Help you understand the game background and "Journey to the West"

I saw players expressing their concerns on a gaming forum :
“I really like how the game looks and plays, but I’m unsure about the story. Is this story going to be good? I want to connect with the characters. I don’t want to just run around and kill enemies.”

Seeing this situation, I thought of something similar :
《God of War》 is a game rooted in Norse mythology. Given that players from other countries may not be well-acquainted with Norse mythology, numerous kind-hearted players take the initiative to educate others about it, facilitating a deeper engagement with the game for everyone.

I've decided to embrace this spirit.

I understand that the story of Journey to the West can be challenging for many people outside of China to grasp,
so l wanted to provide a brief but effective background introduction to help everyone get to know the story.
Having the pleasure of enjoying a great game is a right that everyone should have

1. About the book:

·1400 years ago (6th century AD), Master Xuanzang embarked on a westward pilgrimage to obtain Buddhist scriptures. He traversed approximately 5000 to 6000 kilometers (3100 to 3700 miles) on foot, a journey that took him 17 years.
·400 years ago (16th century AD), a writer created the book 《Journey to the West》based on the story of Master Xuanzang, combining fantasy, mythology, folklore, and religious elements, which had a profound impact on Chinese culture and literature.

2. Main plot:

《Journey to the West》 follows the journey of Master Xuanzang embarked on a westward pilgrimage to obtain Buddhist scriptures（Compared to real history, the book adds elements of fantasy, mythology, folklore, and religious elements）

·(Master Xuanzang) is accompanied by four disciples:
·(Sun Wukong = The Monkey King): A powerful and mischievous monkey with incredible
strength, agility, and the ability to transform into various beings. He was initially a rebel but was subduedby Buddha and later assigned to protect Xuanzang.It is the protagonist in the game promotional video.
·(Zhu Bajie = Pigsy): A pig-like creature with a gluttonous and lazy nature, who serves as a comicrelief but is also a loyal companion.
·(Sha Wujing = Sandy): A calm and loyal figure, depicted as a sand ogre.
·(BaiLoong Ma = White-Dragon Horse):Originally a loong prince (Loong = Chinese dragon,kind dragon) , hewas transformed into a white horse as a punishment and serves as Xuanzang's steed.

(81 Tribulations):

The Chinese regard 'nine' as a sacred number, symbolizing ultimateness due to its position as the largest single-digit number. Multiplying two nines yields the number 81, signifying a state of completion or perfect harmony.
lt was said that Master Xuanzang's team had to go through 81 challenges during their journey before theycould successfully reach the Buddha.
These tribulations are tests of their resolve, faith, and character, designed to purify them and help themachieve spiritual enlightenment.
Most of the tribulations feature encounters with demons, monsters, and other supernatural beings, someof them will reappear in the game and have somewhat become stronger!

3. Connection between the novel and the game:

The game background is set after the end "Journey to the West" . Based on the availablecontents (without giving any spoilers), it can be inferred that a great upheaval occurred in the world, leading tothe resurrection of many demons, some of whom have even become stronger.
Maybe just like in Dark Souls, the flames are dying! or like in Elden Ring, the Ring has been shattered,transforming the Lands Between into a chaotic place.

4.More about Wukong

Born from a stone: Yes, Wukong was formerly a magical stone (so supposedly he is asexual ).His skin is often described as "hard as a stone" in the story.
The Havoc in Heaven: In his early days, Wukong proclaimed himself a title (Qi Tian Da Sheng= The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal)" and rebelled against the Heavenly order.
- He single-handedly battled with the 100,000 Heavenly Soldiers and defeated many famouscelestial generals, including the 4 Heavenly Kings"(who also appeared in the gametrailer).He also had an epic battle with (Erlang God Yang Jian - the God of Warwith three eyes).
Weapons: Wukong's weapon is called (Ru Yi Jin Gu Bang = the Golden Staff)
Trick -72 Transformations:Wukong is able to shapeshift into more than 72 different creatures (72 is an exaggeration). l think in the game you can also shapeshift into other creature to solve puzzles

OK, l guess this is it, but gotta make sure l cover all the essential info (hopefully). Most of the information in the article is reprinted from Gray-a content creator from China.
I hope it's helpful to you.
If you find this article beneficial, kindly like it to enable it to assist more individuals

I hope it's helpful to you.

[Diego]

very well written and informative

[100% queef]

thank you!

[Hanferd]

@SlayerSyrena If you want to know Monkey "origin story" I can recommend Havoc in Heaven the animation, that you can free uploaded in Youtube. It start with Monkey already King of Fruit Mountain and need to find a weapon up till his rebellion against Heaven.
Otherwise, I can recommend the 1995 version of Journey to the West made in Hong Kong TVB starring Dicky Cheung, he was one of the popular Monkey by using alot of 90's slang lingo that made Monkey funny and mischevious

[Pikachu]

@SlayerSyrena I am delighted to recommend 'Journey to the West' to you and other viewers. Rather than suggesting the book, I highly recommend watching the TV series produced by CCTV (China Central Television).

The TV series was filmed in 1986, at a time when technology was less advanced. Despite these limitations, the actors and directors put forth tremendous effort to complete the series, overcoming financial challenges along the way.

In fact, this is the version that many Asians remember fondly. You can easily find 'Journey to the West' on YouTube by searching for it; the series is uploaded by CCTV. Alternatively, you can follow this link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3KNpyKILHM

[SlayerSyrena]

Thank you. This was very helpful. Which version of 'The Journey to the West' do you recommend to Western readers? I've noticed there are several.

[Hanferd]

In Havoc in Heaven, Monkey also battled Nezha, the Lotus boy with firewheel. I can recommend a good Chinese cartoon from 1960 also called "Uproar in Heaven" (sometimes called Havoc in Heaven), it a 2 hour movie of Monkey become immortal and fought against Jade Emperor.

The book Journey to the West also have alot of social commentary (especially on Ming Dynasty society at the time, but mostly about human society). The characters represent the fault of human

[Z.YF]

hey,bro, i am chniese,if you dont want to read the book,you can see the video,the url is below
https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1c14y157Hu/?vd_source=dd4fa77058ff0048b15b258f4a0c74d2

[SHIROE]

nice,and may be you can introduce more about wukong,such like his initial tutor Pu ti,who taught him various capacity.and where wukong derived the Golden Staff.it will also be useful for the game

[派大星永远不让人失望]

you can watch 《西游记》

[神之怒火]

something in this game have prequel in The Journey To the West，and some other fan arts.