Black Myth Wukong vs God of War: Similarities and differences reviewed

The recent release of Black Myth Wukong has taken the gaming world by storm, and immediate comparisons are being drawn to other games. Though often compared to soul-like games, this game has also drawn parallels to Santa Monica Studios' God of War franchise.

While there are many similarities between the two games, there are a few differences as well. In this article, we delve into each point and inspect aspects where these games are similar as well as different from one another.

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Similarities between God of War and Black Myth Wukong

Combat style

One might notice that the combat styles of God of War and Black Myth Wukong are similar. Unlike Souls-likes' more technical combat style, both games mentioned here have a combat system that rewards the player for their timing and continuous attacks.

The combat styles of both games have some similarities (Image via GameScience)

Cinematic attacks feature heavily in both games, along with unique player weapons. In God Of War, as Kratos can wield the Leviathan Axe and summon it at any time. On the other hand, Sun Wukong's weapon of choice is a staff, which he is equipped with at the start of the game. Through the story's progression, more powerful staffs can be unlocked and used.

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Premise

Both games have a similar premise, which is to take the player to an ancient era and fight mythical beasts. Both the main characters are mythical personas who battle enemies of incredible strength and set out to protect those close to them.

Kratos and Atreus on their journey across the realms (Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment)

In Kratos' case, he seeks to protect his family, especially his son, with whom he is on a journey to the highest point of all nine realms. On the other hand, Sun Wukong sets out to take revenge against those who have disrespected him and his clan and destroyed the place he could call home.

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Boss Battles

Both games have prominent heavily featured boss battles. God of War has players battle enemies across all the realms they follow, though the battles with strong opponents such as the Ice Ancient, Mattugr Helson, and Baldur create quite a cinematic experience.

Wukong perched, observing his surroundings (Image via GameScience)

Similarly, Black Myth Wukong builds its enemies from ancient Chinese mythology, which include Kang-Lin-Joong, Violet Spider, and Duskveil. Just like God of War, Wukong's boss fights are highly cinematic, with in-fight cutscenes also featured across both games.

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Differences between God of War and Black Myth Wukong

Availability

Black Myth Wukong was released globally for Windows PC, PlayStation, and Xbox in 2024. On the other hand, God Of War was exclusively released on the PS4 system in 2018. Unlike other publishers, Sony has historically never brought any of its first-party exclusives over to other gaming platforms.

God of War is only available on PlayStation and Windows PC (Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment)

It remained this way for almost four years, until Sony brought the game onto Steam in 2022, making it playable on Windows PCs. Xbox players cannot play God of War on their systems.

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Mythological era

God Of War's story is set in Norse Mythology, with Kratos and Atreus having to traverse multiple realms to get to their destination.

Sun Wukong gearing up to fight an enemy (Image via GameScience)

Black Myth Wukong is set in ancient Chinese folklore. Sun Wukong is seen having to make his way through Ancient China's heartland and in it a variety of climatic settings including forests, snow, deserts, and more. Wukong's story is based on the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West.

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Difficulty settings

Black Myth Wukong, following the trend of many souls-like games, does not offer difficulty-level choices. Players will have to evolve Sun Wukong into a powerful force only by leveling up, which is the only way to make the game's experience easier for the player.

Black Myth Wukong does not offer any difficulty choices to players (Image via GameScience)

God of War has four difficulty levels available to players, making it very accessible to newcomers. These are Give me a Story, Give me a Balanced Experience, Give me a Challenge, and Give me God of War. This allows newer players to approach the game with some ease compared to Wukong.

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Transformational Ability

Neither Kratos nor Atreus can morph themselves into other creatures throughout the game. Sun Wukong, on the other hand, has a unique ability to transform himself into a multitude of unique creatures. The transformations help Sun Wukong become a powerful creature like a twin-blade wolf which can help players defeat enemies easier.

Black Myth Wukong allows players to transform into a variety of creatures (Image via GameScience)

On the other hand, he can become a creature that can be inconspicuous around enemies, in turn avoiding unnecessary battles. An example of this would be the protagonist morphing into a creature as inconspicuous as a cicada to simply fly past the enemy.

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Read more gaming news:

• Black Myth Wukong review
• 5 reasons to play God of War in 2024