The extended world of Conan the Barbarian is absolutely bursting at the seams with history and lore. From its pulp magazine roots to the various film, book and comic book adaptations, the exploits of the legendary Cimmerian warrior have made legions of fans that span generations. Yet, in the world of video games, Conan has continually been underutilized. The series has been adapted for a handful of games over the years and has even produced some good adaptations, most notably in the 2008 MMO Age of Conan: Unchained and the 2018 open-world survival game Conan Exiles.
Although these titles were well received, the new generation of consoles makes this the perfect time for a brand new Conan game that can not only serve long-standing fans but create a new generation of fans. A new game could explore the brilliant low fantasy world created by Robert E. Howard while also being a proper video game adaptation that does the classic character justice.
The most prudent strategy to create a modern Conan game is to take inspiration from other series that were themselves inspired by the franchise. Massive hits like God of War were inspired by Conan's epic adventures and have created their own iconic worlds and lore. A great Conan game should take inspiration from a great video game series and build its lore around a great gameplay experience. One of the best directions a new game could take today is to create an open-world adventure with third-person combat.
This could allow players to take time exploring the world and characters of the series and be immersed in a great low-fantasy setting that has proven to be a popular choice in the past. The most recent God of War game could serve as a perfect template to breathe fresh air into the series and help ground its narrative in satisfying combat. While there have been two third-person Conan games in the past, both were smaller action titles and devoid of a massive world that gave the player freedom to explore.
Conan has often traveled the world and joining both heroes and cutthroats, so a massive open world that allowed the player to do the same could work wonders. Players could explore the landscape, finding new armor and legendary weapons while building Conan into a legendary warrior, making allies and saving the helpless along the way. Games like Conan Exiles understood the importance of exploring and discovering the world but failed to fully realize the property as it didn't focus on the barbarian himself.
It's that lack of focus on Conan himself that has made previous games fall short of greatness. Conan is a character that exists as a malleable archetype, a perfect blend of iconic hero and player avatar. Games like Age of Conan and Conan Exiles recreate the world of the franchise but fail to utilize the title character to tell an interesting story or explore his iconic world. A new game needs to place players in the boots of the barbarian, grounding the story and empowering players as the legendary warrior.
The best part of making a Conan game where he is the playable character is that he can be a blank slate, even existing as a side player as the narrative involves many other mysterious and fantastic figures featured throughout the series' deep lore. For a great example of this, one can look at the classic 1982 film Conan: The Barbarian, directed by John Milius. In this film, Conan is ultimately on a mission of revenge but engages in adventures with his companions Valeria and Subotai, who each have their own quests and ideals. Over the game's narrative, the player could even meet and interact with Red Sonja, as he does in the comics, and could himself be a vessel for the writers to explain the world to the player.
Overall, the world of Conan is one full of magic, ancient evil, and fantasy archetypes that translate to video game form perfectly, but no video game adaptation has really nailed the formula yet. With Norwegian developer Funcom still in control of the license, fans can only hope that the legendary warrior will get the massive game he deserves one day. Until then, fans can only pray Crom that a talented developer will solve the riddle of steel.