Conan: Exiles – Review

Name: Conan: Exiles
Developer: Funcom
Publisher: Funcom
Released: 08.05.2018
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Reviewed on: PlayStation 4
Acquired: A copy of this game was provided from publisher for review purpose

After quite some time in early access, Conan: Exiles have finally arrived in full form! Uniquely being in the Conan-universe, but equally having one huge map, things seemed promising. But did the game live up to my expectations?

Story

The game doesn’t really feature many stories. What I do know is that my character has been left to die in the desert, after committing several crimes. Luckily, Conan himself comes to your rescue, and from here, you’re all on your own. Therefore, I do not feel like that game should get a score in the story-section.

Graphics

The graphics in Conan: Exiles are, unfortunately, only okayish. They’re not bad by any means, but with a game this size and hype, I honestly would expect more. The character looks a bit lifeless, and most of the environment has very abrupt edges. I generally got the feeling that this is last-gen graphics.
The monsters, however, look good, and the world building is really great, with the world being diverse and feeling alive. The plant life too looks quite good and so does the wildlife. Personally I really liked the snowy areas, which felt a lot like the Norwegian fauna and flora, which helped hitting close to home.
6/10

Gameplay

Most of the gameplay ideas in Conan: Exiles are really good, they’re thought through and make the game fun to play. Want to climb up a slope or wall? Of course you can (given that you have enough stamina that is.). Do you want to build an impressive castle? Be my guest! If you’d rather like to explore the world, and its dungeons you’re obviously free to do that too. Generally the gameplay is amazing, and it’s clear to see that the game can become one of the best games of all time.
Unfortunately, all of these great things are ruined by the horrible framerate and lots of bugs. I’m talking 15 FPS during the smoothest of times, and as low as maybe 10 during the bad ones. Because of the bad framerate, many bugs appear too, such as my character swimming on land and walking on the sea (maybe I’m Jesus?). As well as the good old artifacts around the character. Another thing that really needs some work is the bow and arrow-physics. I’m pretty sure I’ve yet to hit a target, but I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong.
Hopefully, these can be patched out, and according to rumours, the PC version runs a lot smoother. And without these bugs, this is a game I could lose myself in for weeks at-a-time!
6/10

Controls

The controls are pretty standard for a game of this genre. The fighting is quite intuitive, apart from the bow and arrow, which are dreadful. The building mode too is really good. I do wish the menus were a bit easier to navigate, though.
One thing I really must praise the game for though, is how reactive the character is to my directional inputs. It might feel to sensitive at first, but after a while you’ll get used to it.
8/10

Replay Value

Personally I stuck with my original character because I grew attached to her. That doesn’t mean there’s no replay value, though. You can choose between different religions, which each has their own effect on some of your abilities. During my first playthrough I never found myself not having anything to do though, and there’s always a new place to explore, and new monsters to kill.
7/10

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• Graphics 7
  7/10
• Gameplay 6
  6/10
• Controls 8
  8/10
• Replay Value 7
  7/10

Verdict

Conan: Exiles show many promise and good ideas, but it’s let down by poor performance, and only okay graphics. Luckily the gameplay is good, and with (many) bug fixes this will be game to try out in the future. Its current condition is far from great, and unless you’re a die hard Conan fan, I’d advise you to wait for a while until the major flaws are fixed.
Make note that this is a review of the PS4 version, and that rumours says the game runs a lot better on PC.

Overall

7/10

7/10

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Pros

• Lots of things to do
• Great exploration
• The basis is there, it just needs some patching.

Cons

• Horrible framerate
• Quite buggy
• Lack a tutorial