Game

9 Years of Shadows

2023

Platforms: PC, Xbox Series S/X, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Nintendo SwitchGenres: Action, Adventure, Indie

6Score

Peak Gaming

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Game metadata from RAWG.

Is 9 Years of Shadows Woke? Quick Answer

9 Years of Shadows scores 6/100 on the IsItWoke scale and falls into Peak Gaming.

That is the story-first end of the scale for this game.

Dialogue and character interactions appear focused on advancing the emotional and coming-of-age story rather than delivering overt ideological messages. Characters, including the protagonist Europa and companion Apino, seem organically integrated into the narrative with clear roles and development rather than serving as symbolic tokens.

See the full breakdown below.

Woke profile

How the score is shaped

Eight stored dimensions, each scored from 0 to 20.

Message

Characters

Story

Legacy

Politics

Lead

Tradition

Norms

Column height is the stored score out of 20

Message-first dialogue
2/20
Tokenistic characters
1/20
Ideology over story
2/20
Legacy rewriting
0/20
Modern politics injection
0/20
Protected protagonist pattern
3/20
Anti-traditional framing
0/20
Cultural normalization framing
1/20

Receipts used in this verdict

Low confidence

These source-linked claims were gathered before scoring. Supporting evidence can raise a relevant signal; counterevidence can reduce or contextualize it. Corporate statements, consultant credits and optional identity cosmetics are context for investigation. They do not establish narrative ideology or directly raise the score.

Reveal detailed receipts · may contain spoilers

The verdict above is spoiler-light. The concrete examples below can describe scenes, plot turns, character outcomes, or late-game material.

Production consultantContext only
Guest composers Michiru Yamane and Norihiko Hibino are credited contributors to the game's score and are presented as in-game NPC guest composers; the soundtrack (by Miguel Hasson plus these guest composers) and in-game musical mechanics are explicitly promoted on the game's Steam store page. [2][1]

Sources (2)

[1]en.wikipedia.org
[2]store.steampowered.com

Research checked 2026-10-15

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Why it received this score

Based on: Published title analysisConfidence: MediumLast updated: 2026-10-15

Key reasons

Dialogue and character interactions appear focused on advancing the emotional and coming-of-age story rather than delivering overt ideological messages.
Characters, including the protagonist Europa and companion Apino, seem organically integrated into the narrative with clear roles and development rather than serving as symbolic tokens.
The story prioritizes immersive gameplay and exploration over social commentary or activism, with thematic elements supporting emotional healing rather than ideology.

View full breakdown

There is no evidence of franchise or legacy property rewriting; the game presents an original narrative without ideological reframing of existing material.
The protagonist shows some vulnerability and growth, though the competence in combat and abilities may feel somewhat empowered but still grounded in the game's mechanics.

Score signals

Signal	What was measured	Strength	Impact
Protected protagonist pattern	How much the protagonist fits the protected-protagonist pattern (agenda-driven character construction) rather than competence fantasy. Score HIGH only when: competence appears unearned or unexplained; protagonist rarely faces consequences; antagonists exist mainly to demonstrate protagonist superiority; narrative treats protagonist as symbolically superior; plot shields protagonist from vulnerability. Score LOW when: competence is grounded in training, profession, or past experience; protagonist suffers damage or setbacks; real physical danger and survival tension exist (normal action storytelling). Do not penalize competence fantasy.	3/20	+2
Message-first dialogue	How much the dialogue, monologues, or character interactions feel driven by overt messaging, moral lecturing, ideological framing, or making a point instead of serving the story naturally.	2/20	+1
Tokenistic characters	How much characters feel inserted or shaped primarily for symbolic representation, political signaling, or demographic checkbox value rather than narrative depth, organic fit, or strong characterization.	1/20	+1
Ideology over story	How much the overall storytelling prioritizes ideological framing, message delivery, social commentary, or activism-coded narrative choices over pacing, conflict, immersion, and entertainment.	2/20	+1
Cultural normalization framing	How much the title repeatedly frames a specific social model, identity/sexuality framing, lifestyle, family structure, or set of values as culturally meaningful, normalizing, morally instructive, or aspirational. Increase score when the work itself is explicitly positioned around that cultural proposition - through narrative, marketing, advocacy, or identity-specific educational/sexual content. Mere presence of any demographic or an incidental relationship is not enough.	1/20	+1

AI cultural analysis

A short read on tone, themes, and messaging — not a plot synopsis.

AI read

9 Years of Shadows offers a story-driven metroidvania experience that centers on emotional growth and healing rather than ideological messaging. The narrative focuses on Europa's journey to lift a curse and restore color to her world, which supports a coming-of-age theme without heavy-handed social commentary.

Dialogue and character interactions serve the story naturally, avoiding message-first patterns. The characters feel well integrated, with Europa and her companion Apino having clear narrative roles and development that avoid tokenism or symbolic representation for identity politics.