New Looter-Shooter The First Descendant Is Off To A Big Start

Nexon Games’ new free-to-play looter shooter, The First Descendant, is having quite the successful launch. Under 24 hours after releasing to the public, it’s already sitting at #6 on Steam’s 100 most-played games list, with over 225,000 players currently online at the time of writing.

The third-person co-op game sees players take on the role of Descendants, which 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 working to destroy Ingris, the fictional world in which the game is set.

“Descendants, from everyone on our development team we thank you sincerely for choosing to join us in the fight against The Vulgus,” creative director Minseok Joo said in a recent press release. “Back 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 those prominent titles.”

“With The First Descendant being our first global multi-platform launch, we wanted to develop something that allowed the voices of our players to be heard,” producer Beomjun Lee added. “Our goal is not only to create a game that we are proud of, but also to create something our players will love and enjoy for a long time. We implemented many changes for launch based on the community’s requests and we hope it makes the experience even more enjoyable.”

The game’s pre-season launch period has introduced a battle pass that includes three new playable Descendants: 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 to the future, Nexon Games has announced plans to update the game five weeks after launch, though it’s not immediately clear what that update will include. A second update, Season 1 Episode: Invasion, will arrive sometime in August, and will feature a new Descendant, new Colossus, new dungeon, and new weapon. According to Nexon, Season 1 Episode: Invasion will also dive deeper into the backstory of a “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.