The Mystery of The Unknown: Dead by Daylight’s Scariest Killer 

I personally think The Unknown is an evil chocolate maker that lives in the walls.

Everyone asks "what is the unknown" but never "how is the unknown"

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!? ITS COMING FOR YOU NOW!!!

I cant believe The Unknown broke into the real world to terrify children at a scam event

"The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the UNKNOWN" - H.P. Lovecraft 1890-1937

Maybe the Entity took unknown Because it was drawing attention to it. The Entity tries to remain hidden for the most part. And Unknown was creating attention as a side product of its activities.

In my opinion the most likely theory is that he is exactly his name: the literal personification of the fear of the unknown. He can’t be defined, and he has no name or form. The more people fear him and try to understand him, the stronger and more dangerous he gets. The OSS was indeed experimenting on or at least trying to contain him, but I think just doing this counted as trying to define him, so he eventually escaped, thus starting the disappearances. The DNA could be from all of its victims combined, thus making it impossible to replicate. If the Unknown is indeed the fear of the unknown given form, that would make it the oldest killer in dead by daylight, having likely existed throughout all of human history

Unknown is basically the DBD equivalent to a Pennywise, an ancient shape shifting being that changes forms in order to allure victims.

Fun fact: the reason the unknown looked so different in the trailer where the guy died in the tent is because that was his perception of the unknown, the one we have in the realm is the one Olivia imagined it looked like before it got taken.

I can’t help but wonder if the Unknown is a kind of tulpa, a creature formed from thought. In this instance, the Unknown is a thoughtform created from myriad urban legends. Because we all think of urban legends, we feed it and give it life. …I don’t know enough about Dead by Daylight, so I could be way off-base.

Whenever someone tries to investigate or identify what the unknown is it will appear and it will kill them. I do believe that the unknown may change appearance depending on what you think it's supposed to be. My theory is that the reason why the entity showed up with the unknown is because Olivia herself was wondering what would happen if two urban legends were to collide. Therefore I think she unintentionally summoned both the entity and the unknown

And this is why I love the Unknown. Some people say that it's power doesn't make senses for what it is, but if they tried to make one for it that did, that would contradictory to what it is, being unknown. It's power makes sense because it doesn't.

"video games could have been used in project apple pie" I can't believe BHVR had the balls to not only reference MKUltra in Unknown's lore but were also cheeky enough to link it to Polybius

He might be one of my favorite killers in DBD from the way he looks and the mystery of not knowing what it is and what it is supposed to be?

I think he’s an evil chocolate maker that lives in the walls.

I think we are overthinking it. So notice how everyone in the lore or add ons gives it a different title… a monster… an alien… a legend… a killer. I think The Unknown is a creature like Dredge and The Entity that works in a world of its own and feeds on fear. Its true form we cannot see… we see what we fear. The Unknown has taken a form fitting for the trials… the voices crying for help made survivors think it was a fellow survivor… so at first they saw a survivor… when it went in for the attack its form changed to that of a killer holding an axe.

It definitely feels like they brought back some of the horror elements from Roots of Dread. Unknown being forcefully taken at the end of it's lore indicates that it was even more of a slippery fish for the Entity to catch than Dredge. Which makes it all the more disturbing and unpredictable and that's awesome. Also, maybe Sable was a fan of Haddie's web series or invited her on her radio show at some point. I can't wait to read their tomes, Azhy. I'm fully invested in this chapter and the new map is beautiful. Can't wait to play on it. ❤

i think hes a tulpa. A being that is basically a manifestation of peoples thoughts and it changes its form and powers to what people think it is. Theres is an early supernatural episode in which same and dean encounter a tulpa and there kinda some similarities to the unknown

Damn, Azy just made himself a target

The idea to make a character's lore "all of the above" is honestly so fun. Skinwalker alien folklore creature person that pulls from like fifty different legends and tropes to make itself. This thing copied everyone's homework at once and now no one can tell who it stole the most from

They honestly nailed the theming on this one, yeah it doesn't "make sense", but for all the reasons that it's not supposed to- it's supposed to be defying classification, like a poorly understood cryptid whose actual nature is defined by being poorly understood. Reminds me of Mitch Hedberg's "Maybe the pictures are all fine, Bigfoot's actually just blurry" bit.

