As a big fan of Mass Effect and its various romanceable companions, I wanted to put the record straight on the ins and outs of Exodus’ sex scenes. After all, Exodus looks and feels a lot like Mass Effect. It’s even developed by some of the brains behind BioWare’s much-loved sci-fi RPG franchise. So, it feels reasonable to me to compare and contrast what goes on under the sheets in both games.
At gamescom, I interviewed game director Chris King, narrative director Drew Karpyshyn, and general manager Chad Robertson, about all things Exodus, and thought the part of our chat about the sex scenes would be worth closer inspection. I began by asking what to me felt like the most obvious starting point: can you have sex with the octopus?
What octopus? Exodus has a number of companions, some of which are non-human. As an ‘Awakened’ octopus, Salt pilots a specialized combat mech, and can eject ink-like smokescreens that confuse and disorient enemies. She exists in a tank that keeps her alive out on the battlefield.
The answer, perhaps unfortunately for some, is no, you can’t have sex with Salt. “Sadly no romance with Salt,” Karpyshyn confirmed. “And that’s mostly because Salt just thinks humans are gross. We’ve only got four limbs. She’s like, that’s weird!”
While Exodus won’t let you have sex with Salt, it does feature lots of romance options, and the game does not block them by gender. Romance is something the player will have to actively pursue, which means you won’t accidentally fall into a romance. Romance can also cause conflict between companions, depending on the choices you make. “You’re not going to be able to keep everybody happy,” Karpyshyn said. “You’re not going to be able to get everyone to go and change the way you want to. Just like real life, we want it to be messy and complicated.”
But how mature is Exodus? As an M-rated game, some might have thought Exodus’ sex scenes would be explicit. But they’re “very tastefully done,” Karpyshyn teased. “We allow you to get physical, but they’re tastefully done,” King added.
“Across the industry there’s different bars that are set, and I would say we’re somewhere in the appropriate middle,” Karpyshyn said.
What is that appropriate middle, exactly? Baldur’s Gate 3, for example, features nudity in its sex scenes (you can even have sex with The Emperor, who’s a sort of octopus-like humanoid). CD Projekt’s Cyberpunk 2077, meanwhile, holds nothing back. The sex scenes in Mass Effect though, are brief and never explicit — despite what Fox News would have you think.
It sounds like Exodus’ sex scenes are along the same lines as Mass Effect’s. “I think we’re a bit closer to the reserved side, but certainly it’s clear what’s happening, but tasteful is a good way to describe it,” King explained.
So, you can’t have sex with Salt the Octopus. That much we do know. So who can you have sex with? Exodus companions include Elise Charroux, a “blunt, no-nonsense ‘Sleeper’ from 23rd-century Earth,” Kara Voss, a pilot and mechanic “known for precision flying and confident attitude,” and Suliman, the “wealthy, reclusive, and dangerous” operative. All three, I think, will be popular romance options.
In addition to Salt the Octopus being off limits, I doubt Exodus will let you have sex with Houston, an Awakened wolf who was orphaned at a young age and raised alongside main character Jun as an adopted brother. Houston is described as a “story companion,” but romancing a talking wolf who’s “always watching over his human sibling” would be weird on a lot of levels.
Exodus launches on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S on April 7, 2027.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
