Wukong Across Borders: Transmedia Adaptations and Global Perceptions of the Chinese Superhero

This article analyzes Wukong — the protagonist of the Chinese video game Black Myth: Wukong (Game Science, 2024) — and its role in shaping the construction of a Chinese superhero in the international media landscape. Appearing in the 16th-century novel Xi You Ji (or Journey to the West), Sun Wukong (or the Monkey King) was originally a monkey, born from a heavenly stone, who later gained supernatural powers under the guidance of Master Puti. He led a rebellion against the celestial court and was imprisoned by Buddha for five hundred years. After his release, he accompanied the monk Master Tang Sanzang on a journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures in India, overcoming eighty-one challenges, and finally was granted Dou Zhan Sheng Fo (Victorious Fighting Buddha). Since then, Wukong’s story has been adapted from mythological fiction into various media including cartoons, TV dramas, films and video games, gradually shaping Wukong as a superhero-like figure in Chinese artworks. Against this backdrop, Black Myth: Wukong has attracted international attention by becoming the second most-played game in history on Steam, bringing this mythological figure to global audiences. But what is a Chinese superhero, or how do we define one? This article attempts to answer this question using Sun Wukong as an example.

Unlike in the old superhero films where the superheroes go back in time and bring their loved ones back to life (McSweeney, 2020, p.4), new superhero films are those that “could happen in the same world in which we live.” (quoted in McSweeney, 2020, p.4) The change in the content of superhero films signifies a shift in focus: No longer are these films solely about characters with supernatural powers whose stories are distant from the lives of ordinary people, rather, they emphasise that these heroes can act, feel, and even fail just like the audiences watching them. This is to inspire viewers with the notion that they, too, can embody the qualities of a superhero in some way. This approach mirrors the adaptation of myths in films and other transmedia storytelling forms, whether from Greek or Chinese mythology, where deities are portrayed with human-like emotions and sometimes limited magical abilities. This transformation is reminiscent of the Renaissance cultural movement, which emphasised humanism by portraying life and characters realistically and freely expressing human emotions.

Deities serve as perfect prototypes for superheroes for their enchanting looks and magical powers. When adapting these ancient stories, creators sometimes infuse their interpretations, reimagining the characters from a contemporary perspective. Drawing on Claude Lévi-Strauss’s work in Structural Anthropology (1963), Dai (2007, p. 92) argues that ancient Greek mythology, through its narratives, functions to resolve the conflicts deeply embedded in Greek society at that time. Dai further claims that Lévi-Strauss’s research extends beyond the study of mythology or ancient Greece. It demonstrates that human narratives, or the way that people tell stories, possess a "social function." This means that analysing the way that people tell stories can reveal the conflicts underlying social and cultural superficies and provide balanced or imaginative solutions.

Characterised by his rebellious nature and heroic spirit, Wukong’s pilgrimage to the West and his aim to become a Buddha has a lasting impact on the Chinese people. This paper will first examine some of the most representative transmedia adaptations of the Monkey King chronologically over the years to analyse how these adaptations have shaped him as a Chinese superhero on screen while examining the transmedia strategies used to do so. This will provide a basis for understanding why viewers and scholars are drawn to this character each time his image returns to the screen. Second, building on the previous investigation, this article will analyse how these transmedia adaptations have shaped the Monkey King as a Chinese superhero in three ways - as a superhero to save the world, as a metaphor for freedom and an icon who dares to challenge the social norm, and as a pilgrimage to a perfect self. Finally, the article utilises discourse analysis to explore how international players have received Black Myth across two platforms: Quora, for insights into the game’s cultural background, and Steam, for experiences related to gameplay and artistic interpretations, to investigate the imagery of Wukong that these players have perceived.