Archetype's Exodus: An Exploration for the Dedicated Sci-Fi Aficionado.
For a specific breed of science-fiction fan, the revelation of Exodus stood as the biggest reveal from a major gaming awards ceremony. Interestingly, those very fans could have missed grasped its full significance during the initial showcase.
Exodus, the debut title from a recently established studio staffed with former talent from a renowned RPG developer, was initially teased a couple of years prior. At the latest event, the development team provided an targeted release window of 2027, accompanied by a action-packed trailer. Ahead of this showcase, the studio's leadership discussed some of the grounded scientific theories that serve as the basis for the game's universe: time dilation, biological engineering, and interstellar colonization. These are all inherently heady ideas, which are inherently difficult to communicate in a brief, marketing-driven trailer.
“I wish some of those intriguing and fresh ideas were featured in the trailer. My takeaway was ‘generic man in space,’” wrote one commenter. Another replied, “All I got was ‘we have a well-known space opera RPG at home.’” Feedback in fan hubs were correspondingly varied.
The trailer's strategy undoubtedly is understandable from a commercial standpoint. When striving to make an impact during a lengthy deluge of game announcements, what has broader appeal: Scientists contemplating the finer points of Einsteinian physics? Or giant robots blowing up while additional mechs fire lasers from their faces? However, in opting for spectacle, the developers failed to include the subtler details that make Exodus one of the more exciting scientifically rigorous games in development. Let's break it down.
The Question of Humanity
Does Exodus contain aliens? No. The answer is nuanced. Recall that image near the start of the trailer, depicting a being with metallic skin and metal components integrated into their flesh. That was certainly an alien, correct? The truth hinges on your interpretation regarding one of the game's major existential inquiries: If you applied Ship of Theseus reasoning to the human DNA, is what remains still humanity?
“We want the Celestials... for a player who isn't invest considerable amounts of time into absorbing the IP, to still grasp the basic premise that they're transhuman descendants, recognize that they’re an opposing force you have to confront... But also, at the end of the day, make sure it's enjoyable and that they're cool and that they play well to challenge,” explained the studio's head.
Comprehending how these otherworldly beings aren't technically aliens requires understanding enormous expanses of both the cosmos and temporal progression. Time dilation — the Einsteinian theory that time moves at a reduced rate for high-velocity objects — is an key core tenet of Exodus’ science-fiction trappings. Here are the basics: Humanity abandons a depleted Earth in the 23rd century for a remote corner of the Milky Way. Due to time dilation, some human colonists arrive ages before others. Those pioneers radically altered their genetic sequences and took on the “Celestial” title.
“There’s various stages of evolution. The people who reached the Centauri cluster first... had many thousands of years of evolution into the Celestials... They really see unaltered humans as essentially unevolved, beneath them, not really worthy for the upper echelons of society,” stated the game's lead writer.
Exodus is set roughly 40,000 years in the future. Consider that timeframe — that's effectively all of our documented past multiplied ten times over. Now contemplate what humans would look like if they spent ten entire human histories pushing the boundaries of biological science. You would absolutely not perceive the result as human. You might very well believe you're observing an alien. The most vicious strain of Celestial, known as the Mara-Yama, can adopt multiple forms. Some possess sharp teeth and claws and stand towering tall. Others are protected in chitinous shells. According to companion lore, when Mara-Yama travel between stars, their physical forms can degenerate into little more than a fleshy blob attached to a head.
A Universe of Ideas
Among the detonations, lasers, and battle bears, you might have caught snippets of otherworldly technology in the trailer. The protagonist, Jun Aslan, operates a shiny machine that radiates a violet glow. A spaceship jets into a portal and vanishes at near-light speed. This all seems outside human understanding, the kind of tech attributed to a highly advanced civilization. Yet, these are further examples of wonders that look alien but are firmly grounded in our species' own evolution.
Beyond the core development team, the Exodus lore is being crafted by what the narrative lead called a duo of “renowned authors.” One acclaimed author has already published a massive novel set in the universe, with another planned, while another prolific writer has penned a series of short stories. Incorporating such respected science-fiction minds into the world years before the game's release has enabled the studio to develop a rich fictional universe as a framework for the game.
“It was really a partnership. We had set some basics, and working with him, he would have ideas... and we would work to see how they all fit together... With someone so talented, you don't want to handcuff him. You want to give him creative freedom,” the narrative director said of the collaboration.
One interesting scene shows Jun appearing to manipulate the ground beneath him, fashioning stone into a instant bridge. This material, called livestone, is controlled by neural commands from Celestials or Uranic humans — descendants of later human arrivals who were allowed certain technologies by the Celestials. Since Jun exhibits this ability, speculation arises about his origins.
“Jun's not technically a Uranic human... Jun is sort of a modified version, for want of a better term,” clarified the writer, adding that the ability to interact with Celestial technology is a “central mechanic of the game.”
The vast scale of the Exodus setting — both in distance and the timeline — means there is plenty of room for various stories to coexist, drawing from the same universe without risking contradiction.
Tales of Time and Loss
Although Exodus has been in development for a couple of years and isn't releasing, several stories have already been told within its universe. The first major novel delves into the connection between a Uranic human and a woman whose ship arrived many millennia later than planned, making Celestials totally alien to her experience. An episode of a sci-fi anthology recounts a tragic story about a father pursuing his daughter across star systems, with time dilation resulting in devastating effects on their family; by the time he finds her, she has experienced decades.
The game itself is centered on “Jun’s story,” set on the planet Lidon — a world mostly abdicated by Celestials that has become a bastion. A technological virus known as “the Rot” has begun eating away at everything, including vital life support systems, and Jun must master his unusual powers to {find a solution|stop