Exodus is Nailing that Mass Effect Feeling

It’s been quite some time now since Exodus was officially announced back in 2023, as Archetype Entertainment’s first project. A studio set up by former BioWare developers, it’s perhaps no surprise that their debut title is heavily inspired by one of their greatest past works, Mass Effect.

This is relevant for many reasons, not least because it’s looking increasingly unlikely that Mass Effect 4 may never see the light of day. Fortunately, after getting the chance to go hands-on with Exodus at Gamescom 2026, it looks like we won’t be missing too much, as it’s doing a fine job of carrying the torch.

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Khonsu is an early-game mission that gives a look at what to expect in Exodus.

A Mission on Khonsu

My time with the game started with an early mission on Khonsu, a ship that maintains a barrier that protects the planet Lidon. An awakened species, the Kay, is being enslaved here, and as a first mission for our heroes, we need to head there and take out the lieutenant to collapse the chain of command.

After successfully landing, I got a brief introduction to Jun, the protagonist, who has the ability to use his gauntlet to open sealed doors and perform other feats of wonder. This tech happens to be related to an ancient race known as the Celestials, and it appears to be directly tied to the main narrative of Exodus. Throughout the mission on Khonsu, I got plenty of options to learn more about the Celestials and put the gauntlet to work.

While I don’t want to delve too much into the story and spoil what happens on Khonsu, there were plenty of character moments where I learnt more about the team, especially the mysterious Suliman, who appears to know a lot about Jun despite only recently meeting him. Depending on the choices I made throughout the mission, the party would get approval boosts (or deductions), so it already seems like your choices will be very important.

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Exodus is mostly a cover-shooter.

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Going off the beaten path leads to Knowledge that gives you skill points.

On top of this, there appear to be major decisions in the main quests, with one such decision occurring when I met a defective robot who had a keycard I needed. Here, I was presented with two options: one a Paladin choice (good) and one an Immortal choice (bad). I could choose to purchase the keycard or take it forcibly by using Jun’s powers, with both leading to approval ratings among my various party members.

If you’ve played Mass Effect before, it’s nothing you’ve not seen already, but there was something nostalgic about playing a new adventure that was heavily choice based.

Corridors and Explosions

The level design of this mission, at least, mimics that of Mass Effect 2 and 3, in that you’ll find yourself traveling down corridors with branching paths to the side to find goodies and Knowledge Points (these are your skill points in Exodus). These moments provide fun moments between the party members as they chat about their surroundings, and you always feel like you’re getting rewarded for exploring off the beaten path.

Loot, then, came mostly in the guise of materials and scrap, rather than equipment. You see, Jun’s weapon is the Recycler, which can change form based on what you want it to do. There is a piercer, repeater, and charger, to name just a few of the forms, and you’ll find they deal different types of damage. If you’re up against shielded enemies, switch to the form that deals bonus damage to them, for example. Jun’s recycler has some customization, though, as you can equip mods to each form. These can augment how each of them functions, such as increasing weak point damage.

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There are plenty of skills for you to learn.

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Using your companions’ abilities effectively will impact how smoothly combat plays out.

Beyond this, you can find new Suits and Gauntlet upgrades as well as use your Knowledge Points on the Constellation. In here, you’ll find three main skill trees: Soldier, Prodigy, and Operative, along with three other trees that exist between these, Knight, Specialist, and Oracle. I did notice that there are both Intimidation and Persuasion Levels too, which I presume are increased via skills in the Constellation menu.

Combat as a whole is very much a cover shooter; as you explore your surroundings, you’ll come across waist-high walls that you can use to take cover and fire at the various enemies you’ll come into contact with. Enemies can have different types of resistances, such as shields, requiring you to use not only Jun’s various Recycler forms, but also your party members’ skills.

For example, Suliman relies on sneak attack skills, so you can send him in ahead of time to take an enemy out before you start a firefight. Elise, on the other hand, is the complete opposite, using rockets and other explosions to deal heavy area-of-effect damage. As you use your allies’ skills, you’ll eventually be able to use their ultimate skills, which pack far more of a punch. Suliman will do multiple slices across many enemies at once, and Elise uses a missile barrage; all of this really alters the way you approach combat.

Perhaps the most interesting part of it all, though, is Jun’s options in combat. As you explore areas, you’ll get new Celestial abilities, and not only are these used out of combat, such as breaking walls or blocking beams to stop platforms from moving, but they can also be used in battle. During the Khonsu mission, I unlocked the Petrify ability; this allowed me to encase enemies in stone and take them out of action for a while. This opens up a ton of combat options, and it makes finding a new ability an exciting moment.

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Jun’s Recycler can change forms.

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The Kay were a personal highlight!

This was only a small slice of an early mission in Exodus, but I already like what I see. If you’re a fan of Mass Effect 2 and 3, you’re going to feel right at home. The writing seems great already, the characters seem fun, and I love what the game is doing with the various species we’re already interacting with. If Exodus can keep up the surprises, have choices that truly matter, and offer plenty of fun toys to play with when it comes to combat, it’s going to be a smash hit when it launches on April 7th, 2027.