I would like to point out the massive similiarities to the Demon in the movie REC In REC , the main threat is a Demonic Parasite which lives inside a human body and controls it. Similiar how Unknown's real body appear to be those tentacles and tendrils that puppeteer a human corpse. This also fits Unknown's Voice Lines ,,I lived in Dungeons Long Forgotten" ,,Tonight, the World at my Feet" ,,I, The Nameless Legend" None of these voicelines would make sense for an Alien , the DNA not being possible to be replicated disproves it being a government experiment + also disproves the alien theory , as a Biological life form like that wouldn't have a reason to not be possible to replicate. Finally for those that saw REC- At the end of that movie, the possessed person looks essentially Identical to The Unknown's human body

One of the first original killers I was anticipating more than the licensed ones

The OSS was not an agency dedicated to the unknown, but was the WWII predecessor of the CIA. And they definitely had nothing to do with Project Apple Pie as they were disbanded in 1945. EDIT: Okay, saw it mentioned in the lore. So that's on BVHR, not you.

The unknown is an egregore. And egregore is an esoteric occult concept. It represents a non-physical entity or thoughtform that arises from the collective thoughts and emotions of a distinct group of individuals. Essentially everyone trying to define this creature essentially created this creature

My theory is that this was the entity's first ever killer. As the wiki describes, the devs do acknowledge that the first ever killer was likely a failure and discarded into the void. The unknown then somehow got out of the realm and into the real world and nobody knows anything about it hence the unknown, as we see in the lore the entity took it back with the unknown seeming to try and resist it. The entity is capable of making creatures within tbe realm, and so it stands to reason that this was how it first tried to make killers before just taking them like the later ones in some way or getting them to come into the realm. Given that it was made in the realm it would make sense as to why nobody knows about it, why it looks so distorted and seems so just, odd, and why the entity wanted it back so much to the point of not even bothering with Oliva the investigator who could otherwise have been a new survivor for the entity and likewise why the unknown seemed like it didn't want to go back hence why it fought AND, there's also the fact that the unknown seemed to give some resistance to the entity, and so it if it was a spawn of the entity, it would make sense as to why it was able to give it some trouble having some of the entities power to resist it for some time. Likewise too this is probably why the entity placed it in the trials so as to keep it from wanting to escape again as it seems it was the void that prompted the unknown to want to escape. Just a theory though.

I like to think it's a Tulpa or an entity given form or power by so many different thoughts and emotions focusing on one specific thing. In this case, the fear of people randomly disappearing and wanting to pin the blame on something tangible, thus the unknown was made tangible

I wonder if The Unknown will lead to any other Urban Legends in the game like how The Singularity lead to having Xenomorph in the game.

How has no one compared this to The Thing ? Taking over bodies and morphing them in grotesque manners ?

I do like how it’s design is a mix of different theories behind what it is. The UVX venom is from the military experiments and the theory of it being an Alien. The axe and human looks is the theory of it being a serial killer. And Olivia’s theory of it being an Urban legend.

I like how the the unknown and the entity have beef bc the entity was upset that the unknown was getting all the credit

I could be wrong, but maybe the Unknown uses its tentacles to steal the voices of its victims to add to its mimicry repertoire. That's what I think happens in the mori.

I believe that The Unknown is a concept. Like how people make concepts for new characters for a game or a more complex and non physical concept like death. It could potentially change powers based on what people think of it. And I think because that its a concept it doesn't have a soul the entity can feed off of but can cuase the fear it wants. And im actually going to quote a Flashgitz video "how can you stop an idea?"

When I first saw the Unknown found footage video I thought that it would be cool if it was supposed to be the being that's behind all of those weird cases where somebody disappears without a trace. You know, like where a very experienced hiker goes on a trail they've been on numerous times already and yet they still vanish into thin air with no evidence as to what could have happened. I like to imagine it's the Unknown's doing. Especially since the mori literally makes the body disappear. Of course considering everything we know about it this just isn't the case but I still really like the idea that it is something that's truly *unknown*

I like that all of the stories are technically right. You can choose what the unknown's story is based on the add-ons you give it. It's sorry is allowed to change and Intentional or not I think that's a really cool concept.

