Survive the Fall: Initial Preview Revealed

Long before Bethesda took over the series and Walton Goggins donned the ghoul makeup for his captivating role in the TV adaptation, Fallout was an isometric action RPG, viewed from a bird's eye perspective. It's this classic style of wasteland exploration that the upcoming Survive the Fall seems to be emulating, based on the initial hours I've experienced. This post-apocalyptic survival tale builds on the original Fallout's framework—particularly in its robust camp development system—and introduces squad-based combat and scavenging to create a fresh experience, despite a somewhat static narrative that hinders its full personality from shining through.

Unlike many other post-apocalyptic settings, the devastated world of Survive the Fall wasn't caused by nuclear fallout. Instead, it was a catastrophic comet impact that decimated a significant portion of the population and left behind a toxic mist known as Stasis. Survivors either avoid this deadly fog or harness its power, mutating into stronger beings at the cost of their humanity. Throughout the game, your squad of scavengers must forge alliances with various factions scattered across three biomes, from the Stasis-absorbing Shroomers to the enigmatic cult called the Sighted, to navigate and thrive in this harsh environment.

I quickly grew fond of Survive the Fall's squad-based mechanics as I tackled missions from numerous quest-givers. Navigating the expansive national park setting at the story's outset, I could either manually search for resources or delegate tasks to my team members, streamlining the process of scavenging settlements. This division of labor felt natural and efficient, though the screen occasionally became cluttered with too many interactive prompts in close proximity, a minor inconvenience that occurred infrequently.

Combat in Survive the Fall is also team-oriented. With scarce rifle and shotgun ammo early on, I prioritized stealth, approaching enemy camps much like in Commandos: Origins—using tactics such as hiding, creating distractions, and silent takedowns. The game offers engaging environmental hazards like explosive barrels and cargo pallets that can be strategically used against foes. However, when stealth failed and combat ensued, using a controller felt less precise than a mouse and keyboard might have been, often leading me to rely on melee attacks and dodging in close quarters. The ability to pause and direct squadmates to target specific enemies was a helpful feature, reminiscent of systems in games like Wasteland or Mutant Year Zero.

Survive the Fall - Preview Screens

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After a day of battling mutants and gathering resources in the treacherous badlands, Survive the Fall transitions into a base-building management sim. Documents found during exploration can be researched to gain knowledge points, which can be invested in a comprehensive technology tree. This allows for the crafting of various facilities, from bunk beds and kitchens to water filtration systems and armories. Resources like timber are transformed into planks and then into structures such as plant boxes or defensive gates, while foraged items like herbs and meat are prepared into meals to sustain your adventurers. The depth of this system promises hours of engaging base development.

Beyond my base, Survive the Fall offers intriguing exploration opportunities. From a repurposed crashed plane to a ghoul-infested farmstead, the game's world is filled with unique locales. While the detailed environments, like the luminescent mushroom clusters in the Mycorrhiza swamplands, are visually stunning, they sometimes come at the cost of performance, with framerate issues and occasional game-breaking bugs that require reloading saves. Thankfully, there's still time before the game's release for developer Angry Bulls Studio to refine these aspects.

The narrative in Survive the Fall is conveyed through onscreen text, which can feel somewhat flat. While certain characters, like the amusingly named Blooper who refers to the Stasis smog as "fart wind," provided some humor, most interactions merely served to advance the next task rather than deepening character connections. Hopefully, these relationships will develop further as the game progresses.

Survive the Fall is set to launch on PC this May and is brimming with post-apocalyptic potential. If the developers can smooth out the current rough edges in controls and performance, this survival-based action RPG could be well worth your investment in bottlecaps.