The rise of tactical shooters such as Escape From Tarkov and Gray Zone Warfare feels like a direct response to the more arcade-style action of Call of Duty and even modern Battlefield. These more realistic, measured FPS games demand you take care at every turn, with realistic movement, damage, and ballistics ensuring the smartest, most well-coordinated players win out. Exfil goes one step further. There’s no loot grind, perks, or ‘gear fear’ metagaming here – this is pure, infantry-led tactical combat. Launched into early access in December 2024, you can try Exfil free on Steam right now to celebrate the launch of its latest update, but you don’t have long.
Created by a team of four, Exfil is fully focused on its motto of “a distilled, authentic tactical experience where every match challenges your decision making, teamwork, and situational awareness.” At its heart is a fully simulated ballistics model that handles bullet drop, velocity, penetration, and ricochets. Combine that with realistic movement and weapon handling, along with the option for proximity-based voice chat, and you have an FPS that will push your skills to their limit.
There are three modes currently available. Classic Extraction is pure competition – get in, secure the intel, and be the team that escapes alive. Rogue Extraction puts an asymmetrical spin on things, tasking a small rogue squadron with outmaneuvering a larger enemy force, successfully getting its hands on the package, and making it out. Seek and Destroy requires you to locate and eliminate high-value targets, mandating careful coordination to succeed.
Battles take place across six handcrafted maps ranging from forests to industrial zones and military bases. There’s a full day/night cycle and weather simulation – the appearance of fog, heavy rain, and sandstorms can completely change the tactics, requiring new team strategy but presenting fresh opportunities. Dedicated hosting options allow you to tweak match rules to your liking, and detailed post-game reviews let you analyze exactly how events played out, studying every move and shot fired in detail.
That’s just the start, however. Over the course of early access, developer Misultin Studios is planning to introduce more maps and modes, along with the potential to include computer-controlled enemies in certain matches. An upcoming scenario editor will go even further, allowing you to build and share game types, PvE missions, and special challenges from the ground up.
A fresh update has just rolled out, and to celebrate Exfil is briefly playable as a free Steam game. Along with the newly introduced Seek and Destroy mode, there are four more pistols, a grenade launcher, and GPS rework offering a zoomed, two-handed view and a watch to check your basic bearings quickly. Misultin has also introduced dynamic winter conditions, with the potential for frozen water that can alter the flow of a map, and the ability to assign your squad into smaller fireteams.
You can try Exfil for free on Steam through Monday February 3. If you like it, you can buy it with a 20% discount until Thursday February 6, meaning you’ll pay just $23.99 / £19.99. Download it here if you’re curious to try out Exfil’s brand of realism for yourself.
Alternatively, find another of the best multiplayer games to put your skills to the test, or immerse yourself in one of the best simulation games on PC in 2025.
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