I think it’s a Extradimensional alien in human skin and I kinda find it funny that the Entity scared the Unknown so bad he was crying out for help , The entity is a mulitversal being

Heres my theory for it. I think it is definetly a creature made by the entity and summoned or taken out of the entitys tralm by the black veil. Grenville seems to be the perfect place cuz people are already fearmonged by multiple urban legends and where theres alot of fear/emotion the entity thrives, which is also why the killer looks the way it does. I dont think its a pile of peoples beliefs of what it is but of peoples fears. Some fear a slasher and others fear aliens or folklore creatures. It mentions that its been living in dungeons long forgotten and we already know entitys portals are some sort of ancient caves or dungeons as we see in kates lore. Maybe it was even purposely placed there to attract prey with its voice mimicing ability. It looks humanlike cuz its formed by human fears. (Plus it kinda looks like fedd up dwight you gotta admit). The reason OSS couldnt get any soild information on it is cuz, as i said, it is most active and strong when people fear it; however the OSS did nit necessarily fear it since they have more experience with this type of thing. So my theory is also that it wont attack you if you only think of it or try to analyze it, but when you start to fear it. You can not be afraid of it if you dont know about it in the first place.

I've always liked the interpretation of The Unknown being the mystery of not knowing what The Unknown is. An intangible concept made manifest, taking the form of whatever those that believe it to exist strongly think it is. In a way, thats very similar to The Dredge's origin, which is another little theory I love, The Unknown and The Dredge being the same kind of creature. The difference being The Unknown was produced naturally as a result of a bunch of different, conflicting beliefs as to what it is, whereas The Dredge was produced artificially, in a setting concocted by Otto Stamper specifically tailored to create a creature like it, a setting that is full of extremely strong belief in one specific concept (cult.) iirc, correct me if im wrong, didnt Stamper work for the CIA in The Doctor's lore? Given that the OSS eventually became the CIA, maybe Stamper saw what they were investigating, then went off to try and produce his own version?

i think its kinda like the farmer from men in black or like slenderman/candyman/bloody mary (kinda urban legend) or the thing and also something that could be from scp

Can’t believe that the same company that gave us this unsettling in-depth character and unique story also is the one responsible for Skull Merchant

The reason why the unknown is so creepy is because behavior capitalized off of the uncanny valley vibe it almost looks human but isn’t actually human which triggers our brain to naturally fear it

Tbh im expecting olivia to be a survivor in a later chapter, since the entity has its eye on her now

I think you’re close but I have a different idea on what The Unknown is. I believe The Unknown and The Dredge are the same “thing” in the sense that they are similar creatures or entities separate from The Entity. What I mean is that we know the trials themselves are manifestations created by The Entity that are made up of a material of some sort, but that this material can be altered or used by other people and/or killers. I believe that at the Fractures, being a meeting point between The Entity’s realm and ours, are susceptible to being manipulated more than the normal Realm itself. Considering The Dredge was manifested by the cult and looks like a manifestation of the negative emotions that the they were surpassing and displays the characteristics of negativity given form (i.e. being a black void like mass, attempting to swallow you in with its mori, etc.), i believe this was, knowingly or unknowingly by the leader, done in order to manipulate the Fracture into producing an entity that fit the description of what they were focusing on. With The Unkown, it’s very clear that it is copying characteristics of what people think it is rather than having those characteristics on its own. The OSS think it’s an alien so they find alien material and The Unknown now has an alien like tendril thing. People think it’s a slasher in the woods, The Unknown now has an axe for some reason. It adapts to what is thought about it and I think this provides even more clear indication that it’s the thoughts and emotions of the people of Greenville, potentially aided with Project Apple Pie, that focused and manifested The Unknown with all these traits they assumed about it due to the Fracture that was already present as we see The Unknown fighting with The Entity while being taken and that there is animosity between The Dredge and The Entity. Tl;dr The Dredge and The Unknown are the same things, manifestations of the Fractures due to the surrounding areas mythology/beliefs

Spoilers for the Star Trek series Deep Space 9. It's probably off base, but for some reason, i feel like the regular overlaps between the entity and the unknown feels similar to what happened with security Chief odo in DS9. He's a shape shifter, and at the start of the show nobody knows what he is or where he came from, but later on its revealed that he comes from a hivemind species of shapeshifters who sent infant shapeshifters into the cosmos to learn more about other species. The lost shapeshifters had no memory of their origin. I kinda get the vibe that the unknown is a similar thing, he's a part of the entity released into the world to achieve a greater understanding, and spending so many years apart from its creator it didn't want to go back when the entity wanted it back.

