Sci-fi RPG ‘Exodus”s combat looks and feels like ‘Mass Effect’, but the dialogue system could be a big upgrade (video)

EXODUS Gameplay: Conversation Choices First Look – YouTube

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We finally got to see some combat gameplay for “Exodus” — Archetype Entertainment’s upcoming sci-fi RPG — earlier this month, but the more conversational side of this “Mass Effect”-inspired sci-fi odyssey has been more elusive… until now.

The talenteddesign crew at Archetype Entertainment is back this week with another interesting Community Update that focuses on the advanced conversation system in “Exodus“, which they say allows for natural interactions between characters that shape a player’s chosen path. So far, we’re liking what we see.

Here in this work-in-progress demonstration video, “Exodus”‘s main Traveler character, Jun Aslan, is engaged in an in-game, real-time conversation with a combat companion named Phaedra while out on a daring mission inside a corroding Celestial facility hunting for Remnants.

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It’s nice to see this all happening in real-time, and not taking the “Fallout”/”Mass Effect” approach of teleporting us into the conversation pocket universe where everyone stands perfectly still and stares bug-eyed at each other.

Questions and responses flow as a continuous interplay of thoughts instead of operating in abrupt pull-away dialogue boxes. At this point in the gameplay, Phaedra has been infected by a Celestial virus, which has left her blind, but her roaming drone still feeds her environmental data.

An unexpected consequence of her sudden infection has given her an uncanny ability to interface with ancient Celestial glyphs. As the conversation progresses, dialogue options branch in real time as Phaedra shares more intimate details of what she’s been going through and how the virus is evolving within her.

According to Archetype, the designers’ ultimate goal is “to make every exchange feel immediate, grounded, and reflective of the player’s evolving role in the world.”

Heralding from Wizards of the Coast and Archetype Entertainment and arriving sometime in 2027, “Exodus” is an ambitious sci-fi action-adventure RPG created by the same industry veterans who helped deliver the worlds of “Mass Effect,” “Baldur’s Gate,” and “Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.”

Its epic storytelling has players facing humanity’s evolution some 40,000 years in the future by exploring extraordinary alien worlds and confronting time itself to shape the fate of generations.

“Exodus” is slated to arrive sometime in 2027, but stay tuned for more work-in-progress video updates, including Extended Gameplay Reveals this summer.