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Have you ever looked up at the stars on a dark, quiet night and wondered about the mysteries of the universe? How is it that there are only three Mass Effect games? No. No, no. No, no, not you. Probably, somewhere out there, in outer space, the fourth part of Mass Effect is already being created. But what would a sequel or spiritual successor to Mass Effect 3 look like? Well, you don't have to ask these questions anymore, because we have the answers. And after what seems like an eternity of starvation, Mass Effect fans will finally be able to eat again.
Dinner will be served on April 7, 2027. And, friends, this steak may be too juicy. I'm talking about the upcoming single-player sci-fi RPG Exodus, which was announced back in December 2023 at The Game Awards. It is produced by Wizards of the Coast and developed by Archetype Entertainment as its debut project. This studio was created back in 2019 to develop new games outside of the Wizards of the Coast brands, you know, Dungeons and Dragons, Magic, and the like. You may have heard of this game, you may have forgotten it existed, but I'm here to remind you. Because Wizards of the Coast invited Act Bro and me to fly to Austin, Texas in the scorching summer heat to play Exodus back in August. This video is sponsored by
Wizards of the Coast, and for the sake of complete transparency: they did not send me any specific briefs for coverage or restrictions on what I could say. I'm going to share with you my full, unfiltered thoughts on Exodus, and luckily, the game is really , really fun. So today I'm giving you a super-secret look at Exodus, the spiritual successor to the Mass Effect trilogy. Yes, this, this is just a trilogy. Sorry. My face is tired. They didn't give me any pre-order links or anything like that in the description, they didn't ask me to add anything there, but if you're interested, I'll just leave the links to the trailers in a pinned comment below. But
it sets a very high bar of expectations, like, "Oh, this is the spiritual successor to Mass Effect. It's like, oh, you'll be able to relive the same feelings you had back then." People always want more of a good thing, and if you're going to convince them of this idea, you have to meet high standards. Similar to the comparisons between Callisto Protocol and Dead Space, the comparisons between Mass Effect and Exodus are hard to ignore. There's nothing wrong with being inspired by someone's work and trying to emulate it, especially if that franchise no longer releases similar games. I think it's a great idea to try to recreate what made that trilogy so incredible. With Andromeda and Anthem out of the way, BioWare's games have
n't been impressive lately, and there's been a big void in the RPG genre. It's time to fill it. So you might feel more at ease if you learn a little more about the developers and their experience. Because, to be honest, it's been 3 years since the first trailer was released, I kind of forgot about the existence of this game and didn't know who exactly worked on Exodus until I visited their studio. This is the first game from Archetype Entertainment, and the studio itself was founded by former BioWare developers. We've seen this happen many times in the gaming industry. The once beloved studio is experiencing a tragic decline. A completely new dog model.
This usually happens because the people who made the company so popular have already left. You see, when I went to Austin, I didn't know I would meet one of my heroes, Drew Karpyshyn. This guy. Let me tell you about him. He wrote scripts for several Baldur's Gate games, Neverwinter Nights, and the first Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic. He was the lead writer for Mass Effect 1 and 2, and also wrote several novels based on the Star Wars and Mass Effect universes, okay? They invited the person who came up with the plot twist in KOTOR to write Exodus. Do you understand what I mean? Just give this person the best pencil in the world and let them create. In any case, having these
BioWare veterans at the helm of the project gave me confidence, because it seems like they really know their stuff. So, when we started, we had no idea where the market would be. You can't try to chase the market. We just have to do what we love and care about, because those are the games we made, the games we like, and the games we want to see more of. Oh, and it looks like Matthew McConaughey is in the game too. I was going to come out and say the phrase that has accompanied me my entire career: "it's okay, okay, okay," but they told me: "No, no, no, don't do that."
