Stuff Meets: Christophe Rossignol, Creative Director at Reflector Entertainment

Let’s chat about Unknown 9: Awakening

Khumail Thakur 15 Oct 2024 12:00 PM

We chatted with the Creative Director of the upcoming action-adventure game Unknown 9: Awakening starring Anya Chalotra. The game is set to launch on 18th October.

What is Reflector Entertainment?

So Reflector Entertainment is a studio founded in 2016 and has been acquired by Bandai in 2020. I joined the studio in 2017. So I am among the first employees within the studio. The studio itself targets action adventure games. We focus on narrative driven games, narrative world and a strong transmedia aspect around it. Mainly how can we expand the story we build in the game across different mediums, comics, novels, etc.

Can you tell me about yourself?

I started in the video game industry in ‘99, December 1999. And, I started as a programmer, then I moved to level design. I started working in France, then I moved to Montreal in 2005. I started there as a designer then I moved up to level design direction. Then I joined the Reflector, as a level design director. And now I am the creative director on the project.

Any plans for an animated show, a movie or a TV series?

So there is another medium planned. They have not been announced yet but there will be communication for them very soon.

Has anyone travelled from the team to India for the game?

We did a lot of research, but we work on fantasy, right? We are not historic on games like some big games up there. We target to be fair to the country, right? And to encourage people to learn more about this country. But we are not going for 100% with the description of the place or what the place used to be at the time of the game. So we inspire ourselves with some existing reference material we got and we created our own place. 

We made some QA base to be sure it was not offensive in any way to anyone. And just mostly the focus for us was to pay homage to the rich country and rich culture that is India and to be sure to stay correct to the country and that if people want to know more, the internet is there. They can travel to visit the country. It's not our job to make it a touristic place for all.

What does the nine stand for in Unknown 9: Awakening? 

So we build the universe, right? The game is the centre point of that universe. But for others in our universe that can go across different mediums, we need to have a deeper look. So in the lore of our universe, we say there are 9 immortal beings that survive an ancient civilization. So the ‘unknown nine’ are those nine figures. No one knows who they are but the only thing we know is that they are immortal. They have all the knowledge from that formless civilization that has been forgotten. And their job in the universe is to share their knowledge with us slowly, over time, over a millennium, to guide us and to avoid what happened to them because that civilization disappeared and it's a bit of a mystery around the IP. What happened to that advanced civilization?

There's a very interesting element called stepping but will it be in the gameplay outside of combat?

So for the first game, we really focus on having a deep narrative, and I just scratched the surface and to affirm gameplay, right? We have an action adventure gameplay, so we focus a lot on the fight. The stepping can be done when there are enemies, so if there are enemy chances that the fight can trigger at some points, right? So we really focus on that aspect, allowing the player to step in the enemy before the fight itself. Be able to set up the fight the way we want. That's one possible playstyle. The other possibility would be to use it as a safety net or a superpower in the middle of the fight, but it's up to the player to decide.

How did the studio decide to bring Anya Chalotra as a main character?

We knew from the beginning we wanted a strong female character – Haroona. She's rebellious at the beginning, and she will add a deep evolution to the story of the game. So we were looking for an actress that would empower and portray her in the right manner. We were lucky that Anya was available and she wanted to test working for a video game. She has never done that. She was interested in the story. So it was more of a wish for us that became true, in a way, because everything aligned to make it happen.

Were there any inputs from her? In terms of the game?

In terms of the game itself, no, not really, but in terms of the story, like when some of the recording sessions happened. She's an expert, right? So she's like, “my character's probably more in that state of mind, she probably would say that kind of thing.” So she helped us drive some element of the story related to the character, like any master actress, right?

What game engine is it on?

We are using the Unreal 4 game engine.

Is the game about Haroona’s story or is it about the Fold and the secret society stuff?

