Black Myth: Zhong Kui's 15-Minute Gameplay, Explained

Published October 21, 2026 · Black Myth: Zhong Kui · 7 min read

On August 20, 2026, the second anniversary of Black Myth: Wukong, Game Science released a 15-minute gameplay demo of Black Myth: Zhong Kui instead of the Wukong DLC many fans expected. The video, about 952 seconds long and recorded in 21:9 from an early build, was published simultaneously on Bilibili, Weibo, YouTube and the official site. It ended with no release date.

Two months later, it remains the most concrete look at Game Science's next game. Here is what the demo actually showed — and what it did not.

Combat: from staff to sword

The white-robed protagonist fights with a single-handed sword, a deliberate break from Wukong's staff. The core is parry and deflect rather than dodge-first combat; the team describes the rhythm as "receiving, neutralizing and releasing" an opponent's force.

Sword momentum (剑势) builds as you attack and defend, then fuels multiple sword arts. The demo UI shows four skill slots.
Elemental enchantments: the protagonist draws fire and lightning from the environment onto the blade.
Talismans: fire talismans for area burn, lightning talismans for interruption, and binding talismans for control.
Execution moves finish staggered enemies.

Summons and possession

The demo shows ghost underlings summoned to fight alongside the protagonist. More unusually, the player can briefly possess a summoned character and control it with a different moveset. Game Science has not officially named the system; "five ghosts" and "役鬼" are media and community labels.

The boss: Great Clam Lord (大蚌真君)

The demo's first formally named boss is Great Clam Lord (大蚌真君), a hulking figure carrying two giant clam shells.

Breaking one shell triggers a second phase with water-mist illusions and wide-area attacks.
The full fight runs about four minutes.
Some early reports misheard the name as "Great Roc" (大鹏真君). The on-screen health bar reads 大蚌真君 — "clam", not "roc".

Setting and cast

The demo opens on a deserted coastal island. The protagonist and a white-haired old man build a raft before a tsunami hits. The old man's face and motion capture are performed by Li Guangfu (李光复), a National First-Class actor; in the story he eventually becomes a yellow talisman that points the way.

The footage also hints at underwater exploration, a drowned-woman side story and lantern-lit night woods. A lantern marked with the character "勢" (force, momentum) is one of several visual links to the game's power system.

How early is it?

Art director Yang Qi said the video contains only "one test map and a few unfinished story slices." The protagonist is silent because a voice actor has not been cast. The team is deliberately using overcast lighting, rebuilding scene collision to eliminate "invisible walls", and restraining the combat camera — all responses to criticisms of Wukong.

Producer Feng Ji published a separate post on the studio's "ten working principles" and joked that he could not spoil the story because "there is no story yet."

Reception by the numbers

Bilibili: No. 1 on the site's trending list within 10 minutes; peak concurrent viewers around 95,000–100,000; 1 million views in under an hour, 8.5 million by August 21, and 10 million by August 22, with about 829,000 likes.
YouTube: 1.9 million views and 11,000 comments in 24 hours, later passing 2 million.
Weibo: the topic passed 130 million reads.
Cross-platform: including re-uploads and reactions, reported views passed 50 million in the first days.
Geoff Keighley shared it on X, where the post passed 2.08 million views.

What has happened since

August 10: Yang Qi said the team will deliberately avoid AI-generated content in design and asset production, insisting on handcrafted work.
September 25: Zhong Kui was nominated for Most Wanted Game at the 2026 Golden Joystick Awards. Voting closes October 23; the ceremony is in London on November 11.
October 19: Yang Qi posted a clay sculpture that fans linked to The Boy and the Heron, sparking a theory that the protagonist is Zhong Kui's friend Du Ping. Game Science has not responded.
October 21: 8082Audio founder Li Jiaqi said the score is still being polished; Feng Ji described it as feeling like "the exhaustion of middle age" — more relaxed and street-level than Wukong.

Release date: still none

Game Science's official FAQ says even Feng Ji "doesn't know" yet. The game is a premium single-player action RPG for PC and mainstream consoles, not a Wukong DLC or direct sequel. The frequently cited 2028 window is media and community speculation, not an official date.

Black Myth: Zhong Kui's 15-Minute Gameplay, Explained ​

Combat: from staff to sword ​

Summons and possession ​

The boss: Great Clam Lord (大蚌真君) ​

Setting and cast ​

How early is it? ​

Reception by the numbers ​

What has happened since ​

Release date: still none ​

Sources ​