
Graphics options Quality (low-extreme), vsync (full/half/off), motion blur (low-high), DirectX version (DX11/DX12), Hairworks (on/off), advanced PhysX (on/off), tessellation (on/off), texture filtering (AF4-AF16), ray tracing (off/high/ultra-requires RTX card), DLSS (on/off-RTX card) Most of the mutants are generic, snarling monsters, and quite boring to fight, but there is one towards the end of the game that is actually kind of terrifying. I think they were going for something similar to the creatures in I Am Legend, but they're clumsy, slow, and a drudge to kill, rather than some relentless, savage force to be reckoned with. But the novelty of shooting hordes of crustaceans, bandits, and mutants soon wears off, and after a while I found myself yearning for more depth.Ī new mutant type, the ridiculously named 'humanimals', are zombie-like drones who rush you in packs, clambering over scenery and occasionally throwing bits of rubble at you. The guns feel great, and I love how you can strip enemy weapons and attach the scavenged parts to your own at a workbench. But whether you're fighting mutants or humans, the AI is never particularly sharp or reactive, and constantly scrabbling for ammo can be a chore. The furiously paced combat can be thrilling, especially when you start modding your guns, transforming puny revolvers into freakish weapons of mass destruction. Sometimes you can approach a situation stealthily, tossing tin cans to distract guards and quietly killing or incapacitating them, but that's about as exotic as it gets. I know it sounds like I'm criticising an FPS for having too much S, but if you're going to give me this big, fascinating, beautiful world to explore, I feel like there should be more interesting ways to interact with it. The context, stakes, and location will change, and there are some fantastically dramatic set-pieces to be found in here, but it's a shame how, fundamentally, every encounter in Metro boils down to shooting people. But it also makes Exodus, in some ways, rather disappointing in its lack of ambition. This means, despite the spectacular change of scenery, it still feels like part of the series.

Ammo and gas mask filters are still precious commodities, and Artyom still spends the majority of the game in scrappy, tense firefights with other men in gas masks. The brutal, kinetic first-person combat and lightweight survival elements that define the Metro games haven't changed in any significant way.
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For handy tips, check out our Metro Exodus weapons guide (opens in new tab), weapon upgrade locations, and Metro Exodus crafting guide (opens in new tab).īut this variety extends mainly to the setting and structure. Every location the Aurora stops at feels wonderfully hand-crafted and the weather, atmosphere, and lighting regularly change as the story spans the seasons, making for an excitingly varied game.Ĭheck out our Metro Exodus review (opens in new tab) and performance test (opens in new tab). It's a restrained freedom, limited by the size of the maps, but there's something refreshing about an open world that focuses more on detail than size. Metro has always been a rigidly, sometimes suffocatingly linear shooter, but now you have the opportunity to venture off the beaten path, scavenge, and explore. This is your first taste of the open world in Exodus, which is made up of several large, self-contained areas, rather than one continuous sprawl. But it's not long before the Aurora is speeding out of the fallen capital, along the Volga River, and into the wintry countryside.


The game begins in familiar surroundings-the shattered, radioactive ruins of Moscow and the labyrinth of tunnels beneath it. I say road trip, but your primary mode of transport in Metro Exodus is an old Soviet-era steam train called the Aurora.
