Capcom's announcement in March of this year that its upcoming dinosaur game was an online, team-based action title called Exoprimal was a little disappointing for fans who were hoping instead for a new Dino Crisis from the developer, but it's shaping up to be an interesting new addition to the studio's stable. Exoprimal is a PvPvE that sees humans in futuristic exosuits face off against some of history's deadliest predators – dinosaurs. For some players, that bizarre but undoubtedly fun hook would be enough to pique their interest, but others were waiting for a little more information before they got their hopes up.
Capcom's 2022 Summer Showcase had lots of exciting news, including DLC for the hit Resident Evil Village and a new trailer for Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak, and players were also finally able to see some Exoprimal gameplay. The game received a gameplay trailer and a developer walkthrough, explaining Exoprimal in more detail and providing a brief overview of some of the modes, the story, and features of the game. Players were also given a glimpse of dinosaurs that they will be coming up against, including a few enemies with genetic enhancements. Gamers are hoping Capcom really pushes the boundaries with the toothy foes they'll be facing, and there are definitely some cool directions the altered dinosaurs could go in.
Exoprimal's Dinosaurs So Far
Exoprimal's gameplay trailer shown during the Capcom Showcase gave players a look at the exosuits in action, as well as a brief glimpse of some of the game's modes like Dino Survival. The action seems fast-paced and incredibly frenetic, with two teams of five players competing in a variety of missions to complete the tasks the fastest while taking out dinosaurs as they go. Several dinosaur enemy types have also been revealed; the infamous carnivorous raptor, the winged pteranodon, the armor-plated ankylosaurus, the herbivorous horned triceratops, and the ever-popular T. Rex.
Exoprimal will bring dinosaurs roaring back through time to face off against humanity in an ultimate battle for dominance, but the journey didn't leave them unaffected. Apparently, traveling through space vortexes causes a fair few mutations, with the dinosaurs becoming even more ferocious and deadly thanks to their exposure. This will explain why non-carnivorous dinosaurs like the triceratops are suddenly violent killers, but it also means Capcom can bring its own creative flair to the depiction of these creatures in Exoprimal.
Possible Variations
During the trailer, players could see that some of the dinosaurs looked a little different from how they might have expected. In one section, they had gelatinous sacks on their backs that fired projectiles at the player, showing some kind of further mutation. Their attack patterns also seem to be altered, from a writhing mass of raptors that falls from a portal in the sky to a whirling tornado of pteranodons, Exoprimal is mixing it up when it comes to the variety of enemies players will have to face.
Exoprimal will include types of dinosaurs are called "Neosaurs" that have mutations that grant them new abilities such as the Gas Neosaur and the Sniper Neosaur as shown in the gameplay trailer. There is also Neo T. Rex, a unique mission that pits players against a massive, mutated king of the dinosaurs – the tyrannosaurus rex – as they work together to defeat it. While only these three types of Neosaurs have been revealed so far, it's likely that there will be more yet to come.
Exoprimal's current Neosaurs appear to only be versions of raptors and a T. Rex at the moment, so altered types of an ankylosaurus, triceratops, or pteranodon could be on the way. Giving these mutated dinosaurs some form of projectile makes sense, as they otherwise don't have a form of ranged attack to combat against the player's weaponry. One dinosaur that could be fun to include is the utahraptor – the largest known raptor to be discovered – which was a fearsome predator with foot-long claws. As the raptors shown in Exoprimal so far seem to hunt in packs or attack players in an excessively large horde, a utahraptor that hunts alone and employs more stealth-like mechanics could help add variety, and it could also have some kind of mutation that lets it camouflage with its surroundings for an added advantage.
Exoprimal releases in 2023 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
