Exodus Plays Exactly How a New Mass Effect Should | IGN Hands-on Preview

Key Preview Takeaways:Exodus’s space-opera vibes immediately reminded me of Mass Effect, and that seems to be on purpose.Its Paladin/Immortal morality system reflects the Paragon/Renegade system, but it's going for something deeper than just good/evil and is centered around preserving humanity.Combat feels like an evolution of Mass Effect, sharing many similartieis with shooting mechanics and controlling your allies' abilities.When the team at Archetype Entertainment showed us the latest trailer for Exodus before the premiere at Opening Night Live, it seemed like they had understood the assignment – emotional, character-driven stories that felt natural for a space-opera RPG in the vein of Mass Effect. It was the reveal of the party member Salt, an Awakened octopus who pilots a mech to fight and protect her home. Her contentious attitude toward the player-protagonist Jun Aslan contrasts with the deep care she has for her species, and through a brief trailer, showed how it's channeling the sentiments of Interstellar; outside of Matthew McConaughey being in this, too.But that's one piece of what a game like this needs – albeit, an incredibly important one. I played a little over an hour of Exodus and saw for myself how the gameplay piece of that puzzle comes into place. Punchy third-person shooting with two party members whose tech- and biotic-coded abilities you command through a wheel as time slows, it's like I was playing a legally distinct BioWare game. Archetype isn't shy about the parallels here nor should they be, because from my brief time with Exodus, it seems to be filling that massive void effectively.I played an entire mission that had me and two party members infiltrating a construct in space called Khonsu, which orbits humanity's new home planet Lidon. Khonsu is also where a species of Awakened frogs, called the Kay, have established their home and maintain Lidon's defense. (For context, Awakened are hyper-intelligent animals found across Exodus' universe.) They'd been enslaved by a hostile human faction run by Gideon Aslan, Jun's half-sibling, the ruler of Lidon, and one of Exodus' main villains. It was our job to free the Kay; and maybe not entirely out of the goodness of our hearts, but in hopes of them becoming key allies, at least. It's like I was playing a legally distinct BioWare game. “After a few cutscenes to build the mission's tension, I'm immediately thrust into combat and within seconds of touching this new game I'd never played, muscle memory kicked in as if I'd been here before. Elise, who controls a hulking mech, focuses on brute force and has attacks that can break armor, while Suliman is an agile agent who can incisively inflict heavy damage. I largely relied on calling in their abilities whenever they were ready while blasting away with my standard arsenal of rifles and shotguns, but there's a synergistic system that also paves the way for a primer-detantor type of dynamic if you can line things up.There's a little bit of stealth if you want to get the jump on a few unsuspecting foes, and Suliman's Shadow Step can take out a standard target in one go when used undetected. But Exodus thrives on chunky combat – having Elise fire off a barrage of Knockdown Missiles or using my own ground-pound ability that shoots a line AoE and sends targets into the air, that's the good stuff. Jun has a mix of tools like an EMP grenade, homing explosive, or shield-piercing weapons that are crucial against barriers and a suite of special moves called Glyphs through his sci-fi powered Gauntlet. Even as Jun alone, you can create combos such as freezing an enemy with Petrify and following it up with an Erupt to break them. The cover system is a little iffy, especially for a game that relies pretty heavily on it, but what matters more to me is that Exodus offers the tools you'd want out of an action-RPG paired with solid, impactful gunplay.As I made my way through Khonsu, a few standard encounters against weaker human enemies were broken up with battles against alien-esque mechanized freaks and more intimidating foes in robosuits in specific combat arenas where cover spots are clearly waist high. Some felt more like bullet sponges, although I didn't mind in the moment as it let me test the extent of the party's powers. The mission concluded with a boss fight against an Awakened bear named Captain Irina Bruin (clever), armor-clad and beastly charging at me and casting huge AoE electrical shocks. However, I was of two minds – boss fights are nice ways to stretch the limits of your combat prowess, but can feel like fitting a square peg in a round hole if the encounter isn't really designed for its gameplay systems. This fight was more about constantly dodging with a little verticality sprinkled in thanks to the battery charged pillars in the arena, and flowed like a war of attrition more than anything. Granted, this was a fairly early-game mission and I did enjoy the challenge, but my hope is that other boss fights play more into the strengths Exodus clearly exhibits.Around the Edges of SpaceExodus is going to have hub areas and cities to explore, of course. But on missions like this, there are things to find off the beaten path and optional objectives along the way. Some of Jun's abilities work as exploration tools, such as Petrify being used to freeze obstructions or Erupt for clearing obstacles in the way, and you also have Shape to raise floors and a grappling hook to reach specifically marked points to reach optional areas. What's more is that you can come across unique interactions with characters you wouldn't have seen otherwise, which may lead to decisions that can come back around, sway your alignment with party members, or give a little backstory for the mission. This is in addition to finding the more tangible rewards like additional gear, crafting materials, or knowledge points to upgrade Jun's capabilities.This is an RPG, after all, and Exodus' progression system