Black Myth: Zhong Kui Director Compares His Methods To Christopher Nolan

The Next Black Myth Game Is In “No Rush”, Won't Use Gen AI For Assets Published Aug 10, 2026, 4:06 AM EDT Sam Woods is TheGamer’s Senior Reporter. He’s been in games journalism since 2020 and has undertaken a variety of roles in that time. These have included roles such as SEO Editor, Managing Editor at DualShockers, and Global Head of Gaming, and he's also been seen on the BBC. He was promoted to the Senior Reporter position in 2025 following a series of high-quality reports and exclusives for TheGamer. Since 2020, Sam has written over 2,500 articles and specializes in telling the stories of the people behind the games. He’s interviewed the biggest game directors, some of the industry’s top talents, told the stories of how indie games came to be, and spoken to players about what really makes them tick. He’s also interviewed some of the world’s biggest musical artists to find out how the medium has inspired their work, and TV and Film actors about their roles in video game adaptations. He even hosted a PAX panel in 2021 and made a documentary in 2024 surrounding the creation of a Disney game. Alongside this, Sam focuses on breaking news. He got the scoop on Perfect Dark’s cancellation, got context around some AI drama, and revealed how Lady Dimitrescu’s actress would love to step back into the character’s giant shoes. These articles have been picked up by the biggest gaming sites, including IGN, GameSpot, and PC Gamer. He also loves to dive into the numbers behind the games. Sam’s journey in games journalism has taken him all over the world. He’s covered Gamescom in Germany, Summer Game Fest in Los Angeles, and Tokyo Game Show in Japan, each on more than one occasion. He’s been learning Japanese since 2024 with the intention of identifying and translating Japanese-language news and bringing it to English-language audiences first, something he’s done countless times. Sam’s first review was 2020’s Battletoads reboot, and he’s since reviewed games in The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, and Pokemon franchises. Sign in to your TheGamer account At Gamescom 2025, Game Science shocked the world. It was expected that the company would announce DLC for Black Myth: Wukong, or perhaps a sequel. Instead, Black Myth: Zhong Kui was revealed. While still part of the Black Myth anthology, Zhong Kui has a new protagonist, stepping away from its Journey to the West inspirations. The game is still likely some way off, given how long Wukong took to develop and the ambitions Game Science clearly has, but its director has just blessed us with an official update, saying the studio and its artists won't use generative AI to rush the game out. Black Myth: Zhong Kui Won't Use AI In The Design And Asset-Production Stages Chinese studio Game Science only released Black Myth: Wukong in 2024. It quickly became a cultural phenomenon, scoring an 82 on OpenCritic, receiving five nominations and two wins at The Game Awards, and quickly racking up millions of players. Given current development cycle lengths and the fact that Black Myth: Wukong has been out for less than a year, it's likely Zhong Kui is some way off. Game Science co-founder and art director Yang Qigang has seemingly confirmed those concerns, stating that there is "no rush" and that it has no plans to use Gen AI in asset creation. "The design and asset-production stages will be far removed from AIGC, not out of resistance, but simply to do our best in the final stage," he posted on Chinese social media platform Weibo (via Gamersky). As a fan of The Odyssey, he then drew comparisons of his own game development methods with those of Christopher Nolan. "In today's world where digital cinema and 3D post-production seem to have reached a dead end, Nolan is still shining brightly, stirring up a storm with older technologies. There's no such thing as a last train that you absolutely have to catch. You can find a small hotel to stay in, and there's plenty of time for AI and stuff, no rush," he said. Qigang is effectively saying that while they're not actively opposed to AI, they're in no rush to use it. The technology is advancing, and there's no fear they'll miss the boat. It's a promising message for Black Myth: Zhong Kui, but maybe not so much for future Game Science titles. Given that the game is in the "final stage" of design and asset production, it's easy to conclude that Zhong Kui is a long way off, especially since Wukong took six years to develop. Many will be happy to wait, though, as following up on a success like Wukong will naturally take time. Developer(s) Game Science Publisher(s) Game Science Prequel(s) Black Myth: Wukong Genre(s) Action RPG, Action, RPG