The sci-fi action RPG Exodus made its grand return during The Game Awards two years after its initial reveal at the 2023 edition. The easy pitch for the debut game by Archetype Entertainment is Mass Effect meets Interstellar, and the game even features actor Matthew McConaughey in a prominent role. Tonight’s extended trailer gave us a better look at the overarching plot, the alien characters players will befriend or battle, and the protagonist’s otherworldly combat abilities.
Set 40,000 years in the future, humanity has fled a dying Earth to find a new home in another galaxy. After settling on a world called Lidon, life support and terraforming systems begin to fail due to a corrupting force called the Rot. Players control Jun, a customizable hero who can be male or female, and a salvager with a secret lineage to the revered Traveler dynasty. This heritage means Jun must embark on interstellar missions to recover powerful alien technology known as Celestial Remnants, which may be the key to humanity’s survival. Jun’s mentor in this journey is C.C. Orlev, a mysterious and legendary figure voiced by Matthew McConaughey in his first video game role.
Players travel to different planets alongside a crew of companions – of which only some are human – to battle enemies in third-person, cover-based shooting, along with a suite of superhuman abilities. Before you ask, yes, you can romance companions. Your main weapon is a shapeshifting gun called the Recycler, but Jun has also been genetically engineered to interface with celestial technology. This is leveraged by a special gauntlet they wear that allows them to manipulate a powerful resource to manipulate the environment in offensive ways. In the trailer, Jun punches the ground, which causes the earth to erupt upwards to damage enemies in front of them, for example.
Outside of combat, Exodus is a choice-driven narrative adventure. You can talk yourself in or out of situations such as combat encounters, though Archetype aims for more nuanced choices as opposed to going down more black and white “good” and “evil” paths. Jun’s choices will also affect how their companions view them.
While all of this may sound similar to Mass Effect, Exodus sets itself apart with its time dilation feature. Since you’re traveling at lightspeed, time passes differently for you than for those left behind. While you may be gone for days exploring a new world, 10 years will pass back home. The people you meet will age rapidly, which will affect their personalities and their feelings towards you, for better or worse. This also applies to any companions you leave behind, as you can’t take everyone in your party on a mission.
Exodus was originally scheduled to launch next year, but it now has an early 2027 release window. When it does arrive, it will be available for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