It would be cool if the Unknown gets a scarecrow skin so people can pretend it’s Fiddlesticks from league of legends

I think the unknown has something to do with dvarka because the uvx looks like the the stuff on the map and the map has alien stuff which could be the alien race before they are gone because earliest case of unknown is in 1800s which could be when the alien were alive

The idea of the unknown being all these different things merged into one reminds me of the Australian Bunyip, a mythological creature that has several different appearances described by locals. Its been described as a having similar characteristics as a stingray, as a dog, as a snake, as an ox, as an alligator, as an emu, etc, but its all the one creature.

Something I find interesting about Unknown's design is the holes on its neck. It looks like its bleeding from there and those look like bullet holes, so did someone actually get some shots off on this thing?

The Unknown reminds me of the bear in the movie Annihilation (2018), where it mimics the voices of his victims to lure even more people.

One add-on I find really neat, in that the effect actually links strongly to what it seems to be, is the ultra rare that's the documentary about the unknown shown at the cinema. It mentions how it "left the viewers feeling unsettled", with its actual effect being that all the Survivors start off Weakened. I think it's a really neat way of both the add-on effect and the lore implying with as little information as possible that it targets those who think of it.

I'm not gonna lie I've already had to replay this video like 3 times because the Dredge gameplay is so entertaining

Thanks for the great vid! I am inclined to agree with those who assume the Unknown to be a manifested creature like the Dredge. However, it would be fun if it was somebody who had managed to escape the realm. What if we have finally met the Observer twisted by the trabsition back into our world and searching for help, but instead ending up drawn to the new stories of horror played out in people's minds - abd devouring them to add to his memories? I am quite sure that's not the case, but it could have been quite a twist :-)

The theories parrallel mine. Nice to see someone else sharing similar theories

It'd be so cool if the unknowns cosmetics changed it almost completly 😮, like new killers/mythos

By far the most intriguing killer when it comes to lore

I'd love if they had made analoug horror series to reveal more of his story

I feel the neatest thing about the unknown is that its dialogue hints that it hints down people by mimicking people. It makes me think part of its hunting technique involves making sure it is never fully know. The fact it seems to mention “the horror” leads me to think that it feeds on the horror people feel. Therefore it goes out of its way to remaining unknown as the fear people fear tends to decrease the more it knows about a thing or being. It feeds on fear and the greatest fear is the fear of the unknown.

He summoned The Unknown to him. It’s Azhymover…

Tbh this is making me really excited to have unknown tomes as it really feels like they're building up stuff for there

It's cool to see a cognitohazard killer in the game!

Here's a theory: What if the Unknown keeps escaping from the entities realm using these "fractures". It has been captive unwillingly by the entity and keeps fleeing from the entities realm to return to it's hunting grounds free from the control of the entity, as it gains power the more people think about it, which is why it hunts those investigating it.

The Unknown kind of reminds me of Fiddlesticks from League of Legends. It's a demon that has taken control of a scarecrow and it kills people, takes their voices, and slashes. It's not of this world, so fits the Unknown's "Alien" theme, it takes the voices of its victims so takes the "Urban Legend" thing, and it kills people with scythes so takes the "Slasher" theme. They both are lanky moving things, that occasionally walk on all fours (Fiddlesticks during it's ultimate/The Unknown for it's Mori). That's just my theory though, in terms of where the inspiration for it came from

It looks like Nick Cage was right.There is nothing more powerful than imagination

I love to think the entity seems to appear whenever people talk about it, similar to how the unknown starts saying to investigate it seems to summon it, and mikaela and sable manifested the entity by talking and investigating about it, so i would also think the unknown is a creature created frm the fog that leaked to the real world and got taken back by the entity for whatever reason

Maybe the unknown was an experiment created by the entity with the fog to make a new killer, some sort of avatar, or even a physical form to itself, the unknown escaped through the overlap, and the entity dragged its failed experiment back into its realm

The Unknown is easily one of my favourite killers so far in terms of design and lore. It’s creepy and goofy at the same time (its animations).

