Game Details
Release Date: February 15, 2019
Developer: 4A Games
Publisher: Deep Silver
Platform: PC (Epic Games Store), XBox One, PS4
Price: $49.99/€59.99/£49.99 (PC), $59.99/€69.99/£54.99 (XBox One, PS4)
XBox One X and PS4 Pro Enhancements: Yes
PC Requirements
Release Date: February 15, 2019
Developer: 4A Games
Publisher: Deep Silver
Platform: PC (Epic Games Store), XBox One, PS4
Price: $49.99/€59.99/£49.99 (PC), $59.99/€69.99/£54.99 (XBox One, PS4)
XBox One X and PS4 Pro Enhancements: Yes
PC Requirements
Special Editions
About the Game
About the Game
Metro Exodus is the third game in the Metro first-person survival horror series, developed by 4A Games. The series is loosely based on novels by Dmitry Glukhovsky, where the surface of Moscow is destroyed and irradiated by a nuclear war, driving the remnants of humanity into the underground metro tunnels between the city. The Metro series' trademark, to this point, has been a well constructed, linear campaign that sports incredibly detailed environments, combined with some additional mechanics beyond what most first person shooters require of the player; namely, charging your electrical gadgets, managing your gas mask and filters, and manually pumping pneumatic weapons to maintain their damage output.
Metro 2033 RecapThe first game begins with Artyom's home station of Exhibition being attacked by a group of mysterious enemies only referred to as "Dark Ones" by the game's characters. Artyom, a 23-year-old who was born before nuclear war broke out and devastated the surface, is tasked by a soldier of the Spartan Order, Hunter, to go seek help from the other Spartan rangers in the de facto capital of the Metro, Polis station. Artyom's journey takes him through a winding path in the Metro, from stations that are cursed with trapped souls from the war to the front line in a never ending skirmish between the Red Line and Fourth Reich forces to the mutant-infested surface. Through it all, Artyom is helped and guided by a number of companions including Bourbon, a smuggler; Khan, a mysterious mystic; and Ulman, another Spartan ranger.
Finally, with the help of other Spartan rangers, Artyom reaches Polis and meets Miller, the leader of the Spartan order. Miller helps Artyom make his pitch to the governing council for help for Exhibition, but his pleas fall upon deaf ears. Miller then lets Artyom in on a secret - there is a rumored missile silo in the metro called D6 that could contain enough power to destroy the Dark Ones for good. Artyom is tasked with going to a library on the surface for records about D6's location; upon retrieving them, he, Miller, and a detachment of Rangers venture back underground and finally gain access to D6.
With the silo reactivated, Miller and Artyom climb to the top of Ostankino Tower to use a guidance system in order to target the Dark Ones' nest with the missiles. Just as he is about to fire the missiles, Artyom receives a hallucination from a Dark One; however, in the canon ending, this does not deter him from making the missiles fire, wiping out the Dark Ones nest.
Metro: Last Light Recap
Last Light takes place in 2034, one year after the events of the last game. Since then, Artyom has had concerns and nightmares about killing the Dark Ones. During the same time, the Spartan Rangers have moved into D6, giving them the upper hand in the constant power struggle between factions in the Metro. Word of the discovery of D6 and the stockpiles of food and weapons it contains within have spread throughout the Metro, however, and the Red Line and Fourth Reich begin militarizing with plans to take it for themselves.
Khan meets with the leader of the Spartan order, Miller, and tells him about a young Dark One he has spotted on the surface, near the former nest. He pleads with Miller to not kill it, believing it is key to humanity's recovery. Miller disregards this advice and orders his daughter Anna to go back to the nest with Artyom and kill the last Dark One. During the mission, Artyom is stunned by the Dark One and captured by soldiers of the Fourth Reich, finding himself in a Nazi prison camp. He manages to escape with a captured Red Line soldier named Pavel, and together they fight through the Metro and the surface until reaching the Red Line. Pavel drugs Artyom after promising him safe passage back to Polis, and the leaders of the Red Line (Chairman Moskvin and General Korbut) attempt to interrogate Artyom about D6, the Rangers, and the Dark One.
Artyom manages to escape and finds his way back to an outpost of the Rangers, but it is soon attacked by Red Line soldiers, led by the ex-Ranger and spy Lesnitsky. Lesnitsky kidnaps Anna and leaves the outpost, causing Artyom to give chase. As he pursues them, Artyom comes across the Red Line massacring an entire metro station under the guise of a quaratine for an epidemic that suddenly appeared inside the station. Artyom manages to find Anna and save her from Lesnitsky, but they are both exposed to the virus in the process and are quarantined themselves in a neighboring station, operated by Hansa. Expecting to die from the virus, Anna and Artyom have sex, only to find that they test negative the next day.
