Skip to main content

Xbox Game Pass’ latest addition is a must-try multiplayer shooter

Deadeye fights dinosaurs in Exoprimal
Capcom

Capcom is known for making excellent single-player adventures, while its history with multiplayer shooters is much more spotty. Exoprimal changes that.

Since the mid-2010s, games like Resident Evil 7, Devil May Cry V, Monster Hunter World, and Street Fighter 6 cemented Capcom as one of the best game publishers out there. Though one area where the company has always struggled is in the lucrative multiplayer shooter market. Titles like Resident Evil Re:Verse, Resident Evil Resistance, and Umbrella Corps just weren’t that fun to play and failed to leave much of an impact. That’s why I was hesitant following the announcement of Exoprimal, a multiplayer-only PvPvE game about fighting hordes of dinosaurs with Exosuits. Thankfully, after playing it a lot during its betas and some more after its official July 14 launch, I’m happy to say that Exoprimal is Capcom’s best modern multiplayer shooter.

Recommended Videos

It’s a game that’s full of personality in both gameplay and the entertaining narrative moments spread out between matches. Its tone feels like a cheesy 1980s cartoon in the best way, while its gameplay blends elements of Anthem, Overwatch, and Left 4 Dead to craft an experience that’s as satisfying as one would expect from a game where players fight dinosaurs with mechs. It’s on Xbox Game Pass, so give it as shot if you’ve enjoyed Cacpom’s recent games and want to see those skills applied to a multiplayer game.

Multiplayer mayhem

The narrative of Exoprimal actually feels somewhat relevant right now due to the rising prevalence of AI. The premise is that Leviathan, the AI behind a giant megacorporation that hires Exosuit fighters to defeat dinosaurs invading from another dimension, goes rogue and forces the player to participate in an endless series of wargames against those dinos and other Exosuit fighters. Fold in some time-travel and dimension-hopping shenanigans, as well as a quirky crew of characters helping players between matches, and you have a game that pokes fun at corporate greed, AI, and questionable workplaces with Capcom’s trademark wit. These narrative elements weren’t in the prelaunch betas of Exoprimal that I played, so they served as a pleasant surprise now that I’m playing the final version of the game.

Leviathan traps a player in Exoprimal.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Playing Exoprimal at launch affirmed how enjoyable its combat is. Players have 10 Exosuits (and their variants) to choose from, which are separated into Support, Tank, and Assault classes and have distinct abilities, like the heroes in Overwatch. Players can swap between them freely during matches, which have two teams competing to complete a series of objectives at the same time before a final showdown. While I could toggle whether or not I wanted that final objective to feature PvP combat, another team’s progress always looming over me added an exciting sense of urgency to each match that kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time.

Shooting down hordes of zombies with the Deadeye Exosuit or slicing through them with the Murasame Exosuit’s sword was a ton of fun, as were the rare moments where I was able to turn into a dinosaur attacking the enemy team and stall their progress. In a preview of the game last July, I called Exoprimal “a much more robust and inspired multiplayer shooter than I expected.” Now that Exoprimal is out, that statement still holds up.

Even just the one Dino Survival mode that’s in the game now is doing plenty to keep me entertained as I play to progress the story. Then, once that’s done, I’m sure that the progression systems tied to each Exosuit and post-launch editions, like the upcoming cooperative Savage Gauntlet, will keep me coming back to Exoprimal. I haven’t even had the chance to play the game with friends yet, which will probably enhance the experience further.

Murasame slashes at enemies in Exoprimal
Capcom

I had my doubts about Exoprimal ahead of its release, but the game finally showed that Capcom’s developers can apply the skill they’ve accrued in making great single-player games to an enthralling multiplayer-only experience. Capcom’s single-player adventures are all highly polished experiences that just feel good to play, even when they’re slower-paced horror experiences like the Resident Evil remakes. Capcom’s multiplayer efforts have lacked that same level of satisfying game feel and polish until now. Although I can’t predict whether Exoprimal will become the game industry’s next big multiplayer hit, it’s good enough that I’d recommend fans of Capcom, or those who just think a game with dinosaurs and Exosuits sounds cool, to check it out.

Exoprimal is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. It’s part of the Xbox Game Pass subscription on PC and Xbox consoles too, so I recommend trying it out that way if you still have any doubts about the game. 

Topics
Tomas Franzese
As a Gaming Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…
3 new Xbox Game Pass games to try this weekend (October 18-20)
South Park The Fractured But Whole

While the first half of October was fairly light on new Xbox Game Pass additions, the back half of the month is a lot more exciting. Of course, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is the month's biggest release, but that's still a week away. Meanwhile, this week saw two great RPGs and an excellent indie game hit Microsoft's subscription service. If you're wondering what you should be playing this weekend, all three of these new Xbox Game Pass additions are worthy of your time.
South Park: The Fractured But Whole
South Park: The Fractured But Whole Gameplay Trailer - Gamescom 2016

While this year's South Park: Snow Day was a disappointment, the two Ubisoft-published games that preceded it narratively are stellar. One of those, the superhero-themed South Park: The Fractured But Whole, just came to Xbox Game Pass. This game perfectly captures the handcrafted look of the show with its art and the franchise's crass humor through its increasingly ridiculous story about Cartman, a new kid, and their other friends pretending to be superheroes. It's a surprisingly well-made grid-based tactical RPG, making it a significantly better game than it may seem on the surface.

Read more
Black Ops 6 isn’t the only Activision Blizzard game coming to Xbox Game Pass this month
A soldier stands outside in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.

It's October, which means it's Call of Duty season for Xbox and Activision. So expectedly, Xbox Game Pass' offerings for the second half of the month into November are all about Activision Blizzard.

October 25 is the big day for Call of Duty fans. The next entry in the shooter series, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, is hitting cloud, console, and PC for Ultimate and PC Game Pass subscribers. Modern Warfare 3, which was the first Call of Duty game added to the service in July, is also specifically coming to Xbox Cloud Gaming on October 25, along with Call of Duty Warzone.

Read more
3 new Xbox Game Pass games to play this weekend (October 11-13)
A screenshot from Inscryption.

We're in somewhat of a lull for Xbox Game Pass right now. While Xbox heavily marketed Metaphor: ReFantazio and launched Persona 3 Reload into its subscription service earlier in 2024, Metaphor:ReFantazio is not on Xbox Game Pass on day one. Thankfully, an all-timer of a horror indie game came to the service this past week, just in time for Halloween. Some other great RPGs also arrived during Tokyo Game Show 2024, so you can check those out on Xbox Game Pass if you're looking for something new to play on the subscription service.
Inscryption
Inscryption - Announcement Trailer (2020)

If you're looking for something spookier to play on Xbox Game Pass this month, then Inscryption is the optimal choice. This indie game became critically acclaimed upon its release in 2021 because of how it wasn't afraid to blend genres and break the fourth wall as players try to break out of a card game they're playing in a remote cabin. It's best to go into Inscryption unspoiled, so I'll just recommend you check it out via PC, One Xbox Series X/S, or Xbox Cloud Gaming with your Game Pass Ultimate subscription. It's also on PlayStation 4, PS5, and Nintendo Switch.
Legend of Mana
Legend of Mana | Xbox Announce

Read more