I'm also here today because the video game I'm presenting is the first video game I've ever participated in. Hooray. We draw inspiration from a variety of sources: Knights of the Old Republic, Dragon Age, Interstellar, Mass Effect, and the way they combine these elements and ideas makes the game quite unique. For me, when it comes to RPGs, I can put up with crooked gameplay, but the plot and script have to be top notch. That's why I mention Drew first, because, you know, especially with a new franchise, you want players to be able to immerse themselves in the world and feel it come alive. Have you ever started watching a TV show with your friends, somewhere in the middle, and didn't quite understand what was going on, but thought, "Damn, I
want to keep watching this. I want to start from the beginning." That's exactly how Exodus felt, because the portion of the game we played lasted an hour and a half, but it was somewhere around the 10-14 hour mark of the story. We've long since gotten to know the characters, missed a lot of context, but I was able to immerse myself in the story, understand the characters and what drives them. I'm not going to negotiate with a defective car. I've had enough of these biting insinuations. I'm sure it will be presented more eloquently in the game, but in short: a group of space pirates have captured a space station. They enslaved a species of
intelligent, beast-like creatures that could talk. These little frogs are called "Kay" because it suits me. Here's the context for those 70 minutes of gameplay. It wasn't entirely clear who these "awakened ones" were, but, you know, I saw three frogs that could talk. One of them was playing heavy metal, and that was all I was interested in. Music, could you turn it off? Oh, music. Of course, of course, no problem. Wait. So, why are you here? The mission is to infiltrate the base and eliminate the top lieutenant. The player will decide: to leave the " awakened" alone or to use the station's technologies for their own purposes.
We were only given general outlines, an idea of the plot, the world, the characters, and the story. If you were a fan of the Renegade Hero" morality system from Mass Effect or the "Light and Dark Sides" from KotOR, you 'll be pleasantly surprised to learn that Exodus has a similar system. While what I was playing seemed a bit black and white, like a decision about good or evil, the choices I was making, even out of context, seemed important. It was as if I was a complete newcomer to this world and still debating: should I spare this guy, give him a first aid kit, or just conserve my resources? When it comes to RPGs like this, I've personally always preferred New Vegas, KotOR, Dragon Age Origins over the fully voiced protagonist of Dragon Age 2 or Shepard.
Your commanders don't give a damn about you. I like a silent protagonist whose lines I can read in my mind and hear as my own voice. It's a great way to allow us to project ourselves onto a character and, dare I say it, play a role. But when it's done well, a character like Commander Shepard can be quite compelling. Sometimes I forget that Mass Effect even had a character editor, because almost all the memes, er, YouTube videos, or anything I've seen always use Mark Vanderloo's face.
I need to think. I need a penis. Me too, okay? No, I mean Anyway, as long as the overall scenario is good, that's the most important thing. Whether or silent is secondary. One thing I like about RPGs that have companions is when your decisions trigger a reaction from them. So, we played the game with two people: Solomon, who is pragmatic and insightful, and he also has a haircut like Leon Kennedy. And Elise, who is more sensitive and cheerful. But the idea that you can get a completely different set of reactions and a completely different experience depending on who you take with you throughout the game is the type of branching storyline that adds a lot to replayability. As you can see, character influence is
part of the dialogue in Exodus. And yes, I know what you're thinking. Is it possible, is it possible to sleep with him? Yes. Romantic relationships are a confirmed feature for all your companions. Almost for everyone. One of them is a talking octopus, so I don't know if you'd want to be "that" guy. The point is that you will be able to test your charisma in a digital environment without risk, and you will also get the opportunity to face rejection. While you were looking at the gameplay on the screen or listening to this video instead of watching. How dare you? You'll quickly notice the similarities to Mass Effect. It's a
third-person shooter with cover and squad mechanics. There are special abilities, tools, like homing missiles, EM grenades, and temporary camouflage. You have several weapons and different types of ammo depending on what enemy you are fighting. The battles are very dynamic, and players will have many options for action at any given time. Honestly, that gauntlet with magical cosmic powers, celestial technologies. Now I remember. This gauntlet seems so powerful that perhaps the game should have been made a little more difficult. Although that's good. I mean, in a science fiction game about space, you want to have cool space abilities.
