Exodus Brings Unlimited Romance Options
Exodus, a sci‑fi RPG from Archetype Entertainment founded by former BioWare developers, feels like a spiritual successor to Mass Effect. As BioWare works on the fifth entry in its series, Archetype, together with Wizards of the Coast, is building its own space‑opera shooter. A popular feature from Mass Effect that carries over into Exodus is romance. Many of us enjoy a bit of love amid the cold, vastness of space. Unlike Mass Effect, Exodus does not lock relationships behind the player’s gender.
In an interview with IGN, Exodus narrative director Drew Karpyshyn said the romance system lets players control the story and is not gender‑locked, so whether you play as a male or female version of Jun Aslan you can kiss anyone you want.
BioWare has alternated between locking relationships to specific genders and adopting a “playersexual” approach that lets the protagonist pursue anyone. Most recently, Dragon Age: The Veilguard took the latter route, explicitly stating that all party members are pansexual. In contrast, Mass Effect companions have always been defined by fixed identities and preferences. While both methods have merits, I prefer the playersexual model because it ensures queer players aren’t left out.
According to Karpyshyn, romance in Exodus will have layers, including the possibility of polyamorous relationships or the risk of sabotaging a romance by courting multiple characters simultaneously.
“There’s no situation where a character is going to romance you if you didn’t take the initiative. We want to put you in situations where you can potentially try to romance more than one person. Outcomes will vary based on the characters and your choices, making the system feel complicated, just like real life.”
Relationships will be affected by your other choices, and yes, there will be sex scenes. Director Chris King says they are more “reserved” than the explicit scenes found in games like Baldur’s Gate 3 or Cyberpunk 2077. It’s been almost a decade since I had a new space husband in Mass Effect: Andromeda, so I look forward to kissing space men when Exodus releases on April 7.
