A Swedish developer wants to shake up the world of extraction games in a huge tour de force. We have now played Exoborne ourselves for the first time.
It’s a truly mammoth project that the developers at Sharkmob have undertaken: The Swedish studio not only wants to gain a permanent foothold in the highly competitive environment of multiplayer shooters, but also finally achieve a mainstream breakthrough for the extraction genre. Exoborne is the name of the game that aims to open up the almost mythical appeal of hardcore titles such as Escape from Tarkov or Hunt: Showdown to a much larger target group. The stated goal: An extraction shooter for players who don’t want to spend weeks poring over Excel spreadsheets and item wikis or turn away in frustration when a 50-minute trembling game is unceremoniously ended by a camper from the undergrowth with a headshot.
It’s not a completely new idea: Call of Duty launched such a mainstream attempt with DMZ in November 2022, Battlefield also wanted to venture into the extraction realm with Hazard Zone and Arma developer Bohemia even tried it with an end-time setting in a 90s parallel world in Vigor. What all these games have in common: They petered sooner rather than later into irrelevance So how is Exoborne now going to do exactly what so many others have failed to do so far? I visited Sharkmob to find out exactly that, even got to play a few rounds myself for the first time and report back to you as part of FYNG on my impressions!
Disclaimer about the trip: We were invited by Tencent, the world’s largest games company and the financial backer behind Exoborne, to a playthrough event at their studio in Malmö, Sweden. There we were able to speak with senior developers from Sharkmob, tour the facilities and play Exoborne in a closed test environment with playtesters and other journalists. The travel costs, hotel accommodation and meals on site were financed by Tencent
What’s it all about
“High risk, high reward” is the often-invoked formula for success in extraction shooters. In other words: I play with high stakes and can lose all my equipment at any time. Loot and rewards are only given to those who make it back from the map to the main menu alive. At the same time, every victory feels meaningful and hard-fought.
Whoever makes it home with the boss trophy in Hunt: Showdown breathes a sigh of relief, the endorphins kick in, cheers erupt almost involuntarily. Exoborne aims to capture precisely this feeling, but in more compact rounds of 20 to 30 minutes and, above all, not immediately drive genre newcomers away with an enormous drop height. There are two things at the heart of Exoborne. Firstly, the apocalyptic game world in which powerful extreme weather phenomena rage. And secondly: the so-called Exo Rigs, futuristic exoskeleton combat suits that give their wearers superhuman powers. The setting is a fictional US state torn apart by natural disasters and the resistance struggle against the evil Rebirth Corporation. This corporation had promised to stop climate change and then – how could it be otherwise – turned out to be an unscrupulous and power-hungry tech dictatorship. This is where End Times and high technology meet and form a grimy, dark sci-fi backdrop for PvP and PvE battles on several open-world maps. Their number has not yet been determined, nor has a retail price, but a Free2Play model is definitely not an option for the creators.
You want to see some gameplay before I continue writing? No problem at all:
A round of Exoborne
And how exactly does that work? You can roughly imagine a round in Exoborne like this: I land with my squad (and the Exo Rig previously configured in the menu) including the packed loadout via paraglider at a random point on the map. Using the overview map, I navigate to my (self-defined) destination – this can be patrols by AI opponents, fixed missions, guarded convoys, or zones with particularly rare loot. For example, I can crack a secure rebirth terminal with my team that spits out three legendary weapons. Disadvantage: I have to fend off killer robots that have gone wild while the hack is running. And that potentially attracts other teams too. As a general rule, sooner or later a fight will break out if I encounter marauding bandits, armed drones, or other players who want my gear. Once my group has survived all the confrontations, it calls a helicopter at an exfil point to flee the map with full bags before the match timer runs out.
Who is Sharkmob?
The Swedish studio Sharkmob was founded in Malmö in 2017 by Martin Hultberg and Petter Mannerfelt. Both previously held management roles at Massive Entertainment and were heavily involved in The Division. In 2022, the studio released its first title, Vampire: Bloodhunt, a battle royale shooter with the official license from Vampire: The Masquerade (World of Darkness). Despite a largely positive response, Bloodhunt was unable to establish itself on the market in the long term and development was discontinued in May 2023. Sharkmob has since grown from its initial start-up size to over 400 developers and has opened an office in London, where it is working on a third title.
👍5 things we’re already excited about:
- Fighting: The actual shooting in Exoborne has a good amount of impact thanks to crisp sounds and a lot of recoil. Switching to the first-person view when aiming (ADS) feels very smooth and natural. The TTK tends (unlike in Tarkov & Co.) in an arcade direction, but never goes so far that you have to “shoot down life bars” like in Borderlands or The Division – very pleasant.
- Graphics: Visually, Exoborne is an extremely impressive shooter that makes the most of Unreal Engine 5. There are spectacular weather effects, models look very detailed thanks to real 3D scans and the animations run as smooth as butter thanks to motion capture technology.
- Map-Flow: I’ve only seen one of several playable maps so far, but it was already quite something. From forests and highways to small settlements, bunkers and a huge oil platform, there’s plenty to discover and options for vertical movement with my exosuit.
- Depth of play: I can already guess how many possible combinations and synergies of weapons, abilities, and movement options will be possible. If I add the Ground Slam melee attack to the Power Jump, for example, I can land a kill without having to fire a bullet after a bit of practice!
- Setting: Exoborne mixes science fiction and apocalyptic end times to create a dystopian scenario that looks depressingly realistic. At the same time, the Exo Rigs also deliver a cool power fantasy in the style of games like Crysis, Anthem, or Neill Blomkamp’s movie Elysium. I just feel powerful in my rig!
There are still a few pitfalls to overcome and questions to answer before Exoborne can sweep through the shooter genre like a whirlwind. On the other hand, as a journalist in gaming, it’s very rare that such early versions of games feel so smooth and crisp – and look so good! The much-vaunted “production value” can be felt in every nook and cranny, be it in the elaborately animated exo-rigs, the insanely detailed end-time game world, or the huge arsenal of futuristic gadgets. One thing is certain: Sharkmob has invested immense resources in Exoborne and is determined to deliver a masterpiece with this shooter.
Editor’s verdict: Shooters with armor, shields, and the like always make me skeptical, because weapons can feel like pea pistols or fights can drag on forever. But Exoborne won me over straight away when it came to gunplay: when I hit an enemy at close range with the four-barrel shotgun, even the heaviest exo-rig with fully equipped armor plates goes down with a satisfying thud. The people at Sharkmob obviously understand the shooter trade very well. So why am I still worried? Well, no matter how good Exoborne feels now or at release, other factors will determine its success or failure. Can an active community form? Will influencers jump on board to push the game? Are the trailers well received? Are there any balance problems or bugs? Is the publisher choosing the right release time and a sensible retail price?
During my visit, the developers repeatedly emphasized that they want to listen to their fans above all else. Yes, I know, you hear that phrase all the time now. But player feedback is so important to them that they organize regular playtests with focus groups, record the facial expressions of the participants on camera, and have them fill out questionnaires. This fan-centric mindset will also apply to upcoming betas, for which they want to recruit from gamescom 2024. Depending on the response, the company is even prepared to make in-depth changes to gameplay, balance, and updates. This requires a lot of transparency and extensive communication – challenges that other major studios have also failed to meet. But hey, I don’t want to paint the devil on the wall. Because one thing I definitely had in my first 90 minutes with Exoborne was a lot of fun.
