The system also introduces the concept of flip-flopping, where players who are using their obsession skill can choose to switch the "tens" and "singles" of their dice rolls (for example, turning 74 into 47.)

A reviewer from the online second volume of Pyramid wrote "Picture a world built of the magical illumination of Tim Powers and the gritty, brutal action of James Ellroy.

Add a hard-charging Steve Earle/Nick Cave soundtrack, and watch the movie in the rattiest, creepiest theater you can think of in the baddest part of town.

"[2] In Issue 12 of the French game magazine Backstab, Michaël Croitoriu commented, "Although Unknown Armies might make you think of Kult or Mage: The Ascension, in reality it has absolutely nothing to do with them.

We easily recognize a background of Call of Cthulhu and a ladle of Cults & Conspiracies [Non Sequitur Productions, 1997], all making up a simple and effective cocktail, with four abilities, some skills to refine yourself, all determined via percentages.

Lhomme concluded, "Unknown Armies is a good, rich game that will please horror fans wanting a change of scenery.

Writer and game designer Kenneth Hite commented "Unknown Armies tells us that the only reality is what human beings choose to make of it, and frightens us with the thought that only insane people care enough to really change it.

Horvath concluded, "By frankly explaining their reasoning in the text of the rules, the designers of Unknown Armies were inviting further discussion, and that conversation is still ongoing more than two decades later.