Survive the Fall: Exclusive First Look

Long before Bethesda took the helm of the Fallout series and Walton Goggins donned ghoul makeup for its captivating TV adaptation, Fallout was known for its isometric, bird's-eye view action RPG style. The upcoming game Survive the Fall seems to draw inspiration from this classic approach, as evidenced by my initial hours of gameplay. This post-apocalyptic survival story builds upon the original Fallout's foundation, especially evident in its detailed camp development system. The game's squad-based combat and scavenging mechanics offer a refreshing experience, although the somewhat static storytelling might not fully showcase its unique personality.

Unlike many other post-apocalyptic settings, *Survive the Fall*'s world wasn't devastated by nuclear war. Instead, a comet strike, reminiscent of the cataclysm that extinguished the dinosaurs, decimated a significant portion of the population. The impact left behind a toxic mist known as Stasis, which survivors either shun as a deadly plague or harness to mutate into more powerful beings at the cost of their humanity. Throughout the game, your expanding squad of scavengers must forge alliances with various factions across three distinct biomes, from the Stasis-embracing Shroomers to the enigmatic cult called the Sighted, to ensure survival and prosperity.

My engagement with Survive the Fall's numerous quest-givers quickly endeared me to its squad-based mechanics. Navigating the expansive national park that sets the stage for the story's beginning, players can either manually search for resources like chemical compounds and lumber or delegate these tasks to their team members with a simple button press. This division of labor feels more intuitive and accelerates the process of exploring each settlement. However, the interface occasionally becomes cluttered when multiple interactive elements are too close together, though these instances were infrequent.

Combat in Survive the Fall is similarly team-oriented. Given the scarcity of rifle and shotgun ammunition early on, I prioritized stealth, approaching enemy encounters with tactics reminiscent of Commandos: Origins. Sneaking through long grass, creating distractions with thrown stones, and carefully navigating enemy vision cones before silently dispatching foes and ordering my team to hide the bodies added a strategic layer to the gameplay. Environmental hazards, such as explosive barrels and dangling cargo pallets, provided additional tactical options.

Survive the Fall - Preview Screens

14 ImagesClearing out enemy camps felt rewarding, but combat became challenging when my stealth failed and firearms were necessary. While a mouse and keyboard might offer better precision, using a controller made aiming with the lasersight cumbersome. I often resorted to melee attacks and dodging to whittle down enemy health. Fortunately, the ability to pause combat and direct my squad to focus on specific targets, similar to systems in Wasteland or Mutant Year Zero, proved invaluable, especially against tougher opponents.

After a day of battling mutants and gathering loot, Survive the Fall transitions into a base-building management sim. Documents found in the world can be researched to earn knowledge points, which unlock new technologies in a comprehensive tech tree. This allows players to craft everything from bunk beds and kitchens to water filtration systems and armories. Resources like timber can be transformed into planks for constructing structures such as plant boxes or defensive gates, while foraged herbs and meat can be prepared into meals for future expeditions. The depth of the base-building system promises hours of engaging development as you transform your settlement from ruins to a thriving community.

Beyond my base, Survive the Fall offered a variety of intriguing locations to explore. From a repurposed passenger plane turned enemy fort to a farmstead overrun by Stasis-infected ghouls, each direction led to unique environments. While the detailed areas like the luminescent mushroom clusters of Mycorrhiza were visually stunning, they occasionally suffered from performance issues, such as fluctuating frame rates. Additionally, I encountered some game-breaking bugs that required me to reload my save. However, with Survive the Fall set to release in May, there's still time for developer Angry Bulls Studio to refine its performance.

Interacting with my squad and NPCs via onscreen text felt somewhat flat, missing the depth that voice acting could provide. Although characters like Blooper, who humorously referred to the Stasis smog as "fart wind," added some levity, most interactions were more functional, serving mainly to initiate new quests. Hopefully, the relationships and narratives will develop further as the game progresses.

Survive the Fall is poised for release on PC this May and holds significant post-apocalyptic potential. If the developers can smooth out the current control and performance issues, this survival-based action RPG might just be worth your hard-earned bottlecaps.