The First Descendant Has Everyone Saying The Same Thing

There's good news for anyone who's feeling down about the "Apex Legends" battle pass fiasco. A brand new live service game has popped up just in time to eat up your free time. It's called "The First Descendant," and so far the entire world seems to agree that it's ... pretty okay, but derivative.

"The First Descendant" is a third-person looter shooter, and based on that description alone, you can probably decide whether you want to ignore it or spend the next three months grinding for high-rarity items while slaughtering thousands of foes. The game lets teams of four explore multiple open world biomes and tackle missions that include giant, mechanized bosses. The sci-fi setting feels inspired by "Destiny 2," and reviewers and players seem to agree that the game relies too heavily on its influences.

Multiple sources have joked that "The First Descendant" is an example of "we have 'Destiny' at home," but a reviewer for Shack News said, "I'm hopeful that 'The First Descendant' can outgrow its need to imitate other games and eventually turn into something interesting in its own right." Aside from borrowing a few too many elements from "Destiny" and "Warframe," Nexon's game is also a little overstuffed with repetitive content. PC Gamer said, "It's too busy with quantity to bother with quality." Of course, gamers are always hungry for another epic multiplayer game, especially now that most "Helldivers 2" players are looking for something new. Judging by the Steam reviews for "The First Descendant," however, this might not be the one.

As is often the case with a new free-to-play game, people are checking out "The First Descendant" in droves. According to SteamDB, the game's peak player count this week was over 250,000. Naturally, the user reviews are now rolling in. Unfortunately for Nexon, they are an extremely mixed bag.

Many are praising the game for how well it manages to mix elements from the top two looter shooters of the moment. One user who recommended the game described it as "If 'Warframe' and 'Destiny 2' ... had a janky lovechild." Even with that recommendation, they warned, "Just don't dump $100 on the Ultimate Bunny bundle." Most of the positive reviews mention the gunplay, multiple progression systems, and multiplayer mechanics, with the "Destiny" comparisons mostly coming from a place of affection. However, many users also openly acknowledge that microtransactions are rampant.

In fact, microtransactions are a big sticking point in the negative reviews. "Just another free to pay money grab," wrote one player. Some players are also concerned by the game's data collection policy (which has to be accepted before the game will start), though players can apparently opt out later by contacting Nexon support. One user review asked, "Why isn't there an option when you start the game where you can accept their Terms of Service, but not the data collection policy?" Nexon has time to respond to these concerns, but if it doesn't, "The First Descendant" could become another 2024 live service game gone wrong.