We’ve been waiting for Capcom to go back to dinosaurs for a while now, and though the company is finally doing that, it’s not doing it the way many would have wanted it to. Even so, though it doesn’t look like a Dino Crisis revival is on the cards just yet, what we have seen of upcoming multiplayer dino shooter Exoprimal has certainly piqued our curiosity. Ahead of the game’s launch not long from now, here, we’re going to go over a few key details that you should know about it.
STORY
Exoprimal is set in the year 2040, where the planet is facing the chaos of portals opening up in a multitude of random locations, and bringing with them a flood of dinosaurs every time they do. Standing in the frontlines against this dino crisis, so to speak, is the company known as Aibius, which, thanks to its super-powerful AI known as Leviathan, is able to predict the locations of future dinosaur outbreaks. In addition to that, Aibius has also been able to develop advanced military mechs known as Exosuits, which pilots are able to use to combat against dinosaurs.
CORE GAMEPLAY
Exoprimal sees you playing as a pilot and puts you in the seat of your own Exosuits. The core focus of the gameplay here is very much on multiplayer action. Functioning largely as a PvPvE experience, Exoprimal matches involve two teams, with each having to complete a set of objectives and having to fight dinosaurs while doing so. Of course, dinosaurs won’t be the only threat, because the two teams will also be going up against each other.
EXOSUITS
At launch, Exoprimal will have 10 suits available, with each falling into one of three classes- the damage dealing Assault class, the damage absorbing Tank class, and the buff and healing specialist Support class, with the latter two having three available options, and Assault having four. Even within a single class though, suits will have different attributes. For instance, in the Assault class, while Deadeye is an all-purpose suit equipped primarily with an assault rifle, Zephyr is a much more agile exosuit that emphasis melee combat. Meanwhile, each suit will also have unique variants that will have different weapon attributes- like the Deadeye variant, which can use burst fire.
RIGS
Players will also have plenty of opportunities to customize and alter their Exosuit of choice the way they see fit. The majority of that will boil down to rigs, which are special pieces of equipment that you can attach to your suit to grant it new abilities and attributes. For instance, the Drill Fist allows you to unleash a powerful melee attack that can also be charged up, while the Canon fires a powerful laser, and the Catapult allows you to perform a quick boost jump.
PILOT AND SUIT CUSTOMIZATION
Customization will extend beyond the Rigs you’re attaching to your suits at the start of every match. There will also be modules to equip, which can have effects such as increasing your reload speed or improving your suit’s health, while plenty of options will also be available on the cosmetics front, including charms, suit skins, weapon skins, decals, and more. Meanwhile, though your Exosuit will obviously be the core focus, you’ll also be able to change the appearance and outfit of your pilot.
DINOSAURS
Dinosaurs are obviously going to be the star of the show in Exoprimal, but how many different kinds of dinos will we be locking horns with in the game? Apparently, there’s quite a few. Capcom has revealed thirteen different varieties that will be featured in the game, which include the T. rex, raptors, triceratops, ankylosaurus, carnotaurus, dilophosaurus, stegosaurus, sinornithosaurus, pachycephalosaurus, pteranodon, deinonychus, baryonyx, and suchomimus.
NEOSAURS
Having to fight against regular dinosaurs is terrifying enough as it is, but that’s not going to be where the dino threat will end in Exoprimal. The game also features nine additional varieties of mutated dinosaurs that have special, much more powerful abilities and attributes, known as Neosaurs. These include the cryo Neosaur, the neo T. rex, the neo ankylosaur, the stealth Neosaur, the pyro Neosaur, the evoker Neosaur, the sniper Neosaur, the umbral Neosaur, and the gas Neosaur.
CRAFTING
Using the abilities of your Exosuits will obviously be your primary way of countering threats in Exoprimal, though the game will also let players to craft a variety of other useless items. Using craft chips found in the environment, you’ll be able to create an auto-firing laser turret that targets enemies, a wall that you can place in front of yourself or your teammates to block incoming attacks (while still allowing your own attacks to pass through), or a platform that floats in the air and allows you to take tactically advantageous spots in the battlefield.
DINO SURVIVAL
Dino Survival will be the main mode of Exoprimal and will form the backbone of your experience. Each match will be a 5v5 affair, with both teams being handed a string of objectives of different varieties that will pit them against each other, against dinosaurs, or both, while some might even require the two teams to fight together to take on a bigger threat. Objectives will change based on how much you have progressed in the game, and completing matches will not only grant experience and progression, but will also unlock new story cutscenes from time to time.
SAVAGE GAUNTLET
Outside of the Dino Survival mode, Exoprimal will also feature the Savage Gauntlet mode, which is very much being billed as endgame content, thanks to more challenging objectives. Each match will see a team of five players competing against other players for the fastest clear times, while interestingly enough, the rules of the actual mode will also change from week to week. How radical those changes will be remains to be seen, but it’s certainly an interesting idea.
COMM WHEEL
As a multiplayer-centric game, Exoprimal is obviously going to emphasize communication between players, and will give you options in that area as well (beyond, you know, just talking to them). That will be delivered through the comm wheel, which can be pulled up at any time to have your character perform emotes and gestures of different varieties. Presumably, we can expect plenty of these to be added to the game post-launch as well.
SURVIVAL PASS
An ongoing multiplayer game releasing in today’s day and age is pretty much guaranteed to have a Battle Pass, and that’s going to be the case with Exoprimal as well. Known as the Survival Pass here, and it’ll work pretty much the way you’d expect, with a free tier available for everyone, and a premium tier that you’ll need to pay for. Progressing through the tiers will unlock a variety of different cosmetics, including Exosuit skins, weapon skins, decals, emotes, stamps, and more.
MONETIZATION
Given its live service-esque nature, it’s no surprise that Exoprimal is going to use in-game monetization. What exactly should you expect in this area? Well, in addition to the aforementioned Survival Pass, the game will also feature loot boxes, which Capcom has stressed are going to contain only cosmetic items. Sadly, however, the game will also feature some Exosuits that will be locked behind in-game currency payments.
PC REQUIRMENTS
If you’re planning on playing Exoprimal on PC, you won’t need an awfully beefy rig to be able to run the game. On minimum requirements, for 1080p/30 FPS gameplay, you’ll need either an Intel Core i5-7500 or an AMD Ryzen 3 1200, along with either a GeForce GTX 1050 Ti with 4GB VRAM or an AMD Radeon RX 560 with 4GB VRAM, and 8 GB of RAM. Meanwhile, on recommended settings, for 1080p/60 FPS gameplay, you’ll need either an Intel Core i7-8700K or an AMD Ryzen 5 3600X, along with either a GeForce GTX 1070 or an AMD Radeon RX 590, and 16 GB of RAM. On either setting, you’ll also need about 50 GB of free storage space.
GAME PASS
Those thinking of playing Exoprimal on Xbox are also going to have the option to jump straight in via Game Pass. This is, interestingly enough, going to be Capcom’s first major release to be available via Game Pass at launch, and given the game’s decidedly experimental nature, that’s certain to help out with attracting a larger player base right out the gate.
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