BEIJING (Reuters) -Game Science, backed by Chinese tech giant Tencent, surprised games enthusiasts on Wednesday by releasing a trailer for a follow-up to last year’s smash hit “Black Myth: Wukong”.
The new action role-playing game, “Black Myth: Zhong Kui”, is the second entry in the “Black Myth” series, inspired by a mythical ghost-catching figure in ancient Chinese folklore, Game Science said.
The less than two-minute trailer features Zhong Kui, an imposing red-bearded character, riding a majestic tiger with two demons carrying a giant sword.
The video has so far racked up over nine million clicks on Bilibili, a Chinese online video sharing website. It was simultaneously debuted during Gamescom’s Opening Night Live showcase in Germany’s Cologne, where highly-anticipated upcoming gaming titles were presented.
Game Science did not say when it would launch the game and no in-game footage was made available as the project is still in early development, the company said on X.
Fans voiced excitement on Chinese social media following the success of “Black Myth: Wukong”, which depicted the magical monkey king from the Ming Dynasty epic “Journey to the West”.
Some, however, were perplexed why the developer chose to embark on a new project while many are still waiting for new downloadable content (DLC) for the Wukong game.
Game Science founder Feng Ji responded on Weibo: “A DLC would certainly be a good option, but at this moment, what we really want is to create a brand-new Black Myth game – with new heroes, new gameplay, new visuals, new technology and a new story.”
Game Science revealed the first gameplay footage of “Black Myth: Wukong” exactly five years ago, attracting millions of views and thrusting the then little-known studio into the limelight. Wukong was officially released on August 20, 2024.
The game topped Steam’s most-played games chart with 1.4 million concurrent player hours after its release and went on to sell millions of copies.
Wukong has been widely lauded as China’s first AAA game – projects with high development costs, long production cycles and immense investment. It has ignited strong interest in more such games from China and been applauded by Beijing as a way of promoting Chinese culture.
(Reporting by Shi Bu, Ethan Wang and Brenda Goh. Editing by Mark Potter)
