The first descendant, Nexon’s new sci-fi third-person free-to-play online heist shooter feels a lot like a bowl of mac and cheese. I promise the opening sentence will make some sense by the end of this article, okay?
Released earlier this month for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC, The first descendant tells the story of a group of special, powerful people with cool abilities who “descended” from ancient god-like beings. These special people – the Descendants – are the key to saving humanity and use their abilities (as well as weapons and explosives) to fight back against an invading alien force and giant interdimensional monsters. I would tell you more, but there is nothing more to explain. If this setup sounds a lot like other sci-fi movies or games, well, you know what The first descendant it really is: a mish-mash of the former combined into a package that’s fun to play but hard to recommend.
Every part of The first descendant feels like it’s been ripped off from other existing live action shooters such as Destiny, Warframe, The Division, and Anthem. You go around levels as space ninjas Warframethe fight is tight and sharp The divisionthird person shooter and many powers and abilities feel directly inspired by Fate. (And some of the gameplay looks literally ripped from a Bungie FPS…)
First descendant it also lacks a consistent art style other than “just do what other games do”. The post-apocalyptic worlds you explore in the game’s main campaign don’t really fit in with the anime characters and their various cosmetic items. Similarly, First descendant has an odd collection of enemy designs made up of baddies that seem to have dropped out of games like hymn destiny and Outriders. Some enemies look and act like creatures, others are more mechanical and robotic, a few look like weird space zombies, and some are just dudes in protective suits. I was never really sure what I was up against or how they were all connected, other than they were obviously part of some big evil alien empire. And most things die so quickly that I didn’t really must to know what I’m shooting.
As with all the games I’ve mentioned so far, First descendant can be played alone or online with other players. like Fate, the open worlds you visit will contain other players that you can play with or ignore. These open worlds include three to four missions that require you to protect something, kill some things, collect some things, or destroy an objective. Repeat until you get to a bigger, more involved mission aka “Operation” aka Strike from Fate. And after you’ve done all that, the story moves forward a bit and you do it again in a new place.
It’s mind-numbingly boring, and if you’ve played any of these live-action heist shooters, you’ll have performed this song and dance a thousand times before. As with the story, art, enemies, and gameplay, First descendant doesn’t break new ground or try to do something unique. It ticks all the boxes it needs to tick to be considered an online RPG shooter and doesn’t do much else.
And yet I keep playing. Not only because it’s my job and I have to play First descendant. No, I keep playing even though there are other games I want to play instead. It’s not just because the game’s grappling hook is nice and makes traversing its boring worlds a little more enjoyable, but it helps. It’s not just about wanting to see the numbers grow, though there’s plenty of that in Nexon’s shooter for those who like that sort of thing. First descendant it’s like a bowl of mac and cheese at a crappy restaurant. Yes, I will finally explain the metaphor.
I have a theory that as long as the noodles are cooked and there’s some cheese in the bowl, you can’t be too mad at some warm macaroni and cheese. Of course, you can do more with mac and cheese. You can add bacon, breadcrumbs, different cheeses, experiment with noodles, spices, sauces, etc. But at its most basic, standard, no-frills form, a bowl of Mac is good, and I’ll eat it without complaint every time.
That’s how I feel when I play First descendant. It’s like eating a bowl of perfectly fine mac and cheese. I’m enjoying it right now. I’m happy to eat/play. Hooray for mac and cheese! Hooray for quick combat and loot! But the moment I digress The first descendant, I quickly forget it. It provides some comfort, sure, but ultimately offers nothing memorable or exciting. It does what it’s intended to do, ticks those boxes and that’s it. Like a boring Mac bowl at a fast food place or at a friend’s house. Enough to make you happy, but quickly forgotten.
So I recommend you to play First descendant? Not exactly. If you have played Fate or Warframe or similar games doesn’t offer anything new and doesn’t do much to stand out. I guess if you’ve burned yourself out on other live shooters, it might be nice to take a break from those grinds and check out this shiny new grind instead. I don’t think so though First descendant will keep these types of players around for a long time, especially since its late-game treadmill of unlocking new characters seems like a terrible job, and Nexon will happily let you pay.
But The first descendant it’s also free, and you might think “Why not? Will try.” And I can’t blame you. If offered a free bowl of mac and cheese, all gooey and warm, I’d probably say yes, too. Just don’t expect any breadcrumbs or gouda.
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