The story of Monkey King: Hero is Back takes place after the titular Monkey King has a dramatic battle in heaven that leads to him to eventually be imprisoned by Buddha. This sounds amazing, and the full game left me with one question after reviewing it: why aren’t we actually playing that? Well, now we can. The first DLC expansion to Monkey King: Hero is Back is titled Uproar in Heaven, and it lets you play through those opening moments. Best of all, it’s available today, either for $9.99 on its own or as part of the $29.99 season pass.
Set 500 years before the events of the actual game, you’ll be doing battle with various gods in Heaven. Instead of using the mechanics that the rest of Monkey King used, you’ll be flying through the air and battling with the full force of the Monkey King and his equipment. The trailer shows off a trio of boss fights, and each of them appears to use some unique mechanics to engage players. The description of the DLC promises “flashy action and exciting choreography ripped straight out of a kung fu film!”
A second DLC expansion titled Mind Palace that is set to come out sometime in December. More information on that one is set to come out closer to its release. For now, we can enjoy messing up heaven a bit.
Monkey King: Hero is Back is a brawler based on an animated Chinese movie of the same name. The game is notable for being one of the first AAA console games developed in China, and the first to make its way to the west. We reviewed the game and found it to be a charming throwback title to a bygone era, but that also means it comes with all the faults and problems with that era as well.
