Exterminauts vs Rules of Engagement: The Grey State

• Perspective: First-Person
• Multiplayer: Online Co-op & PvP (1-4 Player Squads)
• Setting: The 'Horrorverse' / The Grey State
• Platforms: PC (Future console release TBD)
• Release Window: 2026
• Unique Feature: A unique blend of a tactical extraction shooter with a deep, permanent, Path of Exile-inspired RPG skill tree, set in a Lovecraftian horror universe.

• Polymorphic Plasma: Mined from extraction rigs and harvested from high-tier enemies; heavily influences final payout.
• Corporate Datalogs: Hidden within decaying infrastructure and abandoned MegaCorp administrative sectors.

• Alien Artifacts: The primary objective item in The Grey State. Successfully extracting these is the main goal of any run.
• Resources: Scavenged from the environment and smaller monsters, these are used for in-match crafting and progression.
• Gear (In-Match): Better weapons and armor looted during an expedition. This gear is lost on death.

• Tactical Shooter
• Extraction
• Horror
• Cosmic Horror
• PvPvE
• Action RPG
• Sci-Fi

• Ice Cannon: Elemental Power Tool
  A heavy-duty industrial coolant system repurposed to freeze swarms in place, shattering pathfinding AI and creating physical barriers out of frozen hostiles.
• Lightning Tool: Elemental Power Tool
  An overloaded industrial arc welder that chains electrical damage across dense swarms and heavily stuns large, armored targets.
• Acid Foam Gun: Area-Denial Tool
  Sprays a highly corrosive industrial solvent to manage chokepoints, stripping alien armor and dealing significant damage-over-time to anything traversing it.
• Anti-Gravity Manipulator: Physics-Based Tool
  A heavy utility tool used to lift aggressive pests out of cover, neutralize their forward momentum, or group them tightly for devastating AoE strikes.
• OVERDRIVE Cable: Utility / Melee Executioner
  A heavy-duty charging cable tethered to the player's back; used for puzzle solving, weapon buffing, and discharging lethal high-voltage energy directly into an enemy as a desperate melee finisher.

• Firearms: Varies (Shotguns, Rifles, etc.)
  A mix of realistic and experimental firearms used for fast-paced, tactical combat. The Sledge class, for example, can unlock talents for a shotgun and a recoilless rifle.
• Flamethrower: Heavy Weapon
  The signature weapon of the Pyro class, used to incinerate enemies and control areas.
• Melee Weapons: Varies (Sledgehammer, etc.)
  Close-quarters weapons, such as the Sledge's sledgehammer, used for brutal takedowns.

Progression in Exterminauts is completely detached from traditional, rigid hero-class systems. Instead, players build their specific archetypes using a highly modular system of 'Emblems' and 'Badges.' These equippable items function as powerful passive abilities that dynamically alter combat physics. For example, a player utilizing an ice-focused Emblem will cause any enemy they freeze to violently detonate upon shattering, converting a simple crowd-control tool into a massive area-of-effect explosive trap. This fluid class system allows any of the three anonymous workers to assume the role of a tank, healer, or elemental damage dealer dynamically between shifts. Upgrades are purchased in the orbital hub using the competitive corporate bonuses earned during extraction phases, heavily incentivizing players to optimize their synergistic build-crafting to secure the highest possible payout at the end of every brutal mission.

The game features a deep, permanent RPG progression system with no forced wipes. Players choose from four classes (Sledge, Pyro, Phantom, and one unrevealed) and customize them via an extensive, Path of Exile-inspired skill tree with over 100 talents. These talents are mechanics-based (e.g., faster looting, new weapon options like a shotgun for Sledge) rather than raw stat increases, ensuring a level playing field. Progression is persistent, but all players spawn into a match with a basic, blank-slate loadout.

Exterminauts abandons fully open-world traversal in favor of dense, semi-procedural industrial sectors representing distinct corporate worksites scattered across planet TIAN. Maps are intricately designed to facilitate vertical traversal, utilizing UE5's Nanite system to render incredibly cluttered, brutalist corporate machinery overlapping with overgrown extraterrestrial flora and towering alien mushroom structures. These 20-to-30-minute operational zones emphasize kinetic movement, featuring environmental ziplines and vertical climb paths that force players to treat the architecture like a deadly jungle gym. The maps are inherently reactive; AI directors can compromise specific chokepoints, forcing squads to abandon established defensive lines and rapidly relocate through previously cleared corridors. This layout strategy demands constant spatial awareness and severely penalizes static, heavily entrenched camping strategies.

