Conan chops you down from a crucifix in Conan Exiles

I gotta admit, Conan was the last name I would've thought of when it comes to open-world survival. Survival games have largely been built by indie outfits; not venerable companies like Funcom. Well, yes, Funcom is technically an independent developer and publisher, but they've been doing this since the early '90s. Funcom is inspired by the recent successes of this new genre, however, and it's moving in.

Conan Exiles takes the craftsmanship of a Minecraft and the starts-with-nothing gameplay of a Rust and puts them together in a desert. At least at first. As the map expands, Funcom says additional rugged locations are coming: mountains, snow, ice, swamps, and rivers.

But it's possible that nothing is permanent. Conan Exiles introduces "the purge," a special event where NPC armies from neighboring kingdoms come in and wreck shop. Your settlements, strongholds, crops—it could all be gone. Or you could band together with other players to fight the purge. It'll be interesting to see how that works in the single-player mode, too. Are you doomed in the single-player campaign, or can you ally with local NPCs? Does the purge only affect online multiplayer? I'm waiting for answers. Either way, Conan Exiles has my attention. I'm walking over to my bookshelf and dusting off the Robert E. Howard right now.

This video looks behind the scenes at the game's development. Some of it is pretty raw. But Funcom must have made excellent progress over the past couple years (I'm guessing) if it's ready for its close-up in a few months. Oh, and Conan apparently rescues you from crucifixion in the game's opening moments. Yeah buddy.

Conan Exiles goes into Early Access this summer on PC.

  

FUNCOM RELEASES NEW VIDEO AND SCREENSHOTS OF 'CONAN EXILES'

Take a sneak peek into the development of Funcom's upcoming open-world survival game 'CONAN EXILES' in a brand new behind-the-scenes video

Oslo, Norway — February 11th, 2016 — Last month Funcom announced that the company is working on an open-world survival game set in the brutal lands of Conan the Barbarian, and that the game will enter into Early Access on the PC this summer. Today, Funcom is excited to release three new screenshots and a brand new behind-the-scenes video offering a further look into 'CONAN EXILES'.

'CONAN EXILES' is an open-world survival game set in the brutal lands of Conan the Barbarian, the world's greatest fantasy hero. The game can be played on private and public servers, either in multiplayer or local single-player. You start out as an exile, one of thousands cast out to fend for themselves in a barbaric wasteland, and from there you must hunt for food, grow crops, gather resources, craft tools and weapons, and build a shelter.

You can also band together with other players to build entire settlements and fortified strongholds, and wage war against your enemies as you unleash your fury in savage, fast-paced combat that will see limbs flying and heads rolling. You can even align yourself with the Hyborian gods, building altars to their glory and sacrificing the bloody hearts of enemy players upon them to shift the balance of power in your favor. Players will also have to face the purge: a special event where NPC armies from the neighboring kingdoms sweep in to destroy the progress that the exiles have made. Will you stand together with your fellow players against the purge, or will you use it to your advantage?

You can learn more about 'CONAN EXILES' on www.conanexiles.com. Follow the game on Twitter and Facebook for the latest updates. For more information about Funcom, please visit www.funcom.com.