Khan finds Artyom and he leads Artyom on a vision quest of sorts within the Metro, causing him to have flashbacks that allow Artyom to recall meeting a Dark One was a child when he and his friends ventured to the surface and were almost killed by mutants. The Dark One psychically linked itself to Artyom, using him as a bridge between the species. Since then, the Dark Ones have tried to talk to Artyom and other humans, but have been misunderstood since other humans lack the same link.
Artyom finds and saves the child Dark One, and they begin the journey travel to Polis with Khan in order to interrupt a peace conference between the Spartan Rangers, the Red Line, the Fourth Reich, and Hansa. On the way there, they fight through a detachment of Red Line soldiers and take out both Lesnitsky and Pavel. At the peace conference, the Dark One touches Chairman Moskvin and causes him to publicly admit that the peace conference is a diversion for an attack on D6. Artyom and the Spartan rangers rush to D6 to make a last stand against General Korbut and the Red Line.
It is here that the secret of D6 is revealed - there are no food or weapons contained within. Instead, there is a group of hibernating Dark Ones hidden within. In the canon ending, the child Dark One awakens the others in hibernation, and together they save Artyom, Miller, and the rest of D6 from the Red Line.
Metro Exodus
Metro Exodus is set two years after the events of Metro: Last Light. The game takes place over the course of a single year as Artyom and the other Spartan Rangers leave the underground Metro and set off on a journey across the surface to the far east.
Spartan Rangers
The Rangers are the peacekeepers of the Metro system. They are battle hardened, highly trained, and extremely effective at killing both mutants and enemy human factions alike. They operate out of Polis and later D6. They're respected and feared by other factions and even unaffiliated bandits and mercenaries that would prey on weaker groups throughout the metro. The Rangers have also created two outposts on the surface in an attempt to facilitate their operations topside.
The Red Line
The Red Line is ruled by the Communist Party of the Moscow Underground, acting a spiritual successor to the Stalinist ideology that dominated the Soviet Union for much of the 20th century. The Red Line is massive, containing thousands of people, a large number of stations, and the second largest distance of metro tracks among all factions.
The Fourth Reich
The fascist faction of the Metro, the Reich is smaller than the Red Line but just as formidable. They are centered around three main stations but have numerous outposts throughout the metro, including prison camps. Instead of pursuing German purity like its predecessor, the Third Reich, the Fourth Reich is obsessed with genetic purity, testing the inhabitants of the Metro for mutations such as skulls that do not fit within "normal" standards.
Hanza
Hanza is situated on the ring Metro line, giving it unrivaled control over much of the comings and goings of the Metro. Its unique foothold allowed it to become a capitalist powerhouse, with the wealth trickling down to provide running water, electricity, and public transit for all of its inhabitants. Hansa is seen as fairly neutral, maintaining trading relationships with Polis, the Red Line, and the Fourth Reich. Hansa's military is well equipped and formidable enough to protect its wealth and critical infrastructure.
The Dark Ones
The Dark Ones are a sentient species that are deemed as a threat to humanity by a number of the Metro's factions. Indeed, they serve as the main antagonists of Metro 2033. It is only later in Metro Last Light that Artyom realizes that they are trying to help humanity, not destroy it. While initially suspected to be the result of radiation on the surface, it is suggested by the vault of hibernating Dark Ones inside D6 that they may have been created through a series of experiments before the nuclear war began.
WatcherSometimes referred to as Watchmen, watchers move in packs ranging in size from a handful to double digits. They hunt their prey at any time of the day, typically preferring to avoid areas where they are not the apex predator. Watchers have a howl much like dogs from before the war, which lends credibility to the theory that they may have been mutated from canines.
Lurker
Small, fast, and travel in packs. Lurkers tend to burrow holes in the ground in metro stations that lead to underground tunnels and warrens. Walking over one such hole is just asking for a Lurker to pull you down to your doom, and losing sight of them can turn an easy encounter into a prolonged game of wack-a-mole. Lurkers rarely attack humans in packs, so bring a friend when traversing through areas that are infested by them.
Demon
Demons seem to be the only flying mutant that is found on the surface, and with their wings comes increased mobility and danger. Demons feast on anything that moves in an open field, often swooping down to pick off a human, watcher, or nosalis that has stuck its head up above its surroundings. When moving through areas with demons, seek any form of cover you can find, even if its just the shells of two hollowed out cars to crouch between.
The surface is full of many other mutants and creatures - some known by the inhabitants of the Metro, some yet to be discovered by someone like you.
Special thanks to Deep Silver's brand management team for help with images and assets for this OT.
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