The game features multiple, large-scale maps. Gameplay is session-based, with a limited time for each incursion. The environment is dynamic and reactive, with shifting weather, unstable geometry, and hazards. The world is populated by AI factions and hostile creatures, creating a dense PvPvE experience.

• Orbital Drop Pod: Deployment Transport
  Heavily armored, one-way insertion capsules that aggressively plunge the extermination crew from the orbital depot directly into the hazardous worksites on planet TIAN.
• Extraction Shuttle: Exfiltration Transport
  The heavily armed corporate aircraft that arrives during the climactic extraction phase to pull surviving workers off the planet's surface.

• Sledge: Playable Class (Heavy Assault)
  The 'juggernaut' class. Specializes in frontline combat, using a shield to block damage and talents for shotguns and recoilless rifles.
• Pyro: Playable Class (Battlefield Control)
  A 'chaotic madman' class. Uses a flamethrower, gas grenades, and incendiary bombs to control the battlefield.
• Phantom: Playable Class (Assassin)
  A 'swift assassin' class. Focuses on stealth, flanking, and executing 'flawless' one-shot backstabs and chain kills.
• The Hunger: Enemies
  The grotesque, infected abominations that serve as the primary PvE threat.

• Shift Operations / Work Orders: Primary Cooperative Loop
  Deploy to the surface of TIAN to repair failing corporate machinery, gather Polymorphic Plasma, and survive the workday.
• Infrastructure Repair: Mid-Mission Tension Phase
  Engage in highly vulnerable logic minigames to fix sabotaged worksite architecture while teammates defend against the swarm.
• Extraction Phase: Climactic Exfiltration
  Race to the exfiltration zone, hold out against an overwhelming final swarm, and compete against teammates for the highest kill count to secure a corporate pay bonus.

• Expeditions
  The main gameplay loop. Players deploy to a map (solo or in a squad) with a limited amount of time. The mission is divided into two phases: a PvE-focused gear-up phase, and a high-conflict second phase where players can opt for a safe, early extraction or fight for the high-value 'Vertex' prize.

The multiplayer architecture of Exterminauts revolves entirely around a strict, uncompromising 3-player cooperative PvE format. The developers have deliberately eschewed massive 4-player or 6-player raid setups to enforce severe interdependence. Losing a single teammate during a complex infrastructure repair minigame instantly slashes the squad's total DPS by 33%, forcing the remaining two players into a desperate, tightly knit vanguard formation. The only competitive element exists purely during the final 3-minute extraction phase, where players compete in a localized prisoner's dilemma: the player who secures the most kills during exfiltration receives a massive corporate pay bonus, brilliantly testing cooperative loyalty against individual greed in the face of an overwhelming alien swarm.

The game is a persistent online PvPvE extraction shooter. Players can queue for 'Expeditions' solo or in squads of up to four. The core loop is divided into two phases: a resource-gathering first phase and a high-conflict second phase where players can choose an early, safe extraction or fight for the final, high-value 'Vertex' prize at the main helicopter extraction.

While official pre-order details are pending, industry standards for live-service titles published by Level Infinite suggest a tiered release structure. The Standard Edition will grant core access to the game and the orbital hub. A Deluxe or 'Corporate Executive' Edition is highly likely to include exclusive blue-collar cosmetic rigs, early access to premium Warbond tracks, and a starter cache of the earnable premium currency used to bypass early grind phases. Importantly, Behaviour Interactive has firmly committed to a monetization strategy where real-world payment for the 6-week Warbond Battle Passes is completely optional, as premium currency can be organically earned through daily and weekly work order objectives, maintaining a healthy, non-predatory player economy.

Exterminauts employs a highly aggressive, rapid 6-week live-service cycle for its 'Warbond-like' Battle Passes to combat mid-season player drop-off. The first major wave of live content is deliberately staggered, scheduled to launch one month post-release. This strategic buffer allows the foundational player base to acclimate to the complex weapon modding synergies, stabilize server infrastructure, and understand the core economy before seasonal meta-shifts are introduced. Each Warbond cycle introduces new cosmetics, weaponized power tools, and impactful gameplay mods. Because these passes are funded through currency strictly earnable via in-game daily and weekly objectives, the post-launch DLC structure heavily rewards dedicated players, utilizing the paying minority to subsidize the content pipeline for the highly engaged free-to-play majority.