Regarding the case of Olivia: Based on the way you described that story, I honestly think her mistaking Mikaela's and Sable's disappearances as The Unknow was, ironically, keeping her safe from it, in a sense because the second she realizes they were the only two involving fog and begins piecing together that they are different from the other disappearances, getting closer to the truth by extension, The Unknown seems to appear in her bathroom and probably the only reason it didn't fuck with and/or kill her is because The Entity snatched it up first. It could just be dramatic timing for the sake of a story, but if not, then I think it could imply that it's not KNOWING about The Unknown that matters but UNDERSTANDING it. After all, it seemingly didn't care about her knowing so many of the people it disappeared until she eliminated the two false leads.

I'm glad I waited to comment on your conclusion - because from you described it's similar to what I was thinking. I believe the unknown may be one of the first creatures that is not only of 'the fog' but the entities creation - perhaps even not intentionally, but from a horrifific amalgamation of surviors lost. After all the unknown sounds mad from the lines we hear, but it's uncanny how 'normal' the voices sound. If it was based on fear and legends you'd think it would have a terrifying voice, something to remember - but it's a mix. Part of why I think this is the entities ablity to pull it in - the entity has always shown itself to be evil, so the fact this the first we've seen it being able to physically force into its realm implies perhaps it had some kind of hand in its creation. It has a hold on it - it's already belongs to the entity, and it doesn't want to go back. What if so many of those voice-lines weren't mimicries attempting to bait in victims, but survivors who spoke while under the entities control. All jokes aside about toxicity - saying 'sorry' a lot, may be survivors leaving behind others in their attempts to escape - and there's enough items around the realm to ask 'is this yours?' It's a long shot but I'm curious what the next couple of rifts have to offer!

Almost sounds like an SCP. With all the REDACTED.

Genuinely the reveal trailer scared the shit out if me for this guy, i actually dropped my phone i was so startled. Good shit

That thing is the perfect amount of creepy. Idk when slim and lanky became peak monster body type but it works. Also it’s mimicking. I have never played this game, have no knowledge of its lore whatsoever but I happened upon a short of the unknown and was captivated. I would like a movie about it lol

It reminds me of the scp 2521 - it appears whenever its talked about and snatches whatever the info is

The Unknown: Some well… Unknowable horror The Entity: lol ur mine now

I feel like the unknown is supposed to be dbd’s take on creepypasta story monsters. It has that creepypasta look to it

I’m honestly loving the unknown, the ability to snipe and teleport is just so fun

So, The Unknown is an entity who it just exist, and stays into the unknown, and all the different abilitys we know he have, is because the people though that it was his abilitys, it changes its form depending of the people that see it or thinks about him. But the mos interesting thing, is that he is the entitys prisioner, in one of his lines, it says that he has been trapped a long time, and it looks like him and the entity are "ennemys" or "bad friends". Basicly its reason of existing is being impossible to explain and kill, becoming what the people thinks he is. The only unknown thing is ¿Why the entity tries to pull it into his realm? As we can see, the Entity isnt the only powerfull being in this universe, (Just like the deal he made with Pyramid Head) So he probably asked the Unknown to enter the realm, he said no, and now they are like this, its the only reason i can find to him.

The unknown's line about being denied happiness makes sense if it was in the real world killing real people, whereas within the entity's realm no one truly dies, they just get sent to the next trial.

The unknown’s form reminds of the creation in the movie “The Thing” from 1982

Dredge, Singularity, and now this guy to me represent a new age of original killers that I think are easily some of Behaviours best work by far.

I think the unknown is one of those “it is what it is and isn’t what it isn’t” situations. The one we know in game is an amalgamation of all the evidence of what it could be that Olivia could find smashed together and taken the moment it tried to pounce on her. All the OSS reports are just vague enough to not support or deny anything, they might have found the unknown or they might have found any number of non humanoid things. It’s a really cool concept of “it is whatever you think it is” done in a manner that stays within the restrictions of the established dbd lore

It really looks like some 80s era b-movie monster bits, particularly the House series and Evil Dead 1 and 2.

