Video Preview - Phenomena: Art of Asura
- 7 minutes ago
- 2 min read
June 6th 2026
A more obscure book lands on The Artbook Collector YouTube channel this week, sharing a preview of Asura Online and it's eclectic mix of characters in Phenomena: Art of Asura!
The 288-page hardcover was published by Basheer Graphic Books in 2016, sharing the concepts and designs for the characters, enemies, and weapons of the MMORPG. The game from Tencent's Quantum Studio is based on Chinese mythology, including Journey to the West, so it is fill with a huge amount of interesting characters we don't often see in the video game space. Check out the preview below.
Some may see this and think of the more recent game Black Myth: Wukong, because of both the visual style and what it's based on (especially opening with the Stone Monkey too), and you'd be right to think that, as members of the team that worked on Asura went on to found that game's developer, Game Science.
Alongside the artwork are insights and lore as well, making Phenomena: Art of Asura perfect for those that played the game and want to revisit its world, as well as those interested in Chinese mythology and Eastern fantasy designs. It's an interesting book, one released for a game that doesn't have much of an online presence, at least outside of China, which is what makes it a more obscure book in the collection here.
Asura Online is an online role-playing game inspired by the classic novel, Journey to the West. It's a story and action driven MMORPG based in mythology, featuring heroes, demons, magical abilities, and epic quests. The open beta launched in 2014, but the game didn't have huge success, with little information to be found without some digging, although the visuals were praised for the game, including for the cinematics that can be found below.
Phenomena: Art of Asura is harder to come by now, but some second hand copies can be found in the wild. Those interested can keep an eye on the link below for any that may be available;
