Exanima is a physics-driven ARPG set in a dark, low fantasy world. It is the test bed for the developers' future game, Sui Generis, which is supposed to be an open-world RPG that would use the same systems as this game.
I will emphasize the "physics-driven" part of the descriptor; nearly all of its game mechanics interact with its physics system in a way similar to games like T.A.B.S or Human Fall Flat, except it's been so ridiculously refined that I have honestly never seen anything like it before. I won't get into the technical weeds, but from what I've read, it is seriously impressive, and I'm pretty sure the programmer working on it has severe autism.
The combat in particular is the main draw right now, and I cannot really think of anything like it on the market. It has the learning curve of an inverted cliff face, but once you get the hang of things it is really satifying to play and can be endlessly mastered by people. I've heard it described as a "martial art", which is probably a fitting description, as I've seen multiple HEMA nerds comment on how many of the sport's fundamental concepts can be applied to the game. If you can tolerate the learning curve and a few online guides, nothing else is like it.
I love this fucking game and need to kill some time so I'll add one of the big draws for arms & armour nerds: it has one of the best equipment systems I've ever seen.
It's
all fucking simulated, so this is the only game I've played where wearing a shirt under a gambeson under chainmail under plate under a hood or whatever you can squeeze over the top (it kinda stops there but they've been working on cloth sim for a while so there'll probably be tabards and shit eventually) is not only possible but a very good idea for reasons beyond numbers.
And you can rely on it: skip the plate and chain mail and your fat suit of quilted padding and leather will deal just fine with some farmer zombie swinging a stick. Add the full protection back and even a heavy-ass halberd coming your way won't do anything but knock the wind out of you (at worst if you take a real beating you'll get knocked out and get back up again a few minutes later with no permanent HP damage) unless it's a perfect swing that you did nothing to mitigate. Unarmoured, taking that halberd's handle to the teeth would probably be as bad as getting hit with the pointy bit.
Damage is all highly locational and physics-driven so if your sweet-ass helmet has a big-ass face opening you'd better be conscious of that and turn your face away from incoming pointy shit. Can't find any couters for your elbows? Probably not a big deal. Couldn't find a gorget or something for your throat? Fuck you, better find one, or else set up an obstacle course if scary guys show up.
Found some sick-ass ancient ceremonial full plate in a tomb but it's made of inch-thick bronze for some reason? You're gonna be protected as fuck but you might find moving and swinging your heaviest shit to be a bit of a struggle. The ultimate protection might seem like wearing an iron cauldron you found on your head, but animations are fully procedural so don't be surprised when your dude takes two steps and just about falls on his ass.
All this gear is also subtly procedurally-generated as though they were really forged with minor variations by different dudes. There are "stats" but they're more just vague indicators of how sharp and heavy something is. A poleaxe that looks three inches longer than your current one really is longer and heavier and might be worth considering if it fits your style. A variation of a weapon without a pointy bit on the back really won't be sharp on the backswing.
A four-star piece of armour that doesn't cover as much skin is probably a much worse idea than the three-star piece you're wearing that does. Conversely, covering less might let you equip another piece that extends enough to cover the gap (eg ditching your sweet boots when you find some full-length greaves). Because there are no "slots" for gear: if it makes sense, you can wear it.
The dungeon crawling mode gets all the attention, but all this combined makes the secondary gladiator mode one of the most compelling of those I've played. Decide how many fighters you're confident enough to pay and equip and who to hire. Train em up without getting em killed by picking the right fights--take a dive to avoid a fatal hit if you have to, but they're gonna be recouperating for a while. Check the junk vendor every day to gradually kit them out as their (and your) skills improve, without splurging so much that one loss will ruin you. Use your toughest and best-equipped guys to keep the money coming in, without letting em get so injured that you can't tackle the seasonal tournaments in the hopes of scoring some sweet-ass prize armour.
It does a really good job of keeping all levels of fighter/equipment relevant and battles in expensive-ass high-tier full plate feel special. But every jump in rank feels significant: unlike most games, farmer tools and an iron bars you found on the ground are just as lethal as they should be, but the moment you can swap it out for a brigandine and a purpose-made weapon instead you genuinely feel the distinction (while still kinda fearing the psychos who show up with a hatchet or hand-bill). It rules.
I'll say the previous poster might have overstated the difficulty curve somewhat. It's not like you're learning flight sim controls or anything. You can move and crouch, and your weapon/body follows the mouse, and that's about it. After checking the manual and understanding that thrusts/overhead swings are a thing and the fact that your dude will try to automatically block if you aren't attacking, the rest is just getting a feel for the physics and emergent stuff.
Like, feet move procedurally, so it makes sense that if your weapon is currently in a low position and you sweep to the side you might trip your opponent, right? And when he's on the ground an overhead swing to the back of his neck seems like a good idea... but if you crouch at the right moment it makes sense that you'll add more momentum and hit even harder. You get a feel for it. All the characters are drunk but everything makes sense.
Edit: reinstalled and played a few hours of arena mode. Hell yeah, best hand-me-down gladiator quartermaster sim out there.