• Q: When is Exterminauts scheduled to be released?
  A: Exterminauts is officially scheduled for a global commercial release in 2027 across PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S platforms.
• Q: How many players can be in a single Exterminauts squad?
  A: The game features a rigid 3-player cooperative squad dynamic. This intentionally restricts team size to enforce strict interdependence, making the temporary loss of a player during repair minigames highly punishing.
• Q: Does Exterminauts support cross-platform play?
  A: Yes, a foundational pillar of the game is its native integration of cross-platform multiplayer and cooperative play, unifying matchmaking pools across PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
• Q: Does Exterminauts feature a pay-to-win microtransaction model?
  A: No. Behaviour Interactive utilizes a play-to-earn Battle Pass economy where the premium currency required to unlock the 6-week Warbond cycles can be reliably earned through daily and weekly in-game objectives, making real-money purchases strictly optional.
• Q: What anti-cheat software does the PC version of Exterminauts use?
  A: The PC version utilizes Anti-Cheat Expert (ACE), a proprietary kernel-level anti-cheat solution associated with publisher Level Infinite. Players are required to accept a mandatory third-party EULA before playing.

• Q: What is Rules of Engagement: The Grey State?
  A: It is a free-to-play, first-person tactical extraction shooter with deep, permanent RPG progression. Players, as 'Striders,' enter a surreal horror dimension to fight monsters and other players for valuable artifacts.
• Q: Is it 'pay-to-win'?
  A: No. The developers have confirmed the game is not pay-to-win. All players spawn into a match with a basic loadout, and all monetization is cosmetic-only.
• Q: How does progression work if everyone starts with the same gear?
  A: Progression is persistent and tied to a deep, Path of Exile-inspired skill tree. You don't bring in better gear, you bring in better *talents* and *abilities* that you have permanently unlocked, which define your playstyle (e.g., stealth, farming, or combat).
• Q: What is the 'Horrorverse'?
  A: It's the game's setting concept. 'The Grey State' is a dimension that acts as a 'graveyard of nightmares,' allowing the developers to pull in monsters from diverse sources, such as Lovecraftian lore, creepypastas, and global folklore (like from the upcoming Hong Kong map).

Leveraging the profound rendering capabilities of Unreal Engine 5, Exterminauts features a distinct visual identity that purposefully diverges from the grounded, grim-dark aesthetic of competitors. The game embraces a 'bombastic' and highly stylized art direction characterized by vibrant, neon-lit elemental effects juxtaposed against brutalist, decaying corporate infrastructure. Utilizing UE5's Niagara VFX system, combat is a visually overwhelming display of blinding lightning arcs, massive crystalline ice bursts, and thick, pooling acid foams. While this hyper-colorful sci-fi aesthetic has proven slightly divisive among hardcore tactical-sim purists, it successfully broadcasts the game's emphasis on arcade-style fun, physics-driven elemental combat, and chaotic status-effect synergies.

The auditory soundscape of Exterminauts is built to heighten the claustrophobia and sheer chaos of a hostile alien worksite. Weapon sounds shun the sharp cracks of traditional military ballistics in favor of the heavy, mechanical whirring, grinding, and electrical snapping of overpowered industrial tools. The spatial audio engine is critical for survival, allowing players to hear the skittering of alien fauna on the metallic infrastructure above and behind them before they are visually acquired. The musical score likely relies heavily on tension-building, synth-heavy industrial tracks that dramatically escalate during repair minigames and reach a frenetic, adrenaline-pumping crescendo during the chaotic, highly competitive extraction phases as the swarm collapses on the exfiltration zone.

The User Interface in Exterminauts is designed to perfectly reflect its gritty, corporate blue-collar aesthetic. Elements mirror cracked, industrial CRT monitors and high-visibility hazardous environment warnings. During gameplay, the HUD emphasizes the status of the localized OVERDRIVE resource system and elemental synergist indicators. To combat the chaos of its neon-lit elemental combat, the UI implements a robust 'Ping Communication' radial menu, allowing players to instantly mark broken machinery, alien ambushes, and optimal defensive chokepoints on their squadmates' screens. Furthermore, deep accessibility options allow for the complete customization of subtitle size, interface coloration, and individual audio layer muting, ensuring the UI remains highly readable during visually overwhelming encounters.

