Survive the Fall: Exclusive First Look

Long before Bethesda took the helm of the series and Walton Goggins donned his ghoul makeup for the captivating 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 game, Survive the Fall, seems to be channeling, at least based on the initial hours I've experienced. This deadly post-apocalyptic tale of survival builds on the original Fallout's template—quite literally in the case of its robust camp development system—and its squad-based combat and scavenging help craft an experience that feels fresh, despite a somewhat static story presentation that prevents its personality from fully shining through.

Unlike many other post-apocalyptic settings, Survive the Fall's ruined world wasn't caused by humanity's nuclear folly. Instead, a catastrophic comet strike, reminiscent of the event that wiped out the dinosaurs, devastated the planet, leaving a smoldering crater that emits a toxic mist called Stasis. Survivors either shun this interplanetary plague or harness its power to mutate into stronger forms at the cost of their humanity. In Survive the Fall, your growing squad of scavengers must forge alliances with various factions scattered across three biomes to survive and thrive, from the Stasis-embracing Shroomers to the enigmatic cult known as the Sighted.

As I embarked on each new task from Survive the Fall's myriad quest-givers, I quickly grew fond of its squad-based mechanics. Navigating your party of up to three survivors through the expansive national park setting at the story's outset, you can manually search abandoned chests for chemical compounds or chop down trees for lumber, or simply delegate these tasks to your cohorts with a button press. This division of labor feels more natural than micromanaging every detail yourself while your AI companions idle, and it accelerates the process of plundering each settlement you encounter. The only downside is that my view occasionally became cluttered with button prompts when interactive elements were too closely grouped, though these instances were infrequent.

Combat in Survive the Fall is also team-oriented. Given the scarcity of rifle and shotgun ammunition in the early stages, I prioritized stealth when confronting marauders and ghouls. Each infiltration of an enemy camp felt like a meticulous operation akin to recent Commandos: Origins—hiding in long grass, throwing stones to distract, crouch-walking around enemy vision cones, and silently dispatching foes before ordering my squadmates to hide the bodies. Environmental hazards also play a satisfying role, from explosive barrels to cargo pallets that can be dropped onto unsuspecting guards with a well-timed shot.

Survive the Fall - Preview Screens

14 ImagesClearing out clusters of cultists felt rewarding, but when my cover was compromised, combat became somewhat cumbersome with a controller. I suspect a mouse and keyboard might offer better precision, as aiming with the lasersight was tricky, leading me to rely more on melee attacks and dodging in close quarters. Fortunately, the ability to pause and direct my squadmates to focus on specific targets, similar to systems in Wasteland or Mutant Year Zero, proved invaluable, allowing my team to whittle down tougher enemies while I dealt with the support crew.

After a day of battling mutants and gathering loot in the dangerous badlands, Survive the Fall shifts into a base-building management sim back at your camp. Documents found in the wild can be researched to earn knowledge points, which can then be invested in a comprehensive technology tree to unlock the crafting of items like bunk beds, kitchen areas, water filtration systems, and even an armory. Resources such as timber can be turned into planks and used to build structures like plant boxes or gates to fend off nighttime raiders, while foraged herbs or meat from wolves and deer can be prepared into meals for your next expedition. There's considerable depth here, and I can envision spending ample time transforming my settlement from a dilapidated state to a thriving haven in the final game.

Beyond my base, I discovered numerous intriguing areas to explore. From a crashed passenger plane transformed into an enemy fortress to a farmstead teeming with Stasis-infected ghouls, Survive the Fall offers distinct locales in every direction. However, the impressive detail in some areas, such as the luminescent mushroom clusters in the Mycorrhiza swamplands, came at the cost of a volatile framerate. Additionally, the game was occasionally hampered by bugs, forcing me to quit and reload after getting stuck in menus. With about a month until Survive the Fall's release, developer Angry Bulls Studio has time to further optimize performance.

Survive the Fall offers distinct locales in every direction you point your compass.“While there might not be enough time to add voice acting, its absence is slightly disappointing as interactions with your squad and NPCs feel somewhat flat when limited to onscreen text. However, I did enjoy some humorous moments, particularly from a character named Blooper who amusingly referred to the Stasis smog as "fart wind." Still, most conversations primarily served to initiate the next fetch quest rather than deeply engage with the faction members I encountered.

Perhaps these bonds will deepen over the full journey, and we won't have to wait long to find out. Survive the Fall is set to release on PC this May, brimming with post-apocalyptic potential. If the current issues with controls and performance can be polished by then, this could be a survival-based action RPG well worth your hard-earned bottlecaps.