Exodus Preview – Awakening Mass Effect’s successor?

There’s two burning questions about Exodus: Can it live up to the legacy and style of classic Mass Effect? And can you romance the mercenary octopus in the mech suit? And actually, I’ve got a third question, how would that work? We got to go hands-on with Exodus at Gamescom last week and have answers to one of those questions.

Set in the far future and distant reaches of space, we’re well into the ‘advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic’ era of human and alien advancement. Confronted by the race branded as Celestials, and with the Rot threatening to bring about the collapse of the planet of Lidon, the only hope is for Jun Aslan to realise the borderline mystical connection he has to Celestial tech and use it to save them all.

We picked up at a fairly early part of this story with Jun enlisted on a mission up to the Khonsu orbital station which has, for the longest time, shielded the planet below from meteors, but has now been hijacked by zealots led by Jun’s half brother. Alas, this point in the story means there’s no mercenary Awakened octopus in the party, but Jun is joined by Elise and Suliman, and Elise which is still in mech suit, so there is that.

There’s more complications than just the militarised zealots, though. Robot ‘Ghosts’ roam the orbital station and will attack anything and everything they see, while the Kay are awakened giant frogs who have looked after and maintained the station.

Stepping aboard Khonsu, and you immediately feel that ancient alien architecture around you. It’s evocative of the original look of Forerunner installations from the original Halo, with its dulled metal that creates rock-like debris, but the airlocks have a swooping flourish of their own, as huge ball-like doors swipe open and close, and then there’s the the more 3D printed or layered strands elsewhere.

Jun’s connection to Celestial tech makes him unique and special in getting through the space station. He’s able to manipulate the fabric of the station at various points to conjure new walkways, he alone can trigger certain doorways, and there’s a new ability to pick up through this mission, allowing him to remotely stall various power portals and activate things from afar.

It doesn’t take long for the first Ghosts to appear and need a good seeing to. Combat is classic third-person cover shooter fare, with Jun’s Recycler assault rifle and Shredder shotgun providing a solid baseline. Jun also has some Celestial abilities to call upon, with Lance conjuring a spear to throw at enemies, Erupt punching down and causing a focussed earthquake to push out in a wave toward a target, and Petrify able to temporarily freeze enemies in a glob of material.

Alongside that you can order your companions to use their abilities. Suliman is all commando-like with a stealth attack that makes for a great opening gambit in battle, and Elise’s mech is equipped with rockets to blast them. They will do their own thing in battle with basic attacks, but need your direction to use their abilities and, in this demo at least, that actually made them quite annoying. Elise would constantly shout at me from the other side of the room to say that her abilities are now ready, and Suliman calling out because he needs a target. I get that these are key abilities on cooldowns that players should control, but this dialogue did start to drive me to distraction in a couple of fights and is an aspect that needs tuning.

But it was dialogue and characterisation that took the fore in other parts of the demo. You naturally have the freedom to choose the kind of person that Jun will be through this adventure, and presented with a wounded zealot, he’s given the choice of whether to heal him or leave him. The soldier has a sob story about how he was blinded by his naivety into signing up and just wants to go home, so it’s a fairly easy moral choice to make on the surface… but I kind of hope it backfires.

Then there’s the robot filled with memories to try and crack into the Celestial temple, who thinks he’s a real person through a glitch in his programming, and the Awakened Kay named 42C who floats through the tubes and pipes of the station listening to music on full blast. They’re a varied bunch of personalities and provide a levity to the situation, to which Jun and Suliman in particular act as straightmen in this routine. That works as highlights to a broader story, and I’m keen to see how the more serious side of the tale plays out through dozens of hours. I think there’s an over-saturation with Marvel movie quips and quirkiness in scriptwriting that does need to be balanced.

For the mission on Khonsu, there’s still that serious undercurrent and threat to the planet below, and a good variety in how you get around. The path through the station is blocked at one point, forcing you to head outside, using magboots to stick to the surface and with your ship helping to light the way as you fight Ghosts in low gravity. It’s a nice segment. There’s also more battles with Gideon’s forces, his lieutenant on the station determined that if she can’t have control of Khonsu, then no-one can.

Our hands-on time with the game ended with a cliffhanger moment. They have an Awakened War Bear…

Exodus has the potential to be really special, picking up the mantle of Mass Effect within the sci-fi RPG genre. I want to see more about the story that it’s telling and how it morphs into a galactic romp, but I love the Awakened as a distinctive form of intelligent life, and the blend of abilities, combat and exploration. Exodus is absolutely one to look forward to when it launches in April 2027.

Tags: Exodus