Exophobia Review (PS5)
Summary: Exophobia is a Metroidvania styled first person Boomer Shooter that envelopes the crux of its gameplay and design beautifully with its mechanics creating an entangling interplanetary voyage you won't forget.
4.3
Great Attractor
The vast inexplicable mysteries of intercosmic extraterrestrials have been disclosed and they are hostile! Exophobia is a retro-styled first-person shooter Metroidvania with fast paced combat and multifaceted gameplay that was developed by Zarc Attack, published by PM Studios, and released on July 23rd of 2024. Exophobia pays tribute to classics like Wolfenstein, Doom, and Duke Nukem with its straightforward experience, stylistically rudimentary 3D graphics, well hidden secrets, and similar powerups to help you through your journey. Prepare to make your enemies pay and deliver them to the depths of empty space by blasting them away with your blaster. Equipped with gadgetry that provide dynamic ways of play, you must decipher the layers of the maze-like ship to conquer this alien race and rescue your trapped comrades.
Exophobia’s story centers around a band of pioneers on a mission to uncover the wonders of space. Their expedition becomes more hopeful after finding a habitable red planet with a suitable setup. Scanning this crimson world proved successful as it confirmed that there was life already living on the planet. In an unfortunate error of judgment, the explorers were excited and too hasty to make this momentous first contact with the alien species. This thrilling adventure has now become a desperate cry for help as the Alien King has taken over the ship. Now it is up to you to wreak havoc and take revenge on the horde of red tentacled beasts and save the last remaining crew members in hiding.
The story of the game is simple, but does its job nicely to constantly keep you engaged. Throughout the game, you can find discs that you can upload at a save station that are scattered around the different levels of the ship. These discs have valuable information on them like data on the aliens, clues about certain things within your environment, as well as logs from different people that relay bits of the lore. Exophobia also does a good job with its environmental storytelling by having deceased crew members bestrewn around the ship decks and interesting detail plastered on the walls.
The gameplay is fast and action packed. Your character already moves fast on their own, but they have the ability to slide around which not only adds another layer to the quick movements, but is something you can also utilize during combat, puzzles, and traveling around the huge spacecraft. Your main weapon is a blaster that can shoot at regular intervals with no ammunition needed. It can also be charged to let off a bigger blast and can be upgraded at different terminals to gain new functions like a discharge of electricity.
Everything that you can do has multiple uses. You can use your weapon to fire at enemies, but it can also be used to activate levers. You can slide into enemies to knock them off a platform or to stun them, but you also need to slide under obstacles to reach your goal safely. You can open up your map at any time, but using it too much will make it slowly fade away to the point where you can be deep in the crevices of the unknown without a clear way of getting out. You can charge your map at save stations as well as look more extensively at it during these moments of reprieve. There is pressure while you play, but it’s not stressful; you have to have a certain level of perceptiveness because your actions have consequences. The diverse applications of all of the mechanics makes you feel like you are constantly doing something and getting in the groove and pulling off all of these different elements of the gameplay successfully is tremendously rewarding.
Making your way through this labyrinth can be confusing, but the game constantly pushes you in the right direction. Exophobia is big and the game does a good job at making this spacious environment feel otherworldly and divine as if the space you are playing in is its own character. Even though this game has Metroidvania tendencies, there’s no need to be concerned about your galactic trek through the cold metal alien infested halls. The game guides you pretty well by introducing you to your new abilities comfortably and setting you off on the right track immediately. It’s actually pretty hard to get turned around; you are usually always next to your objective. There are certain places you will want to go back to and revisit after you have gained a new ability because you want to explore and see what else you can find.
Playing the game and actually getting around is enjoyable. There are chains to climb, blocks to bust, cells to charge, and walls to wallop. You are constantly doing something different and it never gets boring to play. The way the puzzles evolve and demand new strategies feels natural and makes you feel smart for figuring them out. There are some moments where it feels like you have exhausted all of your possibilities and have no clue what to do because the game expects you to complete a chain of events that it doesn’t explain very well, but it’s never because it’s actually tricky to pull off. Regardless, I never felt disoriented and the puzzles are more smart than perplexing.
The flow of combat is satisfying and the strategies you need to use to battle the different enemy varieties is invasive and requires you to make quick decisions on the fly. The environment can either help you or hinder your progress in taking down these ablaze abominations. You can unload into explosive barrels to create fiery shockwaves, but be sure to stand clear when they erupt in a thunderous boom. Knock enemies into lasers or line them up in a way where friendly fire can be an issue for them. The weight behind charging your weapon and releasing its energy in the eyes of the opposition feels gratifying.
Graphically, Exophobia looks fantastic. I think games like this live in a perpetual state of being substantial due to their unique graphical style. The clean and flat colored tones really express the emptiness and abandoned state your surroundings have fallen in. Your pugnacious adversaries all have gnarly designs and the bosses bear an immense amount of swagger. The obtrusiveness of all of the red enemies can be a bit too tiring though, but once something overstays its welcome, a new wave of freshness comes into play.
The contextual and narrative jingles feel appropriate and fill your body with wonder and amazement after each revelation. The music that kicks in that emphasizes incoming enemies has an inviting effect that pulsates through your veins while you are bringing down the otherworldly scum. Since the game seems to be very action oriented, I was surprised that there really weren’t any tracks that were super intense. While the music kicks in at the right time, it’s sort of just mellow and relaxing. The game is full of all your typical sci-fi space shooter beeps and boops that are satisfying to come across.
Final Thoughts?
Exophobia is a great boomer shooter that has some awesome and varied exploration. The dense environments and detailed world is welcomed and while the story is simple, it gets the job done. Gameplay and combat are nicely layered with the different mechanics and its pure chaos easily creates a fun time. While puzzles can be confusing in practice, the encompassing design creates an addicting loop to keep playing to see what else you will find. Enemies with cool designs are appreciable even if the swarm of the same colors are abundant. The game’s graphical flair, melodious tunes, and typical futuristic pings and chimes add an admirable quality to the experience. While the enemies of Exophobia have dedicated their existence to tear you down out of hatred, you are going to want to keep coming back in and figure out the secrets of the ship’s hull and to keep playing in this astronomic romp on foreign territory.
About the Author
Nay Clark Gaming holds a special place in my heart and I never stop talking about video games. I really love all types of games and have an interest in games that have complicated stories and lore because I enjoy untangling the mystery of it all. When I'm not gaming, I unsuccessfully try to control three amazing and incredibly bright kids.
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