Conan Exiles - Survive, Build & Dominate The Hyborian Age [Game Review]
Overview
I took part in the early access feature of Conan Exiles, which was originally released on January 30th, 2017. The game got like 4000 servers after just the first day so an interest certainly is there (currently in the steam top 10 most played games). I think this is an important point because i like my survival games to have actual other players playing it for the PvP aspect.
The game was developed and published by Funcom, and on their website you can find more information, here is a statement from Funcom themselves:
"Funcom was founded in 1993 and has since then developed and published over 25 game titles across several genres and gaming platforms. Most notable of these are the MMOs 'The Secret World', 'Age of Conan' and 'Anarchy Online', as well as the adventure game 'The Longest Journey'."
I was not a big fan of Age of Conan. Even though it had it's strengths in combat, it lacked something to hook me in and then keep me there. The thing that's good with the fact that they previously developed Age of Conan is that they are most likely pretty well read into the Conan world/lore and universe to do the barbarian icon justice.
This is a survival game. You will start of naked (or with a cloth, depending upon your preference) in a scorching desert with nothing but a big rock with glowing text echoing "Follow the road" as you interact with it. There is a clear road to follow, but as in any survival game it's always good to start hunt for resources. You would probably be best of by at least harvesting some fibers from nearby plants to sew some clothes before embarking upon your path though.
You will meet giant crocodiles, toxic sand reapers and corrupted men twisted by foul magic upon your journey so crafting a weapon early on is also highly advisable. If you manage to kill beasts, you can then harvest their remains. Don't forget, this is a survival game and you need to eat and sleep to survive.
Lets dive into the story of Conan Exiles.
Story
Before being thrown into the hostile Hyborian Age, you will customize your character. You will find quite a lot of different races and appearances to choose from, all with different details about their strengths/weaknesses. This game tells your story, with you being the story teller and Conan only being a cameo in the game.
As the game begins you will be starting of in a crazy sandstorm taking the role of a punished exile. Punished by being hanged upon a cross in the deadly, unforgiving rays of the sun. All of a sudden a shadowy figure shows itself in the midst of the flying sand. Conan shows himself, cuts you down, thus relieving you of your punishment and setting you free.
Monsters attack both you and Conan as you try to defend for your life. With the help of the legendary barbarian you succeed with your naked body still in one piece.
As Conan leaves you to your fate he utters "Perhaps it would have been more merciful to leave you". That makes you feel great starting out right?
Most survival games often does not offer to much into the lore and story but here where Conan Exiles is different. Funcom has a vast library of information about the fictional Hyborian Age do draw inspiration from and this is something they have done with great detail. For true Conan fans looking to get some deep backstory, you will find this game perfect for the task of doing Robert E. Howard worlds justice.
Game Mechanics
Survive in the hostile bygone Hyborian Age by controlling your hunger and tiredness.
Tame the elements in a ever changing environment with full day/night cycles and a advanced weather system.
Meet ferocious creatures from the world of Conan. Run and fight against everything from shalebacks(which are basically gorilla-turtles) to skeletal lizard beasts.
Satisfying and easy building mechanics. Build your home to secure yourself from the prying eyes of monsters and enemies.
Vastly different environments. From everything to snow-capped mountains to dark damp caves and deadly jungles, all with their own ecosystem, creatures and dangers.
Extensive and enjoyable crafting system. Any survival game is only as good as its crafting. Conan Exiles provides a satisfying crafting experience and resource collecting. Many different small details makes everything feel alive.
Sacrifice other enemy players after defeating them in PvP to your God of choosing. If your sacrifice is looked upon with favor you may gain extremely powerful special God-like abilities.
Fight epic bosses in different dungeons, taken from the lore of the Conan universe and gain powerful rewards.
Building & Crafting Mechanics
Make your place in the world by building your very own home. Gather the resources needed as stone and wood to build your perfect house. You will be able to use tools like workbenches and tanneries to transform the resources you harvest into the correct usable items for your construction, offering an advanced crafting system. Want to forge a new barbarian battle-axe? Find some metal, find a forge, light it up and craft away!
Want to advance your home to a fortress? Or how about build an entire city? Well you can do that to, Exiles building possibilities are truly vast.
The crafting system also offers a big choice of decorations to craft for ultimate personalization of your home, city or fortress. There is no restriction to where you can build your home, want to build a home at a mountain top or in the middle of the jungle? Well you can, and its awesome (harvesting some human skin can offer some interesting decor).
The building mechanics are really enjoyable to use to. When using "Shift+Scroll Wheel" you will set a height for your construction to which everything else will snap with a "clicking" feature. Your material will easily snap together while building, making the process easy and fun.
As your crafting progresses, you will unlock new shapes & forms so that you will not be confined to square blocky, utilitarian structures and instead can get more creative with your construction designs. This actually opens up a lot of creativity in the building mechanic.
Combat & Sacrifices
Want to destroy your friends settlements and wage total war upon them? You want to show them who the true barbarian king of the Exiled Lands is? The combat in this game will offer all off this. You will be able to blast enemy walls and bring down entire structures with the right equipment. You will be able to capture and torture thralls on "The Wheel of Pain" to make them work for you instead. Either crafting on your behalf or even guarding and fighting to defend your structures.
The combat system is a bit to basic for my liking, but perhaps an update will make it better. You basically have a light and strong attack, with the possibility to dodge and block attacks. It puts much emphasize on learning the rhythm of your enemies attacks to execute successful counters which i like, but personally i think it needs more combos and diversity in its current state.
Craft and build an altar for the God of your choosing and then take your enemies there for sacrifice. You will receive blessings and rewards depending upon your religion, currently there are 4 different paths to chose, namely:
The "God who requires no worship." - Crom watches the world from his mountain top, but does not answer prayers and will receive no worship. If you choose Crom as your god at the start of the game, you will not get the knowledge of an acolyte, so he is the god to choose if you do not wish to get involved in the religion system in Conan Exiles.
The "God of serpents and sacrifice." - Set, the Old Serpent, glories in the ritual sacrifice of humans atop his bloody altars. Set’s followers are granted powers that align with their god, protection from Poison and the ability to turn Snakes into Arrows.
The "God of cannibals." - Yog, the Lord of Empty Abodes, demands that his followers consume flesh that has been ritually purified. This means the flesh of other humans, and in return, Yog grants his followers blessed Weapons and Armor.
The "God of right and justice." - Mitra, chosen god of the Hyborians, purports to be a god of right and justice, but his zealous followers are consumed with expanding his religion at the detriment of all others. Mitra’s followers are given the ability to create sacred Statues, Clothing, Healing Consumables and Weapons – including the sacred symbol of the Phoenix.
GamingViking's Final Judgement
