From the developers of Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodhunt, Sharkmob AB had announced this game back at the 2023 game awards. It is set in a post-apocalyptic US where the only “objective is to bring back more than you lose” as stated per their description for this title on Sharkmob’s website. It has yet to be announced but will be on Xbox, Playstation and PC at launch.
A World in Ruin
Exoborne will mostly take place in a post-apocalyptic America such as ruined towns or city landscapes that have been reclaimed by nature. This gives Sharkmob the opportunity to create various distinct areas for players to experience the gameplay systems that the developers have envisioned. They have stated that while this is an extraction shooter the unique mechanic here will be that with each round players will face obstacles created by weather along with opposing players and other non-player enemies. Among run-down motels, abandoned school buses, there will also be sinkholes placed around the map which will allow players to explore underground such as ruined subways for example.
Those who got to play it had praised the weather system as something unique and fun to adapt to rather than calling it a gimmick. The weather can at points get drastic enough to the point that teammates may not be able to hear each on comms or they’ll get drowned out in the noise created by the weather.
Tactical Combat and Exoskeletons
There are a ton of extraction shooters out there but while the mode isn’t new, implementation of it makes all the difference, the dynamic weather system is ofcourse a plus changing the entire area and thus it forces each side to reevaluate their strategies. While the use of cover and environmental effects isn’t at all something new to this genre again the implementation and execution of it matters a lot more than if the idea is revolutionary or not. For example, Ubisoft’s new StarWars: Outlaws had abysmal AI and the explosions that occur when shooting at barrels were horrendous and looked like it had the same effects that you’d see from a 2006 game.
Image Credits: Steam
It seems there is also going to be vehicle combat much like in almost every battle royale game these days along with grappling hooks or any gadget that allows someone to gain ground quickly, whether it’ll be a special power here for the Exo-Rig(exoskeleton) or something that every player has is something we’ll have to wait to see.
It Looks Phenomenal, Therefore Take With a Grain Of Salt
The game’s graphics look absolutely amazing, the level of detail on the player models is staggering to say the least, the lush greenery with futuristic monolith buildings is always welcome. The gun looks fun and engaging with what looks like a 3 versus 3 setting, sort of like the “Finals” and “Apex Legends”. But of course anybody knows game trailers can’t be trusted at all, ever since the days of “Watchdogs” and the recent “Ghost Recon” games being all separate productions and there is no concrete proof of whether the footage we are shown is legitimate.
Image Credits: Steam
Cool, Now When Can I Play?
Exoborne as of right now is in closed play testing which started back in May of this year but as of yet no dates have been announced for open testing or a release date. Based on a couple of reviews from those who got in the closed play testing they had enjoyed the gameplay loop and progression system. The game’s progression may not be forgiving at first but it’s meant to become easier and easier in the long run, this speculation but what seems to be the case is that even if a player fails to complete the extraction he or she will still retain some of the loot acquired so that it doesn’t feel like a total loss at the end and these loots will help in improving the character they’ve chosen to play as for the next run.
Hopefully this fairs better with the community and doesn’t face the issues that Sharkmob’s previous game did. People really did try to enjoy Vampire:The Masquerade – Bloodhunt but the game was riddled with bugs affecting the core gameplay of it thus it suffered a dwindling player base and they stopped maintaining it only a year later.
