Metro Exodus

Release Date: 22.02.2019

The year is 2036.

A quarter-century after nuclear war devastated the earth, a few thousand survivors still cling to existence beneath the ruins of Moscow, in the tunnels of the Metro.

They have struggled against the poisoned elements, fought mutated beasts and paranormal horrors, and suffered the flames of civil war.

But now, as Artyom, you must flee the Metro and lead a band of Spartan Rangers on an incredible, continent-spanning journey across post-apocalyptic Russia in search of a new life in the East.

 From 4A Games, the same developer behind the other two installations in the much loved Metro franchise. A brutal blend of violence, stealth, exploration and horror make Exodus a truly exciting first-person shooter. Set in the Russian wilderness, the story follows on from Metro 2035, with Artyom as the protagonist. Unlike the other games, Metro Exodus is the first to not be set during or between the books written by Dmitry Glukhovsky but rather will take place after.

Metro Exodus looks to slightly change the formula, with a lot of the core team being made up of people who worked on STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl, they have decided to combine the mostly linear gameplay of the Metro franchise with the more open-ended nature of Stalker.

Due to this Metro Exodus consists of large sandbox areas mixed with linear underground areas. The developers refer to this as “sandbox survival”. The largest areas of Last Light capped out at 200 x 100 metres, while the regions of Metro Exodus stretch to 2 square kilometres. There are numerous places to explore on the surface, but some irradiated outdoor areas may still require gas masks to be worn for safety. Exodus includes a full weather system with a dynamic day/night cycle (Artyom can rest to pass the time, similarly to how this worked in Far Cry 2). 4A Games has promised no Ubisoft-style fetch quests. Unlike the titles developed by Bethesda, there is no convenient fast travel system here, though Exodus does feature safe-houses as well as occasional zip lines to launch the player straight into an activity.

The player can customise Artyom’s wristband with indicators (the nixie watch from Last Light is back as part of this), while the firearms utilised in the game can be modified in five different areas: scopes, barrels, magazines, attachments, and stocks. Artyom can strip the attachments off of the weaponry he finds on his fallen enemies to later apply to his own guns. Plenty of mutants from the older titles in the series return (e.g. the bear), but there are also many new additions (like the humanimal or the wolf) – varying by location and climate. Completely new gameplay mechanics include a map of the sandbox area, a Geiger counter, and binoculars that may be used for analysing the environment. Artyom can now holster his weapons to approach potential hostiles with a less intimidating intent, sometimes even allowing you to bypass combat with other humans entirely. Holstering your gun also bolsters Artyom’s running speed.

A scavenging system, somewhat reminiscent of Fallout: New Vegas and Fallout 4, has been implemented; the player can convert the junk and valuables they find in the world into two key resources: chemicals and materials. These resources can then be utilised to craft tools and other items. Workstations will be littered around each map, allowing you to craft ammunition and modify your equipment.

This extensive scavenging/crafting system has been put in place to replace the bullet economy of the previous games, which does not apply outside of Moscow. Artyom can now comandeer vehicles, such as rowing a boat across a lake. Quick-time events make another appearance in the gameplay of Exodus, but are used sparingly. Enemy behaviour changes with the time of day and form of environment. The karma system from the previous games is back and has evolved.

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