Unknown 9: Awakening is the debut recreation from studio Reflector Leisure however not the primary entry into the Unknown universe; to this point there are novels, comics, and even a dramatised podcast. Fortunately, Awakening is a standalone expertise and so that you don’t have to delve into any of the opposite cross-media releases to know something.
The opening scenes are a little bit heavy on lore, telling you all concerning the Unknown 9. They’re mentioned to be immortal beings who watch over humanity and all through historical past have offered knowledge and energy to a choose few. Some regard the 9 as little greater than folklore and superstition however a few rival teams purpose to hunt out the reality. The Leap Yr Society needs to achieve entry to this data with the intention to profit all of humanity, whereas the Ascendants wish to use it to advance society solely in ways in which they see match. Whereas it might appear to be solely a refined distinction, it results in huge variations within the methods they function.
The principle protagonist, Haroona, is an outsider to each of those teams. She’s what’s generally known as a Quaestor and has a robust connection to the Fold, a mystical realm which comprises highly effective vitality in addition to long-lost data. While we received’t spoil the hows and whys of the narrative, she’s mainly on a mission of revenge and so it doesn’t take her lengthy to get entangled with the assorted factions.
The story is effectively written even when it does typically get a little bit slowed down in its personal lore. It helps that the performances by the principle voice actors are all wonderful. Explicit reward has to go to the proficient Anya Chalotra (of The Witcher fame) for her portrayal of Haroona. She does an ideal job of displaying the character’s susceptible facet while nonetheless being charismatic and fiery on the similar time.
You’ll get to trek throughout the globe with ranges happening in a wide range of environments reminiscent of bustling metropolis streets, sizzling and sandy deserts, in addition to lush forests. It’s a disgrace that there isn’t a devoted photograph mode as a number of the vistas are fairly beautiful. Hopefully that is one thing that the devs will add in a future patch.
Whereas the story is filled with attention-grabbing concepts and the world seems lovely, Awakening received’t be profitable any prizes for its stage designs. Most are pretty linear and a tad predictable, and at instances it seems like a throwback to the PS3-era of gaming. In video games like Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune or The Final of Us, at any time when the extent opened up and also you noticed some crates or low-level partitions, you knew you have been about to get into one other struggle, and it’s precisely the identical right here.
Regardless of this, the fight is definitely fairly entertaining. Haroona has some fairly nifty talents and you’ll both tackle enemies straight or sneak round and take them out from the shadows. Her magical talents are a bit Star Wars-esque, the place you possibly can pull or push enemies away from you and into explosive objects or off cliffs.
Our favorite capability is the place she will be able to ‘step’ into an enemy and possess them for a brief period of time. This lets you arrange chaotic chain reactions the place you possibly can power a number of enemies to converge in the identical space after which set off an explosive gasoline canister, permitting you to wipe out a bunch of grunts in a single go.
As you progress enemies will achieve entry to expertise which disrupts your talents, making it tougher to cover your self or possess them. Enemies will be lured away from their devices however typically it’s faster to only take them head on. Hand-to-hand fight is pretty easy however a little bit bit clunky. There are solely a restricted variety of enemy varieties and assault patterns so fight can get considerably repetitive. It additionally doesn’t assist that in tight areas the digicam is just not all the time significantly useful. This will result in some irritating moments the place you’ll battle to align your self with whoever you’re attempting to assault.
A lot of your time will probably be spent hiding in lengthy grass and coming out often to defeat unhealthy guys however while you’re not doing that, you’ll be fixing primary puzzles or exploring the environments on the lookout for hidden collectibles.
There are many collectibles dotted round with plenty of the paperwork you discover offering further perception into what is occurring behind the scenes, in addition to including extra particulars about what’s driving sure characters. A gorgeous journal helps to maintain monitor of your discoveries in addition to present a working replace on Haroona’s ideas of what’s taking place.
One of many collectibles you’ll discover are referred to as anomalies. These shimmering little whirlpools of vitality are the one approach so that you can study new abilities, with each discovered granting you one ability level. There are three ability tree branches: magic, stealth, and melee. It’s not a very massive ability tree besides, it’s unattainable to unlock each single ability so that you’ll should resolve which talents greatest fit your playstyle.
Other than collectibles there’s nothing in the best way of facet quests or any type of New Sport+ to get your tooth caught into, which makes this extra of a one and carried out sort of recreation. Whereas which will put these on the lookout for an extended expertise off, it’s really fairly refreshing to not should do a bunch of repetitive busy work for the sake of completion.
Unknown 9: Awakening is a type of video games the place the entire is bigger than the sum of its components. With its linear stage design it’s a little bit of an old-school expertise in comparison with many new releases, however that doesn’t cease it from being good enjoyable. There aren’t loads of new or revolutionary concepts right here however its attention-grabbing lore and fascinating stealth mechanics make it a totally entertaining expertise.
Conclusion
Unknown 9: Awakening is an efficient debut from a first-time growth workforce. This narrative-driven action-adventure has some tough edges however the lovely places, intriguing narrative, and well-written characters make it exhausting to place down. The gameplay doesn’t evolve a lot however the entertaining stealth mechanics add loads of selection to the skirmishes you end up in. Total, it is a compelling new IP with plenty of potential for future adventures.
