Summary
This week’s Summer Game Fest featured the first full story trailer for developer Reflector Entertainment’sUnknown 9: Awakening, offering fans their best glimpse at the title since itsannouncement at Gamescom 2020.Unknown 9: Awakeningfollows Haroona, a young woman who can tap into a mysterious force called The Fold. The Fold gives her interesting powers such as Stepping, which allows her to step into the fold itself and use it to possess and manipulate people and objects. Using The Fold, Haroona sets out to discover more about her powers, while seeking revenge on Vincent, the man who killed her father. With its unique mixture of spiritual concepts, action role-playing combat, and powered-up protagonist,Unknown9: Awakeninglooks likeBanishers: Ghosts of New EdenmeetsForspoken.
Unknown 9: Awakeningwas first announced with a teaser trailer at Gamescom’s Opening Night Live in 2020, but went quiet following Reflector Entertainment’s acquisition byBandai Namco. The title only recently resurfaced in March 2024, and has since been preparing fans to jump into its gameplay and expansive narrative universe. In the time since its initial reveal, the action role-playing genre has evolved, with major titles exploring the sub-genres of supernatural fantasy, horror, and revenge. InUnknown 9: Awakening,these concepts collide, giving rise to an interesting experience.
Unknown 9: Awakening Combines Super Powers with the Super Natural
In the universe ofUnknown 9: Awakening, the titular Unknown 9 are mysterious immortal beings with a strong connection to The Fold, who are said to have watched over humanity’s entire existence. Groups of people who are privy to these beings and The Fold, known as Quaestors, believe the 9 to hold profound wisdom and power for humanity to harness. InUnknown 9: Awakening, Haroona, born with the rare ability to directly access The Fold, is targeted by the most malicious of these groups, The Ascendants. Using the supernatural and spiritual powers granted to her by The Fold, Haroona seeks to uncoverthe mysteries of the Unknown 9.
TheUnknown 9franchise goes much deeper than the plot described forUnknown 9: Awakening, witha multimedia experiencethat spans podcasts, novels, comic books, and more. Each entry in the franchise revolves around stories of paranormal mystery, with characters accessing the occult while pursuing the 9’s arcane knowledge. While it remains to be seen just how the occult and larger mysteries of the Unknown 9 will manifest inUnknown 9: Awakening, the overall set-up and combat should hit the bullseye for fans of recent action RPG titles.
Unknown 9: Awakening Combines the Best Elements of Banishers and Forspoken
WhileUnknown 9: Awakening’s appearance at Summer Game Fest 2024 was largely focused on introducing its world and narrative, the title’s gameplay stood out on its own. Haroona can be seen mastering her powers, called her Shade, by exploding an entrance into a rockface, projecting her spirit, called Stepping, and possessing enemies to escape capture. These abilities elicit comparisons to another action RPG from earlier this year,Banishers: Ghost of New Eden, which sawRed and Antea, partners separated by death, use both the powers of a Banisher and those of a spirit to uncover the origins of a supernatural plague, The Nightmare. Along the way, the two use their skills to uncover the horrifying events that gave rise to The Nightmare’s assault on the settlement of New Eden.
Likewise,Unknown 9: Awakening’s combat, gameplay, and world elicit comparisons to the mythos ofForspoken’s land of Athia, where all-powerful matriarchs, called Tantas, wield arcane knowledge and guide the course of its people. Using her connection to this power, the title’s protagonist Frey seeks to uncover the mysteries of the Tanta and their corruption by a mysterious force called The Break. Following its impressive show at Summer Game Fest,Unknown 9: Awakening’s mixture of supernatural and super-powered elements offers a compelling experience for fans of the action RPG genre. Fans ofBanishers: Ghosts of New EdenandForspokendon’t have to wait long to experienceUnknown 9: Awakeningfor themselves,as its story trailer revealed a release window of Fall 2024.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden
WHERE TO PLAY
New Eden, 1695. Antea Duarte and Red mac Raith are lovers and Banishers, ghost-hunters who vowed to protect the living from the threat of lingering ghosts and specters. Following a disastrous last mission, Antea is fatally wounded, becoming one of the spirits she loathes. In the haunted wilds of North America, the couple desperately searches for a way to liberate Antea from her new plight.Immerse yourself in a beautiful, intimate and powerful story between two fated lovers. As Banishers, enter the lives of New Eden’s communities and solve haunting cases in a mystical, lore-rich world plagued with supernatural creatures and ancient secrets. Use your wits or combine Antea’s spiritual powers and Red’s arsenal to defeat and banish the souls tormenting the living.Challenging decisions will lay on your path, dramatically impacting your story and the fate of New Eden’s inhabitants—be they living people or wandering souls. How much will you compromise your ghost-hunting vow for the sake of your lover who became one of such spirits?
