PS4

Metro Exodus

ShooterAdventure

Time to beat: about 17.6 hours
Plays offline: Yes

Overview

Metro Exodus is a first-person shooter video game developed by 4A Games and published by Deep Silver in 2019. The game is the third installment in the Metro video game series, which is based on Dmitry Glukhovsky's novels. It is a sequel to Metro: Last Light and the book Metro 2035, and follows protagonist Artyom and his allies as they flee the Moscow Metro and set off on an intercontinental journey through Russia and parts of Kazakhstan on a locomotive called Aurora. The story takes place over a year, during which Artyom visits locations such as the Volga River and the Caspian Sea. The game improves on the gameplay mechanics of Last Light; it includes both several miniature open world locations and more linear levels like earlier games in the series.

Starting in 2014, the game was developed by a team of around 150 based in Kyiv and Malta. The Exodus studio's main objective was to combine the core gameplay pillars of the Metro series with elements from S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl (2007), which prioritizes emergent gameplay and features a large, explorable space. The team experimented with open-world gameplay and excluded mission markers so that players can explore naturally. To keep the game immersive, the game had a minimalistic head-up display, as in-game information was physicalized through Artyom's gears and equipment. 4A collaborated with Glukhovsky on the game's story, which focuses more on Artyom's personal story and relationships, forgoing some of the supernatural elements found in previous games for a more grounded story.

Announced in June 2017, Metro Exodus was released for PlayStation 4, Windows and Xbox One in February 2019. An upgraded version of the game titled Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S in May 2021. The game received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised its visuals, level design, gameplay and story. It has sold over 10 million units as of February 2024. Two downloadable expansions titled The Two Colonels and Sam's Story, each of which features a new playable character, were released in August 2019 and February 2020, respectively. A sequel titled Metro 2039 is currently in development.