In addition to teasers and revelations about existing franchises and upcoming titles, Gamescom's opening night is hosting several world premieres of entirely new video game franchises. And the first trailer for a new property is deeply intriguing.
Developer Reflector Entertainment dropped a cinematic reveal for Unknown 9: Awakening. Very little is known about the aptly-titled game thus far. Reflector Entertainment is also a relative unknown, though its Unknown 9 "storyworld" seems to be its primary focus at the moment, weaving a narrative that will play out across multiple media platforms. Transmedia tie-ins are becoming increasingly prevalent for new IP launches, as demonstrated by the recent tabletop RPG announced for The Green Knight.
Pictured in the Unknown 9: Awakening trailer is a young girl, Haroona, hiding something behind a loose brick wall in the slums of Kolkata. She is pursued by a young boy wielding a stick, who shoves her to the ground as other children look on. Before he can bring his weapon to bear, a bluish, supernatural-looking wave of light sweeps out from Haroona, creating ghostly outlines that telegraph the movements of everybody present. Haroona stands, avoiding the potentially fatal blow to her head, and her attacker falls back, frightened. The trailer closes with an older hand returning to the loose brick from the beginning of the trailer, retrieving whatever may be inside.
The Trailer's description gives audiences a little more information to go on. Close-calls seem to be routine for Haroona, as she is "haunted by visions of her own death," and she is struggling to understand her mysterious power, relating to "a mysterious, hidden dimension known as The Fold," which was likely the ghostly wave seen in the trailer. Hopefully, there is more to the power than the ability to rewind time, which would help differentiate the title from the time-looping title Deathloop, due for the PS5 later this year.
The trailer's graphics don't live up to the shockingly realistic Unreal Engine 5 tech demo, but the cinematic is compelling and impressively rendered, especially coming from a newer developer. Haroona's short actually has the potential to be a highlight among Gamescom's newcomers. While 2019 was rich with high-profile trailers, the cancellation of E3 and other conventions have led to lower-key reveals in 2020.
Even though little is known about the game, the budding Unknown 9 franchise already has a great deal of material to explore. In addition to a scripted podcast, Unknown 9: Out of Sight, the first of a trilogy of novels has been released, Unknown 9: Genesis, as well as a comic series, Unknown 9: Torment. Each of these titles appear to feature different lead characters than Haroona, though it seems a safe bet that they will intertwine and cross over with each other, similar to the recently revealed Doctor Who and Peaky Blinders tie-in games.
No release date has been announced for Unknown 9: Awakening, which will be arriving on PC, Xbox Series X, and PS5.