How Hard Is Black Myth: Wukong Compared to Elden Ring & Other Soulslikes?

The newest Soulslike game on the market is Black Myth: Wukong, an adventure game set against the backdrop of Chinese mythology. While Black Myth: Wukong does share many qualities with Elden Ring and other games like it, can you expect the same level of difficulty?

How Hard Is Black Myth: Wukong?

Every Soulslike game is different in terms of difficulty. While the core gameplay loop of Soulslikes remains relatively the same no matter the title, extra gameplay elements usually determine how difficult the game is. For example, Elden Ring has a plethora of summons, which can make any boss fight 10 times easier to get past. It also has an online element that allows other players to come and help you beat a boss fight.

To compare, a game like Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, doesn’t feature many other gameplay elements aside from the combat itself. While this means you can eventually get past a boss once you master its attacks and movements, it can take far longer to do so since there’s nothing else helping you out.

When it comes to Black Myth: Wukong, the difficulty can be roughly compared to Elden Ring, but only in boss fights. The regular enemies in Wukong are far easier to defeat than they are in Elden Ring, as most of them only take a few light attacks to kill. Wukong also features the same unforgiving save system found in Elden Ring and other Soulslikes, which always makes gameplay harder.

The early game of Wukong features main story bosses who are considerably easier to defeat than the story bosses in Elden Ring. The early bosses in Wukong can be compared to Elden Ring’s dungeon bosses. However, as Wukong ramps up, near the end of Chapter 2, the story bosses become increasingly more difficult to defeat. Many of the spells you use earlier in the game to get past bosses become obsolete, and you have to rely more on sheer combat and strategy. The bosses from Chapter 3 and on in Wukong might not be as difficult as a boss like Malenia in Elden Ring, but they are formidable in their own right.

Wukong does keep giving you additional spells and transformations to help with bossing, but they become far less useful as you progress. Like in Elden Ring, you can increase your maximum health by upgrading the Gourd, and you can unlock a variety of Sparks (skills) to make your monkey stronger. But, like in every other Soulslike, you won’t be able to cheese your way through the entire game in Wukong. You have to commit to mastering the combat and gameplay in order to see the end credits roll. The bosses and regular enemies are slightly easier than they are in Elden Ring, but they aren’t to be taken lightly, especially after Chapter 2.

And that’s how hard Black Myth: Wukong is. If you’re still thinking about picking up the game, make sure to check out our review of the game.

Black Myth: Wukong is available now on PC and PlayStation 5.