It is a well-known trope that whenever a new action game is revealed that gets people excited, there is a tendency to also assume it’s a Soulslike game. It happened with both Stellar Blade and even Armored Core 6 earlier this year. The latest victim is Black Myth: Wukong.
Search for the game online and you’ll find dozens of articles, Reddit threads, and game forum topics asking whether or not Black Myth: Wukong is a Soulslike, as well as follow-ups clarifying that, actually, no, Black Myth: Wukong isn’t a Soulslike game after all. I want to go on record and say once and for all that Black Myth: Wukong is not a Soulslike. However, it is a great character action game that draws inspiration from Dark Souls, alongside many other great action games including God of War and Bayonetta.
What Makes a Soulslike? What people mean by Soulslike can vary slightly (or sometimes significantly), but oftentimes they mean games with a risk-reward element, like losing Souls, XP, or resources upon death, difficult bosses, melee-focused combat, and limited healing. Dark Souls and Elden Ring creator Hidetaka Miyazaki actually defined the genre for IGN in an interview , calling them “Those dark fantasy third-person action games with a higher focus on melee combat and sense of accomplishment.” Personally, I think the hallmarks of a true Soulslike games are defined by difficult boss fights, a leveling system dependent on defeating enemies — hence their need to respawn after each checkpoint.