| Exoprimal | |
| Developer: | Capcom |
| Publisher: | Capcom |
| Director: | Takuro Hiraoka |
| Producer: | Ichiro Kiyokawa Kazunori Inoue |
| Artist: | Takuro Fuse |
| Composer: | Akiyuki Morimoto Shusaku Uchiyama Yuko Miyata Akihiko Narita Kodai Ikeda |
| Engine: | RE Engine |
| Released: | July 14, 2023 |
| Genre: | Third-person shooter |
| Modes: | Multiplayer |
Exoprimal is a 2023 multiplayer third-person shooter game developed and published by Capcom. In the game, the player controls an "exofighter", an exosuit-equipped soldier, who must complete objectives while fighting hordes of dinosaurs with the goal of defeating the sinister artificial intelligence Leviathan. In gameplay, players are grouped into two teams of five, and must compete with each other to defeat waves of dinosaurs and complete objectives before the opposing team can.
Exoprimal was released for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on July 14, 2023. The game received mixed reviews from critics and had sold under 940,000 units by September 2023.
Exoprimal is a "player-versus-player-versus-environment" video game where players, controlling exofighters, are divided into two teams and compete to complete objectives first. The game features multiple exosuits, each with their own weapons and abilities, categorized into three character classes: Assault, Tank, and Support. For instance, Roadblock is a tank character who is equipped with a shield, the Witchdoctor is a supporting character who can heal other players, and Barrage is an explosive expert. Players can change their classes during gameplay, or apply "rigs" to their characters, which grant them abilities from other classes.[1] Players can also progress through the game's Survival Pass to unlock new skins and cosmetic items for their exosuits and weapons.[2]
The main mode in the game is "Dino Survival". Two teams of five players must race against each other to complete the objectives set by Leviathan.[3] The main opponents in the game are dinosaurs unleashed from mysterious vortexes, including Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, Pachycephalosaurus, Pteranodon, and massive hordes of raptors, as well as mutated prehistoric creatures named "neosaurs" which have special combat abilities. The objectives and combat challenges players must complete include Dinosaur Cull, VTOL Defense, Data Key Security, Omega Charge, and Energy Taker.[4] According to game director Takuro Hiraoka, players are sometimes required to fight against or fight with each other.[5] Dinosaur Cull requires players to eliminate a specific kind of dinosaur, while VTOL Defense tasks players to guard a grounded aircraft and protect it from dinosaur attacks. As the player completes objectives, they will gain experience points, which would allow them to further upgrade their characters and unlock more story missions.[6]
In the near future of 2040, interdimensional time-travelling portals known as "vortexes" begin to appear on Earth. The only thing that comes out of them are massive hordes of hostile dinosaurs and "neosaurs", genetically-modified dinosaurs mutated by the chemicals Hi-Xol and Lo-Xol, causing global chaos and destruction. Humanity fights back by fielding "exofighters", soldiers equipped with specialized exosuits manufactured by the Aibius Corporation. Aibius also develops "Leviathan", an advanced artificial intelligence designed to assist the exofighters by augmenting their operations and predicting where the next vortex will open. However, the exofighters are rivaled by mercenaries and private military companies seeking to acquire data for themselves.
In 2043, Patrol Squad #52585 "Hammerheads"—consisting of Ace, a rookie exofighter and the fully-customizable player character; Lorenzo, the squad leader and mechanic; Alders, an engineer; Majesty, a skilled but serious exofighter; and Sandy, the squad's android assistant—are caught in a vortex during a mission and find themselves on Bikitoa Island in a mysterious alternate timeline. Ace meets veteran exofighter Magnum, who assists him and the Hammerheads, as well as Leviathan, who has seemingly gone rogue and is now hosting "wargames". These consist of various "combat tests" that send the participants back in time to a specific date in 2040, where they must fight waves of dinosaurs and neosaurs appearing through vortexes opened by Leviathan themselves. Ace, supported by Magnum and the Hammerheads, takes part in the wargames while attempting to uncover Leviathan's secrets.
Exoprimal was developed by Capcom. The team's goal was to design an action game that was distinct from Capcom's previous titles, and they envisioned a game in which players are required to overcome and eliminate hordes of enemies, unlike Monster Hunter in which players only take on one single enemy at a time. Dinosaurs were chosen as the game's main enemy type because Hiraoka and the team believed that "it would be fun to experience the threat of history's most fearsome predators", especially if they attack players in a massive horde. The game is not related to the Dino Crisis series, though the producer of that series, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, was involved in the development and production of Exoprimal.[7]
Exoprimal was announced during a PlayStation State of Play livestream in March 2022.[8] Capcom arranged network tests for PC players in July and August 2022, allowing them to play a pre-release version of the game.[9] An open beta for the game was held from 17 to 19 March 2023.[10] The game was released for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S as a fully-priced product on July 14, 2023.[11] It also launched on Xbox Game Pass for cloud, console, and PC.[12]
Exoprimal received "mixed or average" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.
In two weeks, Exoprimal had reached over one million players.[13]
By the end of September 2023, the game had sold under 940,000 units.[14]