looks to be pretty robust from what I was able to gather from looking at the menus. I had a prearranged build centered around the Soldier branch, but there were so many more directions you can spec into (Knight, Prodigy, Oracle, Operative, and Specialist, which lean into perks and buffs for different playstyles). I could see several other Gauntlet Glyphs locked at this point in the story as well, so I'm looking forward to seeing if there's an element of build crafting here because so far, combat feels like it has the sauce.One of the optional objectives tasked me with liberating one of the Kay stuck in the test tube by defeating a wave of enemies and finding a battery to get the power back on in the room. I was rewarded with a goofy dialogue sequence, a little lore on the Kay, an approval boost from Suliman, and an upgrade for my gear. Much earlier in the mission, I had to decide the fate of a dying zealot who only just realized the wicked ways of the faction he was working for; give him a health pack and hope he changes his ways in the future or let him die out. I didn't see the result of this in the demo, but when it comes to choice and consequence in Exodus, the most indicative moment was in the decision you have to make at the end of this mission.Time To Make HistorySee, Suliman is an operative of the Tenjin Dynasty, and he would prefer to have the Kay under their direct influence after liberating them. When Suliman proposes altering the Kay's communication beacons to guarantee full loyalty across generations, you can either push back or go along with this plan. I pushed back, questioning the idea of manipulating them after restoring their independence, to which Suliman simply says, "The irony is not lost on me." "That's all you have to say?" Jun replies. Jun implies he was misled and that this is what Gideon would've wanted. They go back and forth about how loyalty ensures protection and the Kay leader you saved isn't entirely opposed to it. And so you're left with a simple choice: make the alteration or leave the beacons alone. What good is security if you give up freedom, right? I leave the beacons alone, promising to protect Khonsu as a matter of principle and Jun concludes, "You don't get to call the shots for sentient beings and claim it's for their own good." Suliman abides by the decision, and is surprisingly supportive in the end.It's a bit textbook in the choice-based RPG playbook, and the dialogue tees this up quite predictably. But I think what's important here is how it's contextualized for the broader story and in the writing itself. This particular scene gives me hope that Exodus knows how to frame these big moments in their delivery and the in-game impact (hinted in the visual bubble next to the choice showing Jun's predictive powers), even if they sometimes boil down to a binary choice. This is also the first big moment where I saw Exodus' version of the Paragon/Renegade morality system – here, it's denoted as Paladin/Immortal. Narrative director Drew Karpyshyn (who you may know as a renowned narrative designer on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect) described this system as more of a push-and-pull between preserving your humanity versus embracing the cold and calculated ways of Celestials, a transhumanist sect that plays a big role in the story, rather than simple good or evil. It may look and function similarly (shown as blue and red choices, respectively), but I expect the system to grow more nuanced as the story goes on and more decisions compile into varying consequences that are reflected in the Jun you'll shape.From my conversation with Drew Karpyshyn, I get the impression that even with a little levity to take the edge off, there's a greater emphasis on trying to deliver on impactful storytelling.“Exodus has a clear goofy edge to it, especially with the Kay being silly frogs with names derived from the number and section of the ship they were born in. Early in the mission, you meet 42C, who's listening to loud rock music and greets you with an irreverent attitude that contrasts with the serious tone of the initial infiltration cutscene. I am wary of characters being too quippy, like Elise, who keeps commenting on every little thing happening in battle or how things kinda lean into the cheesy sense of humor you'd see on a CW show. I'm not entirely put off by that, I just hope it knows when to reign it in and strike the right balance for a story that seems to wield the gravity of humanity's survival in space.Exodus - September 2026 ScreenshotsThe consequences of the decisions you make will be exacerbated by the fact that Exodus's story abides by the scientific theories of relativity and time dilation. We'll see characters affected in different ways by the passage of time – and going back to the trailer I mentioned at the beginning, it feels like Archetype knows the material it's working with in order to win the hearts and minds of those who are looking for that emotional space opera adventure. From my conversation with Drew Karpyshyn, I get the impression that even with a little levity to take the edge off, there's a greater emphasis on trying to deliver on impactful storytelling. The inclusion of romance options regardless of gender, being able to play as a male or female Jun, and having a relationship system all folded into your alignments as time warps in a journey to find humanity's new home – Exodus is ambitious in the same way that Mass Effect was, and now I'm expecting it to live up to that ambition. While you're here, check out these recent previews of other big upcoming games we've checked out recently!Grand Theft Auto 6FableMetro 2039Gears of War: E-Day (campaign)Michael Higham is an editor at IGN who regularly contributes with reviews, previews, features, and news in written and video form. He's usually entrusted with covering long RPGs and tech products, but he's got range when it comes to games. You'll also catch him at events and hosting video content, including IGN's weekly podcast Unlocked.