Today, on September 15, 2020, the new expansion “Isle of Siptah” for Conan Exiles (PC, PS4, Xbox One) has been released in Early Access on Steam. It brings a new map and plenty of innovations. MeinMMO spoke with Executive Producer Scott Junior to ask what makes the island so special.
What is Isle of Siptah? After a suddenly appeared countdown, Isle of Siptah, the second expansion of Conan Exiles, was announced on September 10. After Frozen North expanded the original map, Isle of Siptah brings a completely new map.
However, the map is not the only innovation. It features numerous new mechanics and functions that can significantly change the gameplay of Conan Exiles. We asked the head himself how these innovations work and which of them stand out.
Today, September 15, Isle of Siptah went into Early Access for PC at 2:00 PM. You can find the expansion on Steam. The release is planned for early 2021 on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. We have embedded the trailer for you here:
The factors that make Conan Exiles great: Story
The most obvious and greatest innovation is the new map in Conan Exiles, the island itself. Isle of Siptah is about 80% the size of the Exiled Lands and almost doubles the size of Conan Exiles. Scott Junior revealed to me in the interview what is included:
There are many stories to discover. There are other inhabitants of the island whose background you should learn about. The Vaults tell much about the history of the island and the other peoples that were there.
Then there is the Tower of Siptah in the center of the map, which acts as a focal point. Players cannot enter it yet, but you will learn a lot about Siptah and the Gemini Tower.
The story of the game is one of the reasons why Conan Exiles is considered one of the best survival games. Isle of Siptah tells even more of it, but also offers numerous new features.
The new features in Isle of Siptah
On the island, there are three new features in Early Access, which are roughly developments of popular features from the base game but work in a completely different way: Storms, Surges, and Vaults.
Deadly Storms and Surges of Slaves
The two biggest new features intertwine: Storms and Surges. Both cause strong enemies to appear suddenly and are even the only way to get to the useful and sometimes necessary slaves in Conan Exiles. Scott explained both systems to me in detail:
[The storm] is an event that is active for about half the time depending on server settings. It builds up, attacks every building in the center of the area, and generates ancient creatures when you are in the storm. They come and attack your base. The goal is to kill these creatures and take the rewards from them. Then the event transitions into another new feature: The Surge.
[The surge] is a quite impressive event that takes place after the storm, where the tower in the center of the map gains energy and opens a portal to the Exiled Lands. This summons the inhabitants of the land to the island, whom you can fight and capture.
Unlike in the Exiled Lands, there are [on the island] no camps where you find slaves. These are dynamic events. When they occur, everyone on the server is notified and there is hopefully a race and PvP battle about it. The goal is to limit resources to encourage conflict.
You will get the best slaves through the surge events, which are started by players themselves. However, there are also randomly distributed smaller surges all over the island, where you can acquire additional servants and materials that are otherwise not available on the island.
The island is according to Scott “clearly driven by conflict,” but is still easily playable in PvE. Anyone who liked the conflict servers of Conan Exiles and enjoys occasionally brawling with other players will find a fitting new feature here. However, those who prefer to play against the world with friends should be able to manage that too.
Vaults – The new Dungeons
The Vaults (roughly: “treasure chambers”) are according to Scott “the equivalent of dungeons from the Exiled Lands” and are packed with loot that helps you progress. The Vaults are scattered across the map and are not marked on the map, so you have to find them yourself and remember where they are located.
Unlike dungeons, Vaults offer “more puzzles,” Scott explains. So it seems to be about solving trickier tasks than just killing monsters, like the giant snake in probably your first dungeon, The Dregs.
Create your own maps
The third special feature is the map editor. It has already been possible to create crazy mods that turned Conan Exiles into a completely new game. However, this was quite tedious.
With a new devkit, it should now be possible to create your own mods and even entirely new maps more easily:
The map is beautiful, we have put a lot of work into it. But the expansion allows modders to create brand new maps. You can then download and use them as a mod. […] Even if you do not buy Isle of Siptah, you can use the mod devkit to create new maps. […] I think it will take modders some time to create new maps, but it is one of the things that interests me the most. To see what the community produces.
“It is not really Conan Exiles 1.5”
For Isle of Siptah, the term “Conan Exiles 1.5” circulated for some time, and indeed many of the changes sound like an appropriate term. However, Scott finds it inappropriate:
It is not really Exiles 1.5. It is a new map that comes in addition to the Exiled Lands. It tells a new story, but it is not a dramatic, new approach to the game. More content, more fun systems to explore.
The island will also not have its own “journey,” which the main game already had to tell the story, but only some new steps that are explicitly designed for the expansion.
Scott also revealed to me that the island will not demand high graphical performance. Older graphics cards should still suffice, and only a new light feature may potentially bring even older systems to their knees.
The island is ideal for new players
If you haven’t started with Conan Exiles yet and are now hesitant to face so many veterans, the expansion is particularly suitable. Since Isle of Siptah launches new servers where only the island is playable, it is an excellent opportunity for new players to get started in the game.
“Everyone starts at the same level when the expansion map comes out,” as Scott explains. “So you don’t have to worry about level 60 players with tons of stuff slaughtering everything in the newbie areas.”
You can play Isle of Siptah as well as the main game solo, but Conan Exiles is designed to be played with friends. “Everything is better when you play it with friends,” as Scott adds with a laugh. “At least that’s our philosophy.”
Tips for new players
Since I had the head of the game on the line, I wanted to know directly from him how new players can best start with Isle of Siptah. Scott gave me three tips for newbies to consider:
Don’t enter the storm until you are ready. That’s my first tip. Prepare on the beach, build your first camp.
Tip two is: Explore the Vaults as soon as you can. They are not marked on the map, but while you explore the outer areas of the island, you will find them. There are really good rewards and equipment there.
And definitely visit the wild surges that appear. There are level 1 and 2 slaves, and they are free. You don’t have to do much, whereas with the higher surges, you need to invest more preparation.
This is what the future looks like
After Scott had already explained some of the new features to me, I wanted to know how the future looks. After all, Exiles itself also continuously receives new updates, such as a new riding system with mounted combat or pet companions.
Scott replied to me that no further paid content will come at least during Early Access. Instead, there will be “Quality of Life” features, improvements to the combat system and balancing, and implementation of player feedback, such as for new features. More details will be in a roadmap that will appear shortly after the Early Access release.
In the more distant future, it should also be possible to connect the island and the Exiled Lands. However, this is technically difficult, meaning how the game is built. You will never be able to move seamlessly between them, but they are working on a system that allows you to travel back and forth between the maps.
Additionally, Scott hinted that the religion system of Conan Exiles should be further explored. After new gods were implemented into the game with Derketo and Jhebbal Sag, there may possibly be more options coming soon.
One of the last promises that the developers made several years ago is a magic and sorcery system. It is still not implemented and will also not come with Isle of Siptah, as Scott confirms. However, “we will continue to keep an eye on it,” as he says. We are curious to see what else is to come in Conan Exiles in the future.
