7 /10 11

Conan Exiles represents Funcom’s most successful title since its 2018 launch, transforming from expected early access disappointment into a thriving multiplayer survival community with over 180,000 concurrent players at peak hours. Set in the brutal Hyborian Age of Robert E. Howard’s Conan universe, this open-world sandbox emphasizes player agency over narrative progression. Unlike many survival games that focus on singular mechanics, Conan Exiles weaves together base construction, PvP clan warfare, PvE dungeon exploration, mounted combat, and sorcery systems into a comprehensive experience. After seven years of continuous development, the game now features entirely new continents through the Isle of Siptah expansion, sophisticated thrall (follower) mechanics, and the Age of Sorcery system introducing magic-based gameplay. The journey from rough launch to polished survival platform demonstrates how responsive developers can elevate initial concepts through iterative improvement and community engagement.

How to Play Conan Exiles

Conan Exiles begins with character creation on the desolate Exiled Lands, where political prisoners and refugees escape into a harsh wilderness demanding shelter, sustenance, and often violent interaction with other survivors. The foundation involves gathering resources, building structures, and progressing toward thrall management and raid preparation.

1. Controls – Third-person movement with directional combat using mouse/gamepad inputs for melee, ranged, and magic attacks. Character management interfaces improved significantly since launch but remain complex for first-time players.
2. Progression – Experience points from exploration and combat unlock attribute points distributed across nine attributes: Strength, Agility, Vitality, Authority, Accuracy, Survival, Encumbrance, Grit, and Authority. Each attribute unlocks specific perks including sorcery corruption abilities.
3. Combat/Mechanics – Combat emphasizes stamina management, with light/heavy attacks consuming resources while blocking and rolling enable defensive options. Different weapon types (swords, axes, bows, staves) require specific attribute investment.
4. Tips – Establish your base in areas matching your current level; start desert areas are friendlier than snow regions. Recruit thralls early to automate crafting; the Living Settlements feature transforms them from statues into actively moving NPCs requiring food management.

Who Should Play Conan Exiles

Conan Exiles appeals to players seeking extensive multiplayer survival with meaningful PvP consequences and creative building freedom, particularly those interested in clan politics and competitive server dynamics.

• Clan-focused PvP players – Survival multiplayer where clan cooperation directly impacts territorial control and resource acquisition will resonate with guild-minded communities.
• Fantasy builders – The Conan setting enables construction of castles, temples, and entire cities using culturally-themed building pieces from multiple civilizations.
• Singleplayer explorers – Offline play supports solo campaigns without PvP pressure, allowing focus on base perfection and dungeon exploration.
• Skip if – You dislike adult content themes, prefer cooperative-only gameplay, or expect fast-paced action over methodical resource gathering.

Conan Exiles Platform Performance

Cross-platform availability ensures survival possibilities across personal computers and current-generation consoles, though performance modes sacrifice resolution for consistency while quality modes emphasize visual fidelity with frame rate compromise.

Conan Exiles System Requirements

PC specifications accommodate mid-range gaming hardware at recommended tier, with minimum requirements supporting older GPU generations at reduced visual quality and performance scaling, enabling accessibility across player budgets.

Similar Games to Conan Exiles

The survival MMO sandbox market has evolved since Conan Exiles launched, with competitors offering varying emphasis on PvP, building, and narrative structure while maintaining persistent world mechanics.

• Rust – Hardcore PvP-focused survival where players raid bases continuously; more brutal economy and less fantasy-oriented.
• Valheim – Cooperative survival with boss progression; significantly less PvP emphasis and smaller server populations.
• New World – MMO survival with combat systems; requires subscription model; larger structured dungeons.
• Grounded – Cooperative survival in backyard setting; shorter playtime, less base customization depth.

Conan Exiles vs Competitors

Comparative analysis reveals Conan Exiles excels in building customization and PvE content while trading some competitive edge in performance optimization against larger-budget MMOs, though thrall system and sorcery create unique mechanical depth unavailable elsewhere.

Conan Exiles Story and World

Set in the Hyborian Age of Robert E. Howard’s Conan canon, Conan Exiles transposes players as exiles crucified on the Wheel of Pain before resurrection in the brutal Exiled Lands. Rather than linear narrative progression, the world building emphasizes discovering civilization ruins, establishing claims through construction, and engaging in emergent player-driven conflicts. Multiple biomes from snow peaks to jungle canopies provide environmental variety and progression challenges. The tone oscillates between pulp fantasy adventure, harsh survival desperation, and occult mystery as players discover sorcery systems and ancient artifacts. World lore integrates Howard’s extensive mythology while allowing players complete narrative freedom through PvE questing or PvP clan storytelling. Environmental storytelling through dungeon exploration and abandoned settlements reveals fallen civilizations without mandatory quest sequences.

Conan Exiles Multiplayer and Online

Multiplayer mechanics define Conan Exiles’ core experience, offering flexible server configurations supporting cooperation through competitive interaction, enabling both peaceful builders and aggressive raiders within the same persistent world.

• PvP Servers – Full player-versus-player combat with base raiding and clan warfare; territory control directly impacts resource access.
• PvE Servers – Cooperative gameplay without raid mechanics; dungeon exploration and economic interaction remain competitive but non-destructive.
• Hybrid Time-Restricted PvP – Servers enabling combat during specific windows while maintaining peaceful building periods, accommodating diverse playstyle preferences.
• Cross-Play – PC and console players cannot currently play together; separate server ecosystems maintain platform-specific communities.

Conan Exiles DLC and Expansions

Seven years of post-launch content has transformed Conan Exiles from initial launch scope into a substantially expanded universe through major expansions, cosmetic DLC packs, and large gameplay additions tied to narrative Age systems.

• Isle of Siptah Expansion – $19.99 major expansion adding entire new continent with unique biomes, dungeons, and progression systems.
• Age of Sorcery Update (Free) – Massive free update introducing magic system, attribute overhaul, and Battle Pass model for cosmetics.
• Age of Heroes (Free) – Hero companion system and NPC followers enabling active base settlement management and improved thrall mechanics.
• Cultural DLC Packs – $7.99-$9.99 packs including building pieces, weapons, and armors: Jewel of the West, Blood and Sand, Savage Frontier, Seekers of the Dawn, People of the Dragon.

Conan Exiles Community and Support

Funcom maintains active community engagement through forums, developer communications, and responsive patching, though 2025 strategic shift prioritizes stability over new features based on community feedback about technical debt accumulation.

• Official Forums – Funcom-hosted forums provide patch notes, developer communication, and community event announcements.
• Community Platforms – Subreddit communities exceed 150,000 members sharing base designs, PvP strategies, and server recommendations.
• Mod Support – Steam Workshop enables community-created mods; modders create quality-of-life improvements and cosmetic content.
• Patch Cadence – Regular updates arrive monthly; 2025 roadmap emphasizes bug fixes and performance optimization over new feature development.