The survival game genre has evolved since the release of the ever so popular Minecraft. Personally, this is my favourite genre of games as it really requires players to live in the world in a way other games don’t really achieve.
In other games, I’ve always felt like a tourist just visiting the game world but in survival games, I am a part of that world and I need to live off it in to survive. I’ve played a few survival games. The aforementioned Minecraft was my first dive into the genre but it was Ark Survival Evolved that really sucked me in.
I spent years in Ark’s co-op mode playing with my friends with an annoying tether. But then something else came out that hoped to ride on the survival genre’s bandwagon. And, it just so happened that it was based on one of my favourite media franchises; Conan Exiles.
The Early Days
Right off the bat, Conan Exiles had a lot of potential. The game released in early access but I decided to wait a few months before getting it and I’m glad I got it when I did. The game was still in the early stages but it had so much going for it.
The main feature was the climbing mechanic. The ability to climb anything makes the game feel so much more adventurous.
See that dark shadowy spire? You can climb it… I mean you’d probably run out of stamina and fall to your death, but you can try, right?
The game had its fair share of issues and still does from annoying crashes to some glitchy NPCs. But the game world itself is beautiful. The combat is heavily inspired by Dark Souls and one poor timed dodge can lead to death.
The game was a lot of fun but at the time my internet cap was pretty small and the game had so many big updates. So eventually, I just stopped playing. It has been two years since and finally, my cap has increased, so it was no surprise that the first thing I did was reinstall Conan Exiles…
The Return
I’m glad I got back into this game. The addition of horses really helps the game a lot. It also runs a lot smoother than before. However, it is no secret that the game’s current map has been milked dry.
There are so many things to see and do in this map and since the developers have said this game is their most successful endeavour and would like to carry on with it, it should come as no surprise that a new map is inbound.
What this map will be only the devs know for sure but fans of the lore of Conan suspect it will be an ocean-themed map to rival the fairly new Atlas; the spiritual successor to Ark.
I know a bit about the lore of Conan. If I were to go into why I think the next map will be set in an oceanic setting, this article would end up being the length of a novel.
But one thing is for sure and that is that this game has a big future ahead of it. A big, bloody, exciting future!
If you are on the fence about getting into this game I understand. The game is hard. It throws you in the deep end and doesn’t expect you to survive. But once you get into it and learn how it works, you end up feeling right at home (especially, when you master the amazing build system).
Conan Exiles is a special game and is by far my favourite survival game out there and I’m looking forward to hearing what this new map is. And believe me, when they do reveal it, I’d no doubt write an article as I freak out over it.
