Unknown 9: Awakening is the debut game from studio Reflector Entertainment but not the first entry into the Unknown universe; so far there are novels, comics, and even a dramatised podcast. Thankfully, Awakening is a standalone experience and so you don’t need to delve into any of the other cross-media releases to understand anything.
The opening scenes are a little heavy on lore, telling you all about the Unknown 9. They are said to be immortal beings who watch over humanity and throughout history have provided wisdom and power to a select few. Some regard the 9 as little more than folklore and superstition but a couple of rival groups aim to seek out the truth. The Leap Year Society wants to gain access to this knowledge in order to benefit all of humanity, whereas the Ascendants want to use it to advance society only in ways that they see fit. While it may seem like only a subtle difference, it leads to big differences in the ways they operate.
The main protagonist, Haroona, is an outsider to both of these groups. She’s what’s known as a Quaestor and has a strong connection to the Fold, a mystical realm which contains powerful energy as well as long-lost knowledge. Whilst we won’t spoil the hows and whys of the narrative, she’s basically on a mission of revenge and so it doesn’t take her long to get entangled with the various factions.
The story is well written even if it does sometimes get a little bogged down in its own lore. It helps that the performances by the main voice actors are all excellent. Particular praise has to go to the talented Anya Chalotra (of The Witcher fame) for her portrayal of Haroona. She does a great job of displaying the character’s vulnerable side whilst still being charismatic and fiery at the same time.
You’ll get to trek across the globe with levels taking place in a variety of environments such as bustling city streets, hot and sandy deserts, as well as lush forests. It’s a shame that there isn’t a dedicated photo mode as some of the vistas are pretty stunning. Hopefully this is something that the devs will add in a future patch.
While the story is full of interesting ideas and the world looks beautiful, Awakening won’t be winning any prizes for its level designs. Most are fairly linear and a tad predictable, and at times it feels like a throwback to the PS3-era of gaming. In games like Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune or The Last of Us, whenever the level opened up and you saw some crates or low-level walls, you knew you were about to get into another fight, and it’s exactly the same here.
Despite this, the combat is actually pretty entertaining. Haroona has some pretty nifty abilities and you can either take on enemies directly or sneak around and take them out from the shadows. Her magical abilities are a bit Star Wars-esque, where you can pull or push enemies away from you and into explosive objects or off cliffs.
Our favourite ability is where she can ‘step’ into an enemy and possess them for a short amount of time. This allows you to set up chaotic chain reactions where you can force multiple enemies to converge in the same area and then set off an explosive gas canister, allowing you to wipe out a bunch of grunts in one go.
As you progress enemies will gain access to technology which disrupts your abilities, making it more difficult to hide yourself or possess them. Enemies can be lured away from their gadgets but sometimes it’s quicker to just take them head on. Hand-to-hand combat is fairly simple but a little bit clunky. There are only a limited number of enemy types and attack patterns so combat can get somewhat repetitive. It also doesn’t help that in tight spaces the camera is not always particularly helpful. This can lead to some frustrating moments where you’ll struggle to align yourself with whoever you’re trying to attack.
Much of your time will be spent hiding in long grass and popping out occasionally to defeat bad guys but when you’re not doing that, you’ll be solving basic puzzles or exploring the environments looking for hidden collectibles.
There are plenty of collectibles dotted around with lots of the documents you find providing extra insight into what is happening behind the scenes, as well as adding more details about what’s driving certain characters. A beautiful journal helps to keep track of your discoveries as well as provide a running update on Haroona’s thoughts of what’s happening.
One of the collectibles you’ll find are called anomalies. These shimmering little whirlpools of energy are the only way for you to learn new skills, with each one found granting you one skill point. There are three skill tree branches: magic, stealth, and melee. It’s not a particularly large skill tree but even so, it’s impossible to unlock every single skill so you’ll have to decide which abilities best suit your playstyle.
Apart from collectibles there’s nothing in the way of side quests or any form of New Game+ to get your teeth stuck into, which makes this more of a one and done kind of game. While that may put those looking for a longer experience off, it’s actually pretty refreshing to not have to do a bunch of repetitive busy work for the sake of completion.
Unknown 9: Awakening is one of those games where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. With its linear level design it’s a bit of an old-school experience compared to many new releases, but that doesn’t stop it from being good fun. There aren’t a lot of new or innovative ideas here but its interesting lore and engaging stealth mechanics make it a thoroughly entertaining experience.
Conclusion
Unknown 9: Awakening is a good debut from a first-time development team. This narrative-driven action-adventure has some rough edges but the beautiful locations, intriguing narrative, and well-written characters make it hard to put down. The gameplay doesn’t evolve much but the entertaining stealth mechanics add a lot of variety to the skirmishes you find yourself in. Overall, this is a compelling new IP with lots of potential for future adventures.