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Exile is a sc-fi action/adventure game, with gameplay, style and atmosphere that I've never seen in any other game - 'journey to the centre of the earth', 'tombraider' maybe? You play a character named Mike Finn, who is ordered to investigate a distress call from colonists on a nearby planet called Phoebus. Your mission is to investigate and search for survivors. As soon are you arrive on the planet a mysterious figure named Triax, exiled to the planet decades before, steals an essential part of your ship, the destinator, which is vital for you to take off. Now you are stranded on this strange new world, with limited fuel inside your jetpack, and no weapons to defend yourself.
So here the adventure begins...
What makes this game so special? Well, the most distinctive thing about this game, is that the world feels real and alive. Each object has it's own weight and properties - winds blowing, meteors descending from the sky, quakes, the creatures A.I. and ofcourse the ability to fly, walk, teleport and interact with the world. It's not a coincedence that some see some resemblence with the C64 game Thrust, since part of it's gamecode is used in Exile. You are free to do anything - there are no levels. You can teleport anytime and anywhere you want within the vast world, and the most remarkable thing is that you can not die - which is actually a good thing for this type of game, that is focused on manipulating and collecting objects and passes for doors and teleporters, solving puzzles and exploring the underground cave system. You will be teleporting a lot and this is a key factor for you to successfully progress deeper in the game. There is an option to save however when things get too difficult. There's just something magical controlling Finn and watch him fly and tumble down the caves. It never grows old.
One of the first characters you will meet once you leave your ship is a small green bird - which is pretty harmless really, but very annoying - that has the nasty habit of aiming his droppings towards you.
These inhabitants play a big role in the game. Some are more vicious than others, but essentially you will need them to achieve your goals. For instance, you can pick up a frog, take it to a bee hive so it can have a snack while you rush into a nearby cave. A bit further in the game you will meet a friendly robot named Chatter. Chatter can be activated by whistles found later in the game - it will help you by attacking enemies, and if you feed it a coronium crystal it produces power pods when you deactivate it. Later in the game you will need many of those powerpods, because your protection suit and better weapons drain your energy rapidly. Another character you will meet is Fluffy - a pet of one of the colonists, that keeps returning to you and jumps at your hands. Useful to get items and press buttons since it can go places you can't. And try to be careful of the imps - they throw mushrooms at you that will stun you for a few seconds, or even steal stuff from your inventory.
You can pick up, throw and store most of the objects (including some of the creatures) except for big objects like for instance boulders. Those you can hold and use to fly down wind tunnels. You can store up to five objects. Apart from the Gun you will find more interesting and powerful weapons such as the Icer, the PC312 Blaster, Plasma Gun, and ofcourse Grenades. Also, there are keys for aiming. A nice touch is that when you touch a new object or character, a short message will appear on the lower part of the screen informing you what it is. The adventure element becomes apparent when you start playing it yourself, when you progress deeper into the game, when Triax's Killer Robots start spawning everywhere, or when the caves start flooding.
The original game came with a well-written novella, which was there to provide limited clues regarding the scenery and objects such as the famous wind-tunnel to the east of your ship, the mysterious rune cave, Triax's hideout and ofcourse the lost colonists. This definitely enhances the already immersive atmosphere, and is a must-read for fans of the game!
Why this game hasn't been re-done in a 3D version by a professional game company yet is beyond me. It would no doubt be revolutionary and fun, provided that it is done right (!), and remains faithful to the adventure principles of this game. Exile - marooned on a breathing living world, inhabited by creatures both vicious and friendly, and a vast labyrinth of underground tunnels and caves to explore in search for lost colonists...
Play it if you never have!
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Perhaps not the best of graphics compared to other games at first glance, but it has a certain artistic style that fits well to this type of game. The particles are one of the finer details. Although there's an AGA version of Exile with improved graphics, the look and feel of the ECS version is preferred.
Finn may be one of the cutest animated characters on Amiga, don't you think?
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Average sound effects, yet very original, atmospheric and suiting for the game (listen to the sounds the imps make). Interestingly, if you listen carefully, you'll notice that some samples are used for at least another action, played at a different pitch - the sample for a falling meteor for instance is also used when you open a door - this due to the fact that the game had to fit on one disk.
Apart from the title screen music, there's no music in the game itself except for the ingenious tension building sound that you hear throughout the entire game that is dynamic with your characters actions, for example when you bump into a wall or when you are attacked by an enemy. This most certainly adds to the atmosphere, and keeps your adrenaline flowing.
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This game is just perfect and full of character, and although Exile originated on the BBC followed by a version on the C64, I think it truly comes to justice on the Amiga. As mentioned, there's an AGA version too but the look and feel of the ECS version is much more balanced and appealing and it is as if it has lost it's charm and playability in other versions. The controls can be tricky at first, but once you got it figured out it's tremendous fun to fly around and search for objects.
It's a big game - it will take some time and practice to complete it. But no matter how frustrating it gets, it compels you to go on and on and it gives a great deal of satisfaction each time you solve a problem or reach new areas. There's total freedom within the gameworld and the game is designed such that there are many ways to solve and resolve all of the problems and puzzles. A game where you have to use your brain. The most interesting thing is that you can not die, instead you are teleported back to a previously stored location, or your ship where you started off in the first place.
Even now in the days of advanced graphics technology and 3D power it's a great joy to just load up the game and explore the mystic caves and experience the gravity and the dynamic world of Exile. Everything behaves how you would expect it. I remember playing the demo for hours, where I used to pick up some frogs and lock them up inside the ship, and watch them jump around, or give them a marshmallow treatment above one of the fireplaces if I felt like it. The possibilities are endless. Very entertaining!
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As far as I'm concerned this game deserves a ten, just for originality alone, and the playability is timeless really. The moment the game begins you know it's something special.
Exile is a game in a genre of it's own - a masterpiece in concept and programming - quite unique. There's nothing out there that is even remotely similar, that captures the same 70's sci-fi atmosphere like Exile. A classic that you have to appreciate, that you have to experience for yourself. |
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