One of Biomutant's defining features is the Aura System. This tracks your in-game actions, assigning a Dark or Light value to most of the big decisions thrown your way. Willing to help out a villager? Congratulations – your Aura will grow lighter. Rather neglect everyone you see? You're Aura will grow darker.
Although it takes some time to see the impact your Aura has on Biomutant, it carries some weighty ramifications as you near the end of the narrative. Here's how the Aura system works in Biomutant and what it impacts during your playthrough.
How Does The Aura System Work In Biomutant?
The Aura System is simple – do good deeds and your Aura will favor Light. Do bad deeds and it will favor Dark. Biomutant doesn’t track everything you do, but there are some key crossroads in which you'll be judged. Here are a few things tracked by your Aura:
- How you deal with Tribal captives.
- Responses to key dialog moments with other main characters.
- How you complete certain quests and side quests.
You can view your Aura at any time by heading to the menu, selecting the "Character" tab, and scrolling over to Aura. This will show your current alignment – Somewhat Dark, Somewhat Light, etc – along with your total Dark and Light points.
Aura And Leveling Up
One of the main reasons to keep an eye on your Aura is because it impacts which skills you can choose while leveling. Not all abilities are tied to Aura, but some high-level Psi Powers require a specific Aura rating. If there's a specific skill you want to unlock in the future, make sure your current playstyle will let you use it.
Child Aura
At multiple points in the story, Biomutant will take you back to your childhood. Decisions made here will impact your Child Aura. This score is separate from your Aura as an adult and is primarily used to change how NPCs remember you from the past. Do good actions as a child, and they'll say you were a kind-hearted youth. Made bad decisions, and they'll call you reckless. Beyond the dialog changes, your Child Aura doesn't have too big an impact on your play session.
Aura Impacts Ark Passengers
Once you've taken care of the first Worldeater, you'll head to the Tree of Life and discover an Ark. This ship is being prepped by Out-of-Date as a failsafe. If everything goes to hell, you and a few other characters will be able to escape the chaos and flee to safety.
Depending on your Aura, however, some characters may decline your invitation to fly away on the Ark. If you've grown close with a certain character, you'll want to make sure your Aura is aligned with their beliefs – otherwise you'll be left scrambling for a new passenger.