The shooting is very high quality, even if you don't use them. Also, spoiler: there's a moment where you confront the villain, the lieutenant, and she begins her monologue. You think: okay, she'll jump on the bear now, and the boss battle will begin. But no. Solomon pours slime on her. This is how to destroy expectations. You know how some games have too much combat, too much action, and you're like, "Dude, can we pause for a second?" Well, the gameplay loop in Exodus was very well balanced in terms of pace. All the combat sections left me wanting more, I was eager to move on to the next battle as quickly as possible.
Between them were plot inserts, dialogue, light puzzles, platforming, and side quests. Plus, you can scan the environment for details, context, and small story facts, which is nice. And while the game wasn't incredibly difficult, I had a lot of fun playing through it. I'm going to set the difficulty to the highest when I play it. To answer your question: yes, it was as enjoyable to play as it looks. As you progress through the game, you will discover various celestial abilities. This gauntlet will give you the power to briefly turn enemies to stone or send a wave of cosmic debris to throw opponents into the air. Some encounters can only be handled secretly. In KotOR and Dragon Age, you could pause combat to give
orders to your companions. And as a tribute to this feature, Exodus has something similar. You can slow down time and order your companions to use their abilities. It's not as detailed as the more turn-based games, but there are some cool elemental effects. You can combine certain attacks for unique effects: for example, turning an enemy to stone and then ordering the giant woman in the robot, Eliza, to fire a heavy missile that shatters enemies. So, things like that are cool. I'm curious how this elemental damage combination mechanic will affect the game going forward. It seems to me that when fighting a bear, if you make it crash into one of these pipes, it will start to suffocate, which will give you the opportunity to damage it. Perhaps
my only complaint about the game is that your companions don't seem to have health bars. So, it's possible to play very passively, letting your invulnerable allies fight for you, which can create another problem: if the enemy AI simply ignores the companions or can't do anything to them, it can ruin the immersion and tension of the battle. We were told that this was still a working version. There may be some glitches or minor errors, but what I played felt quite complete. Exodus has been in development for 7 years, and the level of polish of the game proves it. I didn't encounter any serious bugs during my entire time playing the game, even though it was a controlled environment. However, this is a single-player game, so I don't think server issues can be anything
serious. Can you imagine if my words would sound very inappropriate over time? The level design felt a bit linear, but it's not too different from something like KOTOR, which isn't that difficult. All the tools you use with the gauntlet can also be used when exploring, solving puzzles, and platforming. Judging from what I've played, Exodus is a game I'd have to look hard for something to find fault with. Although it is quite possible that all the game's shortcomings will only be revealed after its release, it looks very good. We've been waiting a long time for a true and worthy successor to the Mass Effect trilogy, or at least another epic sci- fi RPG, haven't we, Bethesda? For Mass Effect fans, what I say and what you see may seem too good to be true, but I've
experienced it myself. I've seen the trailers, been behind the scenes, met the people working on it, and I think this game is going to be fantastic. As I said, I wasn't told what to say. This is what I honestly think about this game. Will Exodus be better than Mass Effect? I don't think it necessarily has to be better. You know, from a new game universe, I just want to get that Mass Effect style of gameplay in a new world with limitless possibilities. I want a game that reminds me of the old BioWare, and that's exactly what this does. In any case, I'm looking forward to its release, and considering that there are still 6 months of polishing ahead, that's a really long time. I didn't encounter any bugs. I think
Archetype Entertainment's first game is going to be a big success. But what do you think? Are you interested in Exodus? Share your thoughts and impressions in the comments below. Like if you enjoyed the video and subscribe to The Act Man for more cool content. Once again, a big thank you to Wizards of the Coast for sponsoring this video and giving me the opportunity to play this game early. It was the right decision to go there, honestly. If you said to my 11- year-old self, "Dude, you know that company that makes Pokémon cards and has Pokémon tournaments? Dude, they're going to be your sponsors." I would n't believe you, but yes, it happened. This was a really cool
opportunity, and if you're interested, I'll just leave some trailers in the description and pinned comment. So, okay, folks, that's all I have for today. The Act Man was with you, goodbye. Peace.