Behaviour Interactive has integrated a comprehensive suite of accessibility tools directly into the core design of Exterminauts, categorized strictly into control, audio, and communication features. The game offers fully adjustable stick sensitivity and inversion toggles, and allows the entire experience to be played without requiring rapid button mashing, touch controls, or adaptive trigger resistance. Audio accessibility includes robust mono audio support and granular volume sliders for distinct layers. The most critical accessibility feature is the deep 'Quick Chat' and 'Ping Communication' system, which allows players with speech impediments, social anxiety, or language barriers to participate fully and flawlessly in high-level tactical coordination without ever utilizing traditional voice or text chat.

• Exterminauts utilizes Unreal Engine 5's Nanite and Niagara systems heavily, meaning high geometry processing and particle VFX handling are strictly required for stable framerates during dense swarm encounters.
• Laptop Performance Note: Laptop users must monitor thermal throttling closely. The dynamic nature of the game's alien fluid physics (acid, ice, foam) will cause severe CPU and GPU spikes, demanding adequate cooling solutions.
• Laptop Consideration: G P U T G P: Requires a high Total Graphics Power (TGP) configuration. A minimum of 100W on an RTX 4060 laptop GPU is advised to prevent severe dynamic resolution scaling.
• Laptop Consideration: Cooling Thermals: Dual-fan vapor chamber cooling is highly recommended to sustain boost clocks over 30-minute extraction shifts.
• Laptop Consideration: C P U Power Limits: Ensure PL1 and PL2 limits are configured for sustained multi-core loads, as the AI director heavily taxes the processor.
• Laptop Consideration: M U X Switch Optimus: A direct MUX switch connection to the discrete GPU is mandatory to mitigate latency during high-stakes repair minigames and swarms.
• Optimization Detail: Upscaling Tech: NVIDIA DLSS 3 / AMD FSR 3.1
• Optimization Detail: Key Settings Impact: Volumetric Fog and Niagara Particle Density will have the highest performance impact during combat. Lowering these maintains stable 60fps.
• Game Name: Exterminauts

• OFFICIAL PC SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS from the game's Steam page. These specifications reflect the demands of a modern Unreal Engine 5 title.
• Laptop Performance Note: Laptop performance will vary based on the model's cooling and TGP. As a fast-paced shooter, maintaining a high and stable framerate is crucial.
• Laptop Consideration: G P U T G P: Maximum TGP for the laptop's GPU is essential to handle the advanced graphical features, ray tracing, and maintain high framerates.
• Laptop Consideration: Cooling Thermals: The game's visually rich world and intense combat will require a laptop with a cutting-edge cooling solution to prevent thermal throttling.
• Laptop Consideration: C P U Power Limits: A powerful multi-core mobile CPU will be critical for handling the complex AI of both monsters and human enemies, as well as the physics-based interactions.
• Laptop Consideration: M U X Switch Optimus: A MUX switch or NVIDIA Advanced Optimus is a critical feature for reducing latency and ensuring the best possible performance in a competitive FPS.
• Game Name: Rules of Engagement: The Grey State

• G P U T G P: Requires a high Total Graphics Power (TGP) configuration. A minimum of 100W on an RTX 4060 laptop GPU is advised to prevent severe dynamic resolution scaling.
• Cooling Thermals: Dual-fan vapor chamber cooling is highly recommended to sustain boost clocks over 30-minute extraction shifts.
• C P U Power Limits: Ensure PL1 and PL2 limits are configured for sustained multi-core loads, as the AI director heavily taxes the processor.
• M U X Switch Optimus: A direct MUX switch connection to the discrete GPU is mandatory to mitigate latency during high-stakes repair minigames and swarms.

• G P U T G P: Maximum TGP for the laptop's GPU is essential to handle the advanced graphical features, ray tracing, and maintain high framerates.
• Cooling Thermals: The game's visually rich world and intense combat will require a laptop with a cutting-edge cooling solution to prevent thermal throttling.
• C P U Power Limits: A powerful multi-core mobile CPU will be critical for handling the complex AI of both monsters and human enemies, as well as the physics-based interactions.
• M U X Switch Optimus: A MUX switch or NVIDIA Advanced Optimus is a critical feature for reducing latency and ensuring the best possible performance in a competitive FPS.