The game received mixed reviews from critics and sold 1 million units by August 2021.

A thicker character is heavier, which makes it slower but conversely allows it to deal and resist more damage.

[1][2] Throughout the game, players can change their abilities, looks by mutations, and apply upgrades to their robotic companion, which can be used to get various advantages against certain enemies or at certain locations.

This way, the player can overcome obstacles introduced by their surroundings, such as the limited oxygen availability in the Deadzone: by wearing a gas mask or an oxygen container, the player is able to venture deeper into the area and explore new places that cannot be reached without any precautions, while an even bigger part of the area can be reached by obtaining a mech.

[1][3] The game's world can be seamlessly explored by the player on foot, by flying or using an air balloon, jet ski and mech.

It features a dynamic weather system and day-night cycle which affect the gameplay and enemy behaviour.

The main plot revolves around the "Tree of Life", which is struck by a natural disaster and becomes polluted by poisonous oil from beneath the soil.

Three of them want to heal the Tree of Life and restore the natural balance of the world, while the other three see an opportunity to expand their territory and power.

He mentioned that one of the most difficult things for the development team was to balance the combat system in order to "combine shooting, melee [attacks], and abilities in a quite intuitive way".

[13][14][15] Luke Reilly of IGN awarded the game a 6/10, writing, "Biomutant has a lot of the building blocks of a top-drawer action RPG but its cookie-cutter approach to objectives and puzzles starts feeling very repetitive very early on.

"[27] In Japan, the PlayStation 4 version of Biomutant was the second bestselling retail game during its first week of release, with 24,596 physical units being sold.