# Phantom Blade Zero vs Black Myth: Wukong

As of 29 October 2026, 81% of 13,204 player reviews recommend Phantom Blade Zero, and 96% of 883,135 recommend Black Myth: Wukong.

> Phantom Blade Zero’s players compare it with Black Myth: Wukong as often as with Sekiro. They find it faster and more cinematic, and they split over which is the better game.

## In short

Both are big Chinese action games built on dodges, combos and long runs of bosses, and players of each praise the art. Black Myth: Wukong is the larger game, at 30 to 60 hours for a first run, with 81 bosses and mini-bosses that players find demanding and sometimes unfair, while invisible walls and a story that assumes you know Journey to the West draw its complaints. Phantom Blade Zero is faster and more cinematic, with more than 30 weapons that each fight differently, and many of its players find it easy. Wukong suits players who want a long boss marathon, and Phantom Blade Zero those who want kung fu spectacle without a steep challenge.

## At a glance

| | Phantom Blade Zero | Wukong |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Released | 28 October 2026 | 19 August 2024 |
| Price at launch | $59.99 | $59.99 |
| Developer | S-GAME Studio | Game Science |
| Publisher | S-GAME Publishing | Game Science |
| Players recommend it | 81% of 13,204 reviews | 96% of 883,135 reviews |
| Our reading | 80 most helpful and 40 latest reviews, read 29 October 2026 | 80 most helpful and 40 latest reviews, read 29 October 2026 |

## What players praise

### Phantom Blade Zero

- **The fights look like a martial arts film.** Fast, fluid combos, parries that flow into counters and boss attacks with their own animations make every fight a show.
- **Bosses and weapons keep it fresh.** Players praise bosses that make them adapt and a wide range of weapons, each with its own moves.
- **Many PCs run it smoothly.** Players report steady frame rates from older cards such as the RTX 2060 up to high-end machines.

### Black Myth: Wukong

- **The bosses are the main event.** Players count 81 bosses and mini-bosses, and most have movesets of their own.
- **The combat rewards skill.** Dodges, staff stances, spells and transformations give players many ways to fight.
- **It looks stunning.** Environments, creatures and the animated pieces that close each chapter draw constant praise.

## What players criticise

### Phantom Blade Zero

- **Many find it too easy.** Long combos seem to play themselves and parries come easily, and some find little risk even on Hellwalker, the harder mode.
- **Shader compilation takes a long time.** The first launch spends 20 minutes or more compiling shaders for several players, and some had to sit through it twice.
- **Some PCs hit glitches and crashes.** Players report stutter, broken sky and hair textures and crashes, and several turn off ray tracing to stop light flickering.

### Black Myth: Wukong

- **Invisible walls fence in the world.** Paths that look open are blocked, and there was no map until a later update.
- **The story assumes you know the novel.** Players who don’t know Journey to the West find the plot vague.
- **Some boss attacks feel unfair.** Attacks that can’t be interrupted and inconsistent dodge timing frustrate players.

## Which to pick

- Pick Phantom Blade Zero if you want faster, more cinematic fights and a gentler challenge than Wukong’s. https://creativecult.digital/games/phantom-blade-zero
- Pick Wukong if you want a long action game packed with demanding bosses and don’t mind finding your own way. https://creativecult.digital/games/black-myth-wukong

## Questions

### Is Phantom Blade Zero like Black Myth: Wukong?

In many ways. Players describe it as a faster, more cinematic Wukong, with the same focus on dodges, combos and bosses. Wukong is the bigger game, and several players find its graphics stronger.

### Is Phantom Blade Zero better than Black Myth: Wukong?

Players split, and Wukong has the higher figure after two years of reviews. As of 29 October 2026, 81% of Phantom Blade Zero’s 13,204 reviews recommend it and 96% of Wukong’s 883,135. Some of Phantom Blade Zero’s players already prefer it, and others find it shallower than Wukong.

### Which is harder, Phantom Blade Zero or Black Myth: Wukong?

Players describe Wukong’s bosses as the sterner test, with attacks they can’t interrupt and dodge timing that feels inconsistent. Many find Phantom Blade Zero easy, some even on Hellwalker, the hardest mode it lets you start on.

### Which runs better on PC, Phantom Blade Zero or Black Myth: Wukong?

By players’ accounts, each runs well on many PCs and stutters on some. Phantom Blade Zero opens with a long shader compilation, and its players say path tracing runs better than they expected.

### Which had more players at launch, Phantom Blade Zero or Black Myth: Wukong?

Wukong, by far. It peaked at 2,415,714 players at once, the second-highest on SteamDB’s all-time chart, and Phantom Blade Zero at 723,876 on its launch day, 29 October 2026, 15th on the same chart.

### How much are Phantom Blade Zero and Black Myth: Wukong?

Both cost $59.99, with Digital Deluxe Editions at $69.99. Wukong came out on 19 August 2024 and Phantom Blade Zero on 28 October 2026.

## Sources

182. Steam: Phantom Blade Zero, store page and user reviews: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4115450/
212. Steam: Black Myth: Wukong, store page and user reviews: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2358720/
215. SteamDB: Steam charts sorted by all-time peak: https://steamdb.info/charts/?sort=peak

Page: https://creativecult.digital/compare/phantom-blade-zero-vs-black-myth-wukong