Jinrong Cao
School of Foreign Languages & International Business, Guangdong Mechanical & Electrical Polytechnic, Guangzhou 510000, Guangdong, China.
*Corresponding author: Jinrong Cao
Abstract
Video games have emerged as powerful transnational media for cultural dissemination in the digital age. Black Myth: Wukong, a Chinese action role-playing game, exemplifies this shift by embedding Chinese mythology, aesthetics, and philosophy within a technologically advanced gaming environment. Drawing on reviews from non-Chinese players on Steam, this study investigates the cultural discount that occurs when traditional Chinese visual and auditory elements are decoded outside their native context. Using a multimodal framework, it analyzes how material and immaterial cultural symbols, diegetic and non-diegetic soundscapes, are received and potentially misinterpreted by global audiences. Findings suggest that despite the technical excellence and cross-cultural gameplay appeal, many culturally embedded signs are flattened or misunderstood by non-Chinese players due to differing semiotic repertoires and limited interpretive readiness. The study concludes that technological fidelity alone is insufficient for effective cultural transmission; instead, meaningful cross-cultural engagement requires scaffolding mechanisms to bridge gaps in symbolic accessibility. These insights contribute to broader debates on cultural translation in digital media and the globalization of Chinese cultural products.
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How to cite this paper
Multimodal Aesthetics and Cultural Discount: Reconstructing Traditional Culture in Black Myth: Wukong
How to cite this paper: Jinrong Cao. (2025) Multimodal Aesthetics and Cultural Discount: Reconstructing Traditional Culture in Black Myth: Wukong. Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Science, 9(5), 1001-1006.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/jhass.2025.05.023