In the classic line of free-to-play looter-shooters?
First of all, The First Descendant obviously offers a lore that is literally cliché. To make it short, the Vulgus will be the big bad guys of the game, and our legatees (the playable characters) will have to do everything to restore order by finding the heart of iron. As we explained in our first impression article on the software, The First Descendant will not aim to provide a very original universe, that's for sure. That said, we are still curious to see if the story of each legatee will be well treated, and if the game will manage to make us get an ounce of emotion out of it, which was not necessarily the case in our big gaming sessions for the moment.
Never mind, the title nonetheless remains a TPS that is not really unpleasant to play. We clearly take a monstrous pleasure in destroying the slightest vulgus that stands in our way in each area. You should know that one of the three legatees you choose has a grappling hook to wander around a little everywhere, but also totally different skills. And precisely, this is what makes the strength for the hour of the game: this mixture of use of the skills of the legatees, the use of firearms and melee which is super effective, while offering a certain dynamism in full action.
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A bit like Outridersthe Nexon Games production also opts for a looter shooter that will not revolutionize the formula at all. For the moment, the loot offered is generally generous in weapons as in modules, but the leveling up seemed a bit too fast to us, if we compare to other productions of this caliber. A feeling that, we hope, will fade during the test of version 1.0 of the title, but know that the legatees proposed at the beginning of the adventure are endowed with a real diversity in the gameplay thanks to their special abilities, with for example Viessa who is centered on the element of ice or Lepic, who is more focused on explosive skills based on grenades.
However, it will be necessary to see if some of its flaws will be corrected, such as the AI or the fights. On this second hands-on, it is indeed not uncommon to see an AI as stupid as it is haphazard, coupled with a dynamism pushed to the extreme so much that the gunfights can seem a bit confusing. What's more, We are still unmoved by the gameplay loop, which is not very engaging.. The quests offered in each game zone will offer the capture of territory, a certain number of enemies to eliminate to advance, destroying mini-bosses as well as going into dungeons, and facing a big boss.
Everything seemed redundant after several hours, hoping that the endgame content was up to par. This seemed to be the case with dungeons and special operations that can be replayed to earn better rewards, provided you increase the difficulty of the world, similar to the system ofOutriders to name just one. Missions from the void will also be part of the game, with downright huge inter-dimensional colossi to fight alone or in cooperation mode, which will be the central heart of the game to help each other. Of course, all that remains is to see if the content will be sufficient and interesting to keep players glued to the game, and if the title will be as well followed in terms of updates as Warframewhich still remains a perfect example today.
Albion which is a little online, with micro transactions in spades
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Besides the gameplay part, Albion will be the HQ where you can do a lot of things before heading out into the field or wandering through colossi and dungeons.. In Albion, you will first have the opportunity to sell your excess low-level equipment and collect a few coins. At another time, it will also be possible, with the experience gained, to increase your mastery rank, and thus benefit from some significant bonuses for your characters.
In addition to the other interfaces allowing access to special operations, infiltration, different game zones and even void interception missions, there will obviously be your entire inventory interface. Here, whether via the HQ or in a dungeon or mission in progress, you will have the ability to improve your weapons and characters. Everything will be done through modules to be equipped on them, which will grant some damage or health bonuses. You will be able to redo yourself with reactor cores and components to equip, in order to properly strengthen your characters with a boost on skills or your armor.
This whole RPG component works very well on The First Descendantalthough the excess of information will be difficult to digest at first. What's more, changing legatee via Albion HQ will certainly be easy, but will not be free either. Because to obtain other playable legatees, you will either have to put your hand in your wallet, or opt for the time-consuming option of playing, and doing a few side quests in order to obtain them definitively. This is a little pay-to-win aspect that makes us cringe a little, because obtaining the legatees for free has seemed a long process for the moment. It remains to be seen what the software's battle pass will really contain, but it's a safe bet that it will be very easy to have the other playable characters directly by going to the checkout and thus save time…
For the rest, and we can repeat it without fear, The First Descendant can establish itself as one of the most beautiful free-to-play looter-shooters. Most of the panoramas are impressively beautiful, and we feel that Nexon Games has worked hard to offer this time an ultra-smooth and smooth optimization, and with a level of detail that really impresses.
On this second handling, we remain more or less with the impression that had left us The First Descendant : a nice looter-shooter, nothing more. While it is not without qualities with a solid RPG aspect and well-oiled gunfight mechanics based on firearms and skills, it is clear that the software is marking time a little for the moment. The lack of originality is felt, the story gives us a big impression of déjà vu and its pay-to-win aspect is still a little scary. Especially since it will surely be very time-consuming to obtain what we want if we bet on the complete free. See you however when it comes out on July 2nd, to see if the title will be more convincing after having played it for much longer.