The way we could try to position the game within the universe is kind of an entry point. So this is the story of Haroona and her evolution. As a main character at the beginning of the game, she's more selfish. She thinks more about herself. She has her own motivation for revenge and through the event of the game, through the discovery of the element of the universe. About the Nine, the Fold, the Leap Year Society and the Ascendant. She will evolve and open and that will be her evolution. So the game is really about Haroona discovering that universe and the player can relate to that hopefully.

Are there companions in the game like God of War and Uncharted

We do have companions, but they are not always with Haroona. This is the story of Haroona. So sometimes in the story there are some companions that come with her just to have a reflection about the story, about the event and pushing more of the universe and the understanding but they are not permanently there. So, we have a few missions with different characters along with Haroona, and we have a few missions where Haroona is alone by herself.

What should our readers expect from the game?

There are so many aspects but if I simplify it. It's really a game where you are Haroona and you are that character that discovers that in this world there is more than the eye can see, and there is still magic around. You know, a lot of people are sad and the news is not positive but there is still magic around, if you know to look for it. And Haroona will discover some of those magic elements. And she will be put into a universe, a story that is something bigger than herself. Right? Like the future of humanity will become at stake based on the action of Haroona. And Haroona is a human being like you and like me. What does she do? Does she run away? Does she decide to go? So she will go in, that's the story you want to tell and she will help prevent the big event from happening and she will use her uniqueness and unique ability like the stepping we mentioned earlier to be able to achieve that goal. So it's really a story about Haroona, the evolution, finding that world, finding some secret around us. And in the end, trying to prevent a big catastrophe.

Are there side missions or is it just a linear game? 

Mostly we focus on making sure that the player doesn't get lost into that deep lore, all the factions and different enemies. So we have a bit of exploration here and there but it's mostly a linear experience to be sure the story unfolds the way we want and connect to the different mediums.

How long is the campaign? 

What we've seen in playtest it's a range between 12 to 15 hours of gameplay. And a 100% completionist will need 15 to 16 hours of gameplay if you're looking for every secret, every collectible and you try to complete the skill tree.

Are there tombs to explore and separate pathways? 

So the game is at some point in smaller areas but there are a bit more open places where the walls are further away. Often there are enemies so the player can use the stepping and all the abilities and power and fighting skills. But there is some section in between that with some branching stuff and that kind of thing. So the player can go explore a bit around, find some artefacts and some secrets. We have an item viewer so the artefact you find, some of them are connected. They are later from the Asendants so you can even understand what they are doing there, what is it that they are looking for in the universe? But some are connected to the same civilization so that can be a clue of what used to be that civilization. Some objects you can collect and find that even have secret code on them that can connect with something more. So it's very fun for the people that are interested in it.

Would you say that players need to read the comic and the novel and listen to the podcast for this? 

So we try a different approach. We'll see if people like it. So there is connection between the different mediums but the comics can be read in itself and the game can be played on itself. So if you choose to engage more in the universe and read more about the comics, you will see the bigger story. So basically just the game as his own story. The comic book has its own story because it's not taking place at the same time. The game is set in 1912, but the comic book is contemporary day. So there is a century between both and the novel takes place at the end of the 50s, early 60s. So we are across time, but if you start digging into everything, you will see like, “oh, the secret society is still there!”. They have evolved. Their big plans are still there. We have some immortal beings, the Unknown 9. So if you see someone in the game and you see the same person introduced later, and that person hasn't aged then maybe it’s a good idea that it is maybe one of the nine you're looking for.

I was looking at the comics and the cover page has a horror twist, are there horror elements in the game? 

In the game? No. So the thing is, when we build the IP, we define multiple genres for the IP – paranormal, mystery and adventure. So every medium will be a bit more or different from those genres. The game is more adventure style with a bit of mystery. The podcast has a lot of mystery and the comic book has a bit of everything.

Is there going to be a new game plus mode?

We don't have the new game plus, but we offered the possibility to replay chapters. So if you want to finish the game 100%, you can go back to your section and the game will tell you you missed a collectable. So you can really easily replay a section if you had fun or replay it to complete your collection.