Some of the leading developers who made The Division are now working on a new shooter for Steam and consoles.
What game is it? Exoborne is an extraction shooter coming to Steam, Xbox and PlayStation. One of the game’s special features are apocalyptic natural disasters that sweep across the map during rounds.
In previous trailers, we primarily saw tornadoes swirling players and vehicles through the air. So while playing, you need to be aware not only of enemy players or aggressive NPCs, but also keep an eye on your surroundings. Otherwise, you might suddenly find yourself in the eye of a tornado or get struck by lightning while shooting if you’ve been careless during looting.
Besides the natural disasters, Exoborne offers various tools to assist you in combat. These include a type of zipline that allows you to pull yourself up onto roofs, vehicles, or a parachute – in case the tornado was faster than you anticipated.
Additionally, you can craft Exo-Rigs that give your soldier a certain extra edge. With an Exo-Rig, for example, you can execute a powerful jump attack that creates a shockwave upon landing or create a kind of shield that temporarily protects you from frontal fire.
If you want to take a look at Exoborne now, feel free to check out the new trailer:
From the Dark Zone into the Storm
Who is behind Exoborne? The extraction shooter is being developed by the Swedish studio Sharkmob AB, which is also behind the battle royale shooter “Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodhunt.”
One of the founders of Sharkmob is Martin Hultberg. He is also serving as the narrative director for Exoborne. In the past, Hultberg worked for Massive Entertainment and was the IP director for The Division there.
Hultberg is joined by Petter Mannerfelt, who was the game director for The Division. For Exoborne, Mannerfelt holds the role of creative director.
Does the experience from The Division help in Exoborne? Absolutely. At first glance, they are two completely different games. The Division is a loot shooter, Exoborne is an extraction shooter.
However, with the Dark Zone, The Division had something like the precursor to today’s extraction shooters: You enter a restricted area, collect loot and make your escape. NPCs and other players can contest your loot. If you die in the Dark Zone before extracting your loot, you leave empty-handed.
Casual Rounds Instead of Hardcore Grind
How does Exoborne plan to stand out? The developers repeatedly emphasize that they want to create an extraction shooter that also caters to casual players and does not scare off new players. This is to be achieved, among other things, through shorter rounds that last a maximum of 20-30 seconds.
Furthermore, there will supposedly be no wipes or similar measures. Instead, a matchmaking system could be introduced to protect you from battles with shooter professionals or Tarkov veterans.
Our colleague Philipp Elsner from GameStar has already had the chance to play Exoborne and summarized his impressions of the extraction shooter from Sharkmob in the video. The new shooter “Exoborne” from the makers of The Division shows us during gameplay for the first time whether it has what it takes to be a tornado hit
