A screenshot of the Black Myth: Zhong Kui trailer

Chinese game developer Game Science has released a 15-minute trailer for Black Myth: Zhong Kui on Thursday morning, offering a more detailed look at the highly anticipated second installment in its Black Myth series and giving fans a glimpse of the game's combat and visual style.

The new title is a single-player action role-playing game inspired by Zhong Kui, a legendary figure in Chinese folklore known as a vanquisher of ghosts and demons. 

The latest footage, which includes a first look at Zhong Kui in combat against demons, has already drawn attention from players for its highly polished visuals, with some overseas fans describing the presentation as having a movie-like quality.

"It looks like a Netflix movie. Can't wait to play it," reads a comment on the X post of Game Science account. 

"It's like I'm watching a real movie, unreal the graphics and far better than Wukong in terms of graphics ... I'm gonna buy this on day one," another post reads.

The trailer marks a significant step forward from the game's initial reveal last year, when Game Science released only a cinematic teaser as the project was still in its early development stage. But the Hangzhou-based company has not announced a release date or window for the game. 

Game Science first unveiled Black Myth: Zhong Kui at Gamescom Opening Night Live in August 2025. The studio subsequently released a six-minute in-engine video on February 10, 2026, as a Chinese New Year special. Game Science described the video as non-canon content rather than part of the game's actual story.

Domestically, some players have also focused on the progress Game Science appears to have made since Black Myth: Wukong. 

One fan wrote on Chinese video site Bilibili that it is clear to see the improvements in "scenes, animation, optimization and materials" after the company's successful run of Wukong.

More notably, the player said she felt the new game was moving beyond Wukong's predominantly dark aesthetic, with elements such as cooking, fishing and playing music giving it "more of a sense of everyday life and a human touch." 

In parallel to the trailer release, Game Science founder Feng Ji has also outlined a set of principles guiding the studio's game development on Thursday, emphasizing that developers should first make games that genuinely move themselves. 

He also stresses constantly exploring new forms of visual expression, studying leading games while ultimately establishing the studio's own standards, and putting ideas into practice so they can be tested and refined against reality. 

The choice of Zhong Kui represents a departure from the first Black Myth title, Black Myth: Wukong, which was based on the classic Chinese classic novel Journey to the West. 

Game Science has said it wanted to use the new project to explore different gaming experiences, bolder features and fresh approaches to world-building and narrative design rather than immediately making another story centered on the Monkey King. 

In the folklore surrounding Zhong Kui, the character is portrayed as a fearsome ghost catcher and protector against evil spirits. There are no official historical records establishing him as a historical person but his legend developed through stories, paintings, novels and folk traditions over the centuries in China.

According to the best-known version of the legend, Zhong Kui was a scholar who performed exceptionally well in the imperial examinations but was rejected by the emperor because of his appearance. 

He died in anger and was later appointed a supernatural official responsible for driving away ghosts and demons. His image subsequently became associated with protection from evil and was traditionally displayed in homes as a talisman.