I like how characters that come from the Withered Isle have weird or unknown origins. Dredge is unknown as to WHAT it is but we know it manifests through Mal-Think. Unknown we actually just don't know anything. It's undefined other than the form it takes of a broken, twisted man. And it only manifests when it is talked or researched about. Monsters of the Isle seem to be manifestations based off all things that can become negative. Thinking, talking, etc. They spawn from negativity & darkness. They're culminations of collective negative energy. I think that's why the Entity prefers to take these beings because once they sense any form of mal-thought or speech they will come and harvest that negative energy

I had the impression that the “unknown” was some sort of skin walker, flesh gait etc.

With your conclusion it could also be that the entity gave someone a vision of the unkown before it existed, to make it exist a bit like how the skull merchants father saw visions of her daughter in the future

Definitely wasn't created by the Fog, but more likely the result of Sable bringing them in. If you remember, Sable WILLINGLY went into the fog for Mikaela, while being unknowingly (haha) hunted by The Unknown since both her and Mikaela had attempted to summon them. So her with that knowledge of it most likely spread to the other Survivors, creating a foothold for The Unknown to manifest, and considering the multiverse of Survivors, it means the Unknown isn't leaving the realm anytime soon.

Makes me want to play again, similarly terrifying design to the mutants from lisa

The Unknown looks like it is the love child between John Carpenter’s Thing and Edgar the Bug from Men in Black.

I want a movie of this NOW!

That last bit makes it sound like a tulpa: basically a being that manifests into reality the more you think of it. So if you think unknown is a joe shmoe serial killer, then itll appear as a serial killer. Maybe the collected theories caused these all to combine, explaining its mashed up appearance of alien, serial killer, skin walker, government experiment.

The thought that Mikaela was more sensitive to realm because of the OSS experiments brings an interesting plot point to dbd lore as whole.Since if it is true,then the OSS is unknowngly helping to feed something much MUCH worse than the Unknown.Empowering the Entity by accidentaly exposing civilians the horrors of it's realm

All this overlap stuff reminds me of the thresholds from Control and Alan Wake 2

Try this on for size. It's a tulpa built on the fear of the entity, and it's powers are the manifestation of where people think its origin is.

I think it could be a Tulpa materialized being or thought-form, typically in human form, that is created through spiritual practice and intense concentration

I think it's supposed to be something similar to an SCP where it's origin is unknown but it has been living on Earth or at least this reality. It probably wasn't human because it struggles to walk normally and is much faster when he's twisted around upside down crawling so the tentacle thing inside of it is most likely it's actual body. The Unknown being a parasite could explain it's weird personality because it could keep the memories of previous hosts'. Maybe the Unknown had been existing with humans in plain sight but eventually it's memory became overloaded and caused it to become what it is today.

I think theres even more to this backstory: greenville is in the withered isle, where the dredge was created. Its interesting too because both of them are literall manifestation of fear(atleast building on my and others theory) and they both make the survivors disaper in their mori. I would like to hear more from Haddie in this lore; either in sable or the unknown because she is the survivor who researches the overlaps and she disapers in the once garden of joy, where greenville is in the present day. I think the dredge and the unknown has to be related in some way. OR MAYBE ITS FROM GLASSGOW WILLY WONKA WHERE THE OOMPA LOOMPAS ARE SAD AND WAIT,WHATS THAT? ITS THE UNKNOWN! F EVERYONES THEORY ITS AI GENERATED UNKNOWN FROM WILLY WONKA GLASSGOW (Im losing my mind I think…)

Also about Olivia I think she’ll become a perment character, giving us a person to tell the monster killer story’s through

listening to this it gave me an idea what if The Unknown is something similar to The Dredge a being shaped by the people around it

so theres that one quote where it says that its a creature from dungeons long forgotten, or something like that, right? What if its a DnD mimic? the tentacles line up, and if it learned how to mimic people, wouldnt it look something like how it does in game?

i think hes the child of the entity, his growth is very plant like, like blighted plants and he has claws in his launcher like the entity, it exists independently of the entity but works with it to cause terror on a world across time, gaining the traits of how people describe it in legend.

Snipers' nightmare: Pretty sure that it would be hard to headshot a small head thing