On January 30th, 2017, Norwegian video game developer Funcom released Conan Exiles on PC through Steam Early Access. In August of that same year, Microsoft added this open-world survival title to their Xbox Game Preview program, instantly allowing more players to explore Conan the Barbarian’s world while offering helpful feedback on how to improve the overall gameplay experience.
Now that Conan Exiles is poised and ready to officially launch on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on May 8th, Funcom is starting to showcase the final build to various media outlets around the world. I had an opportunity to see Exiles running on Xbox One X during GDC 2018 and walked away from the experience both thoroughly impressed and optimistic about this title’s future. Here are a few more thoughts on why this action-adventure survival game may be worth checking out.
Conan Exiles could be best described as an open world survival video game set within the fictional prehistoric Hyborian Age. Shortly after creating a male or female character, the player is convicted of a crime and sentenced to death by crucifixion until Conan manages to save the day. Once set free, players are cast out as exiles and left to fend for themselves in the harsh desert landscape simply referred to as The Exiled Lands. When Exiles launched in Early Access, this was largely where most of the exploration took place and the area was expanded upon even further last year with a free expansion titled The Frozen North.
When the final version releases in May, players can expect several noticeable gameplay improvements across the board. The first major addition worth mentioning is a revamped combat system that is more fluid and reminiscent of how you would fight in Dark Souls. Prior to this significant update, the combat was fairly straightforward and basic. The newly added depth to attacks will bring a deeper sense of realism to every battle while raising the bar at a steady pace. There will also be 100 new weapons, armors, and perks available to give players a wider range of things to explore.
Speaking of exploration, players can expect far bigger regions to investigate. While Funcom reps mentioned that the story won’t have any quests, they did state that there will be plenty of lore, dungeons, and concrete explanations as to why your character is in this world. Your surroundings will essentially tell stories of their own and your survival will be the key to answering lingering questions.
The final improvements worth noting stem from Funcom’s ongoing commitment to making Conan Exiles truly feel like a survival game. You’ll have to be mindful of your hunger level and health regularly as farming and regeneration are two features that will certainly require your attention. For players who have maxed out all of their abilities and are looking for even greater challenges, there will be world bosses that they can conquer too. More content is also currently being planned for the game after launch but it’s unclear what exactly that will be right now. Either way, it’s evident that the developers are committed to keeping players on their toes and fans of survival games will definitely appreciate this sentiment.
If you’re an Xbox One X or PS4 Pro owner, then you’ll definitely be getting the best console version of Conan Exiles currently on the market. Having seen the game running on an Xbox One X, I can personally say that the visuals are every bit as stunning as they would be on a PC and the overall performance far exceeded my own expectations. If you do own a gaming PC, then you obviously should get Exiles on that platform but its good to know that console owners weren’t completely left in the dark on getting a solid version of this game.
While my time with Conan Exiles was brief, I definitely walked away satisfied. If you are a fan of Conan and you love survival games, then Exiles should definitely be on your radar right now.
Conan Exiles launches worldwide on May 8th for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Are any of you planning on checking out the game? Please feel free to let us know in the comments section below.
