compared to that, you must dodge the attacks in Black Myth Wukong by timing it correctly, or else it would kind of snap into you. Yes, distancing still works in Black Myth Wukong, but the fluidity is still not nearly as good as in Elden Ring. For these reasons, the ticket goes to Elden Ring.
Winner: Elden Ring
Exploration: Hidden Secrets, Quests, Map Size
When it comes to exploration, Elden Ring is the clear winner. My first playthrough of Elden Ring remains the best gaming experience of my life as a gamer, and that is due to its exploration. Elden Ring doesn’t just have a massive overworld but the way it reveals the open world to the players is truly special. The map continuously grows bigger as the players progress, making it highly satisfying to find entirely new areas, like the city of Nokron from Siofra River Well.
Compared to that, Black Myth Wukong has a more linear experience. But that doesn’t mean the exploration here too. Even with a linear experience, the game puts bosses in every nook and cranny of each chapter, making exploration a treat.
The questlines in Black Myth Wukong are much better than Elden Ring, as quest NPCs give clear instructions and don’t really hold hands. Nonetheless, Elden Ring still has a better exploration than Black Myth Wukong, just by the sheer size of the game.
Winner: Elden Ring
Graphics: Visuals and Cinematics
When it comes to visuals, graphics fidelity, and cinematics, Black Myth: Wukong again completely wipes the floor, even though Elden Ring is one of the most visually appealing games out there. Black Myth: Wukong is the best-looking game I have played in years, even better looking than Ghost of Tsushima.
The cinematics between the chapters perfectly conclude the ending chapter and set the tone for the next one. The Chapter 5 ending cinematic is a masterpiece in itself, perfectly showcasing the gravity of the situation.
This amazing experience carries forward with the countless cinematics during boss fights that continuously expand on the game’s story, showcasing the dynamic between Wukong and the enemies.
I have taken over 900 screenshots in just 50 hours of playing the game, completing every boss fight and side quest. Why is this important? Because I don’t normally take game captures at all.
Winner: Black Myth Wukong
Difficulty: Which Game Makes You Cry More
This was the hardest decision to make while comparing both Elden Ring and Black Myth Wukong. When it comes to difficulty, we must look at it from every angle and not just from the angle of harder boss fights, although that still makes a big chunk of the argument. Also, the difficulty is always a subjective matter, so I can only weigh in on this matter based on my gameplay experience of finishing both games.
Black Myth: Wukong has a higher base skill level requirement, as the game has very few ways to cheese a boss fight, unlike Elden Ring. You need to learn to dodge attacks and enemy mechanics as a standard in Black Myth Wukong. This is because you cannot brute force your way through with an overpowered build.
Although there are ways to make boss fights easier in the game, there is no build that can literally one-shot a boss, which is very much possible in Elden Ring.
However, as an Elden Ring player, I have always considered summons or overpowered builds as an easy mode to appeal to a larger audience, and yes there is nothing wrong with using them. Still, the fact that many players have to use such builds instead of simply playing the game the way they progress is because Elden Ring is simply that much harder.
Every boss in Elden Ring is a grade above difficulty compared to Black Myth Wukong. Only a handful of Wukong’s bosses can stand at the same level as Elden Ring.
Adding to that, you have a world of where every random enemy terrorizes you more than bosses in the game. Fall damage, traps, random gank spots, poison and scarlet rot swamps, and a thousand other things. Elden Ring is filled with a thousand different things that will send you into despair without even entering a single boss fight. Compared to that, Black Myth: Wukong only has the Pagoda Realm as an environmentally challenging map. As expected, Elden Ring is harder.
Winner: Elden Ring
Boss Fights: Unforgettable Moments
Now that we have discussed the difficulty, let’s talk about the main highlight of both games — Epic Boss Fights. This was another hard decision to make as I cannot simply judge bosses based on difficulty. Instead, I also have to judge them based on fight choreography, music, cinematics, and even lore around the bosses that tie them to the story. To make it simpler, the main argument is which game has more memorable boss fights.
Black Myth: Wukong has the biggest variety of unique bosses out of any game I have played. Compared to that, Elden Ring has multiple re-skinned bosses which don’t feel good. However, when it comes to memorable fights and bosses, only a handful out of around 100 bosses from Black Myth Wukong comes to mind.
Conversely, almost every Elden Ring boss has left a massive impression on me. Not only remember all their moves but also their names and locations. Even something as simple as the first encountered Ulcerated Tree Spirit is a memorable fight in the Elden Ring.
But do note that the best boss fights in Black Myth Wukong is definitely at the level of best bosses in Elden Ring. Fighting Erlang and The Great Sage’s Broken Shell was equal to fighting Starscourge Radahn or Malenia, both in terms of difficulty and fight execution.
Winner: Elden Ring
Accessibility: Quality of Life Features
Black Myth: Wukong easily wins this comparison with Elden Ring. The game is one of the most user-friendly soulslike if you can even call it that, having zero penalty for dying, allowing reallocating skill points at any moment, and letting players pause the game.
These might look like simple options for a game, but they mean a lot for a soulslike player. Elden Ring is the most accessible among the games FromSoftware has produced, with Armored Core 6 being a close competitor.
The best part about Black Myth Wukong is that you can return to previous chapters and finish side-quests and bosses after defeating the main chapter boss. Although there are a few bosses that can become inaccessible after certain events, the number of locked bosses is not even close to Elden Ring, where you can only complete certain quests in each playthrough.
Winner: Black Myth Wukong
Black Myth: Wukong vs Elden Ring: Who Wins?
And with that, we come to the end. In my opinion, both Elden Ring and Black Myth Wukong are 10/10 games. As such, a winner will always come down to personal preference. Still, my first experience of Elden Ring as a whole has remained unparalleled to every other game I have played so far. Nonetheless, Black Myth Wukong comes the closest to it.
For me, Elden Ring is still the better game with more memorable bosses, higher difficulty, and better exploration, while Black Myth Wukong showed me that games of Elden Ring’s quality can be created by developers other than FromSoftware.
Black Myth: Wukong has created its own identity in the soulslike genre, showing that there is a ton of opportunity when it comes to mixing traditional soulslike systems with traditional Action-Adventure systems, while also tapping into Eastern Mythologies. But don’t let my opinion cloud yours, tell us which game you liked more in the comments below and why.
