"Survive the Fall: Initial Preview Released"

Long before Bethesda took the reins of the series and Walton Goggins donned the ghoul makeup for his captivating role in its adapted TV show, Fallout was an isometric action RPG viewed from a bird’s eye perspective. It’s this classic style of wasteland exploration that the upcoming game, Survive the Fall, seems to emulate, as evidenced by the first few hours I spent with it. This deadly post-apocalyptic tale of survival builds upon the original Fallout’s template, particularly through its robust camp development system. Its squad-based combat and scavenging contribute to a fresh experience, though the somewhat static story presentation slightly hinders its full personality from shining through.

Unlike many other post-apocalyptic settings, Survive the Fall’s ruined world wasn’t caused by nuclear negligence. Instead, it's the result of a catastrophic comet collision that decimated a significant portion of the world’s population and left a smoldering crater emitting a toxic mist called Stasis. Survivors either avoid this mist or embrace its otherworldly power, mutating into stronger forms at the cost of their humanity. Throughout Survive the Fall, your growing squad of scavengers must forge alliances with the various factions scattered across its three biomes to survive and thrive, from the Stasis-absorbing Shroomers to the enigmatic cult known as the Sighted.

I quickly grew fond of Survive the Fall’s squad-based setup as I tackled the numerous tasks from its quest-givers. Navigating a party of up to three survivors around the expansive national park setting, you can manually search abandoned chests for chemical compounds or chop down trees for lumber, or delegate these tasks to your companions with a simple button press. This approach feels more natural, allowing you to focus elsewhere while speeding up the process of exploring each settlement. The only minor issue was occasional clutter from button prompts when interactive elements were too close together, though this was rare.

Combat in Survive the Fall is also team-oriented. I prioritized stealth due to the scarcity of rifle and shotgun ammunition in the early stages, treating each enemy camp infiltration like a careful mission from Commandos: Origins. I utilized tactics such as hiding in long grass, throwing stones to create distractions, crouch-walking to avoid enemy vision cones, and executing silent takedowns before directing my squad to dispose of the bodies. Environmental hazards like explosive barrels and dangling cargo pallets add strategic depth to encounters.

Survive the Fall - Preview Screens

14 ImagesClearing out clusters of cultists felt satisfying, but when my cover was compromised, combat became somewhat cumbersome, especially with a controller. Aiming with the lasersight was imprecise, leading me to rely more on melee attacks and dodging in close quarters. Fortunately, the ability to pause and direct my squad to focus on specific targets—similar to systems in Wasteland or Mutant Year Zero—helped manage encounters effectively.

After a day spent battling mutants and gathering loot in the dangerous badlands, Survive the Fall shifts to a base-building management sim at your camp. Documents found in the world can be researched to earn knowledge points, which can be invested in a comprehensive technology tree to unlock crafting options for everything from bunk beds and kitchens to water filtration systems and an armory. Resources like timber can be transformed into planks for constructing structures such as plant boxes or gates to protect against nighttime raiders. Foraged herbs and salvaged meat can be turned into meals, ready to be packed into the backpacks of your chosen expedition team. There's considerable depth to this system, promising hours of engaging settlement development in the full game.

Beyond my base, I discovered numerous intriguing areas to explore, from a crashed passenger plane turned enemy fortress to a farmstead overrun by Stasis-infected ghouls. Survive the Fall offers distinct locales in every direction. However, the impressive detail in some areas, like the luminescent mushroom clusters in Mycorrhiza, occasionally led to performance issues, with a volatile framerate and occasional game-breaking bugs that forced me to quit and reload my save.

Despite these technical hiccups, Survive the Fall offers rich exploration and potential. Interacting with your squad and NPCs through onscreen text feels somewhat flat, though the occasional humorous character, like Blooper with his "fart wind" quip about Stasis smog, provided some laughs. However, most conversations primarily served to initiate the next fetch quest rather than deepening my connection with the characters.

As the full journey unfolds, these bonds may deepen. Survive the Fall is slated for release on PC this May and is brimming with post-apocalyptic potential. With some refinement of its controls and performance, it could become a standout survival-based action RPG worth your hard-earned bottlecaps.