Hands On: The First Descendant Review and Release Date

The First Descendant Release Date

As avid gamers anticipate the release of The First Descendant, a free-to-play looter shooter, we find ourselves awaiting official word from Nexon regarding its launch date. And while the developers have yet to reveal a specific release date or even a tentative window, there are promising indicators that should keep gamers optimistic. The history of Nexon game launches provides us with some valuable insights. Typically, Nexon games see the light of day within a few months of their open beta tests.

The First Descendant entered its open beta phase on September 19, 2023. This event, in itself, is a promising sign that the official release isn't too distant.

Consider "MapleStory Evolution," which made its debut just one month after its closed beta test. Similarly, "KartRider Drift" allowed gamers to dive into a crossplay beta in August 2022, only to witness its official release a mere four months later. If Nexon adheres to this established pattern, we could potentially witness The First Descendant releasing on all platforms anywhere from one to five months from now.

Having had the opportunity to play the beta myself, I'm excited to share my firsthand experiences with you bedroom gamers here in the sections to come.

As I delved into the world of The First Descendant's beta test, I found myself wondering if this game is really worth playing for a long time. After a few hours of gameplay and reaching level 20, it's time to discuss what this game brings to the table.

Visuals and Art Style:

The graphics in The First Descendant are decent, though not groundbreaking. The art style, which leans towards semi-realism, is a common trait seen in games published by Nexon. While the visuals don't stun, they don't detract from the overall experience either. One minor gripe was the slightly odd lip syncing in the English voice acting, it isn't a big issue, but something that just stood out to me a little.

Familiar Mechanics:

Upgrading and equiping is simple and easy to understand

The game takes clear inspiration from titles like Destiny and Warframe, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's evident that The First Descendant has picked up valuable lessons from these games, such as a multiplayer hub and a module character build system. The First Descendant doesn't introduce much that's creatively groundbreaking to the looter shooter genre. It's a fun looter shooter game with plenty of loot to collect, but is that enough to compete with the games in the market today?

Story and Setting:

The game's narrative revolves around humanity defending itself from an invading alien race called the Vulgus. While the storyline and storytelling follow somewhat cliché patterns, I personally believe that storytelling isn't the primary focus in most free-to-play games; I mainly play free games for gameplay.

Diverse Characters:

Many characters to unlock, with special classes and ability. NICE

Something that might be The First Descendant's biggest strength is its offering of 12 different Descendants, each of them are unique classes with their own abilities. As you level up your character, you can equip them with modules and weapons acquired from enemy drops. This system closely resembles the character-building mechanics using mods in Warframe.

A Bounty of Loot:

In The First Descendant, enemy drops are plenty and you will see a lot of colorful loot everywhere after every fight. However, effectively managing your limited inventory space is crucial, and you'll need to dismantle or sell equipment often, or you will not automatically pick up the loot that the enemies drop. Luckily, you are able to dismantle your loot anytime, even in the middle of a mission.

Varied Enemies:

To be fair, combat is quite fun

I feel like the game deserves some credit for offering a nice variety of enemies. Not only do they exhibit different visual designs, but they also showcase unique combat behaviors. Some enemies charge at you to attack in close quarters, while others utilize shields that require precise targeting of weak points to disable.

Gameplay and Multiplayer:

A multiplayer hub, just like in Destiny 2

Gameplay primarily involves entering map locations with various mission objectives. Most of the missions I played centered around defending a position and battling waves of enemies or clearing out a location. The seamless integration of multiplayer is a nice touch. Initiating a mission automatically groups you with other players that have already started the mission. It's a straightforward looter shooter experience; enter a mission, gather loot, and be on your way.

The game also features 11 different gun types, and while they feel good to shoot, they didn't feel significantly distinct from one another during my playtime.

Future Potential:

As the game is currently in beta, The First Descendant holds promise for future development. While I only had the chance to play one of the Descendants, I can already envision the potential for diverse abilities in future characters. I didn't get to see the monetization system, but I'm hopeful that it will focus on cosmetics and Descendant unlocks, avoiding the pay-to-win model.

Conclusion:

The First Descendant did not reinvent the looter shooter genre or brought it to new heights, but it is still a fun free to play game in my opinion. Would I spend hundreds of hours playing this game? Probably not in it's current state. But if you're a fan of looter shooters and is searching for a new world to explore and loot to gather, it's worth giving this game a try, especially as it continues to evolve during its beta phase.

The First Descendant feels like it would have been a Destiny killer if it released 5-10 years ago. However today, I feel like the formula has been tried and done so many times by games like Outriders, the Borderlands series and Division just to name a few.