Funcom unveils the first screenshots of the upcoming survival-oriented Conan Exiles, giving gamers a glimpse at the dangerous world of Conan the Barbarian.
While Conan (no, not the late night host) knows plenty about crushing his enemies and hearing the lamentation of their women, there is one thing the wandering barbarian has always struggled with: starring in a good video game. While the warrior king previously starred in a less-than-stellar MMO, a semi-decent God of War knock-off, and countless other titles, no game has lived up to the reputation of the famous warrior.
But Funcom, the studio responsible for the tepid Age of Conan, has revealed that it is working on a brand new open-world game for the famous Cimmerian, and they’ve given fans a first look at what the survival-oriented game will ultimately look like.
The upcoming game, dubbed Conan Exiles, casts the player as an “exile” left to die on a crucifix, who is ultimately freed by the titular barbarian, entrusted with an axe, and tasked with surviving. From there, the player must build shelter, forage for food, and fend off bloodthirsty wild animals and enemies, a la the popular survival horror title The Forest. Far from a simple resource management game, Funcom promises that the legend of the exile will grow, leading to the exile turning his sights towards conquering a kingdom.
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While the game’s announcement was accompanied by a pre-rendered trailer, these screenshots give gamers the first real look at the world of Conan Exiles, albeit from the title’s pre-alpha stages. The screenshot shows the harsh desert wasteland that befits the swords-and-sandals roots of Conan, populated by hyenas and a rhino. The second screenshot shows what appears to be a desert castle, possibly hinting at the kind of structures that players will be able to build.
The screenshot serves to give gamer’s an idea of what to expect from the title, but it lacks one of the most defining features of the Conan universe: wanton violence. While the screenshot shows a quiet, blood-less world, Funcom promises Conan Exiles will have the bloodshed fans expect, with a developer stating in a video accompanying the release of the screenshot:
Though Arnold Schwarzenegger will not be returning to the role that made him popular (clearly he is too busy in the WWE), Funcom’s Conan Exiles promises to be a faithful love letter to the popular series. But whether or not the popular “survival” genre translates well into Conan’s world of swords-and-sorcery remains to be seen.
“You see heads coming off, you see arms coming off, you see blood, you see gore, you see dents in armor. These are the things we’re aiming for.”
Conan Exiles will arrive through Steam Greenlight for PC in Summer 2016, but is currently without an official release date on Xbox One or PlayStation 4.
Source: Gamespot
