Exodus Narrative Director Explains the Story and Motivations of Sleeper Companion Elise

A few days after first showcasing supporting character Elise Charroux in upcoming title Exodus, developer Archetype Entertianment has revealed more details about the character in the form of a Q&A with narrative director Drew Karpyshyn.

Starting things off, Karpyshyn talks about Elise’s mech suit, and why she decided to use it in the game’s story, revealing bits and pieces of her backstory. Elise was trained in the use of mech suits as part of her time as a soldier on Earth. Since then, she managed to repair and upgrade the suit on Lidon.

Karpyshyn also reveals that Elise isn’t stuck in the suit, and only tends to get into the mech suit when it’s time for her to take part in the mission. “In her off time, she can either be found in the garage tinkering with her mech, or at the local pub sharing drinks with other mercenaries and salvagers,” explains Karpyshyn.

Talking about Elise’s primary motivation of wanting to find out more about Earth, Karpyshyn explains that this is because of the “holes” in her memory that came about because of her prolonged time in cryosleep. She is essentially missing bits and pieces of her memory, ant wants to recover as much of her lost memories as she can in order to get a better understanding of herself and where she came from.

Owing to her time spent in cryosleep, Elise is also referred to as being a “Sleeper”—a word used in the game’s setting to describe ark ship passengers that spent the entire journey in cryotubes in a state of semi-hibernation.

Elise is can also be found in a cantina in Borderline, which is a neighbourhood in one of the major metropolitan areas on planet Lidon, and will be a significant place since Exodus will kick off its story there.

Karpyshyn caps things off by talking about Elise’s character design, and more specifically, her tattoos, which are described as a visible reminder of what she used to be, but can’t remember because of the holes in her memories.

“She understands there is a significance attached to them, and she feels powerful emotions when she contemplates them,” explains Karpyshyn. “But the precise details of each tattoo – when she acquired it, or what specific meaning it once had – elude her, lost in the haze of her fragmented memories.”

Exodus is currently in development and will be coming to PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. For more details about the game’s sci-fi setting, check out our coverage.