Nexon Games’ new free-to-play heist game, The First Descendant, is off to a pretty successful start. Less than 24 hours after its public release, it is already at #6 on Steam’s top 100 games list, with over 225,000 players currently online at the time of writing.
The third-person co-op gameplay sees players take on the role of Descendants, who are special fighters who inherit unique powers that aid them in their battles against The Vulgus. The Vulgus are a race of hostile alien enemies who work to destroy Ingris, the fictional world in which the game takes place.
“Descendants, from everyone on our development team, we sincerely thank you for choosing to join us in the battle against The Vulgus,” creative director Minseok Joo said in a recent press release. “When we first developed this concept in 2019, we set out to create a world inspired by some of our personal favorite looter shooters. The genre holds a special place in our hearts, and our development team has worked hard to create a game that we believe stands proudly among these prominent titles.”
“Since The First Descendant was our first global multi-platform launch, we wanted to develop something that allowed our players’ voices to be heard,” added producer Beomjun Lee. “Our goal is not only to create a game that we can be proud of, but also to create something that our players will love and enjoy for a long time.” We’ve implemented a lot of changes for launch based on community requests and we hope it will make the experience even more enjoyable.”
The game’s pre-season launch period introduced a battle pass that included three new playable offspring: Esiemo, Enzo, and Yujin. The Battle Pass also gives players access to new weapons, Void Intercept Battles and Instance Dungeons, along with other exclusive content.
Looking ahead, Nexon Games announced plans to update the game five weeks after launch, though it’s unclear what that update will include. A second update, Season 1 Episode: Invasion, will arrive sometime in August and will include a new Descendant, a new Colossus, a new dungeon, and a new weapon. According to Nexon, Season 1 Episode: Invasion will also dive deeper into the backstory of the “fan-favorite Descendant.”
The First Descendant is currently available for free on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. For more information on Descendants, weapons and the new battle pass, check out the game’s official website.
