Reside service looter shooters are removed from a brand new idea within the gaming area nowadays. With most looter shooters failing to achieve any long-term traction, how does one thing like The First Descendant fare? In the present day, we’re evaluating TFD to one among its greatest inspirations, Warframe, to see how The First Descendant stacks up.
The First Descendant
The First Descendant simply launched to each fame and infamy. This third-person looter shooter borrows many components from the opposite shooters within the area to create one thing new that tries to be greater than the sum of its elements. You’ve bought your loot drops with a wide range of affixes. Then you’ve got your 14 playable characters, all with passives and 4 energetic expertise which are fairly numerous.
Then there’s TFD’s mod system that’s straight out of Warframe. The First Descendant additionally combines the shared-world components of Future 2’s patrol zones with dynamic quests. All these components in such a slick Unreal 5 package deal have helped propel this recreation to the highest—a minimum of, for now.
Warframe
Warframe, developed by Digital Extremes, is without doubt one of the first video games folks consider once they consider reside service looter-shooter. Certainly one of Warframe’s most iconic options is its randomly generated ranges in a compelling sci-fi universe the place you discover everything of our photo voltaic system after which some. This has allowed Warframe to repeatedly develop in content material and scope with out vaulting massive chunks of earlier content material.
Mix that type of replayability with dozens of Warframe characters, over a dozen modes, and a whole lot of craftable weapons, and you’ve got a looter shooter that has stood the check of time.
Spherical 1: Second-to-Second Gameplay
In relation to gameplay, Warframe provides you a lot choices so that you can carry out on a moment-to-moment foundation. Whereas there isn’t a grappling hook, you do get the power to crouch, slide, bullet soar, glide, wall soar, wall run, and dangle onto partitions as a part of any Warframe’s primary motion gameplay. You may shoot weapons and use skills too, however Warframe additionally provides an even bigger concentrate on melee gameplay by way of primary assaults, heavy assaults, combos, slide assaults, and floor kilos.
In distinction, The First Descendant presents double jumps, a grappling hook, and mantling for motion choices (exterior of fight skills). From there, you’ve got your character’s skills, a melee assault, and gunplay from three completely different classes of weapon ammo sorts. That’s about it although, which I discovered disappointing in comparison with Warframe and even what Future 2 does to offer you mobility and methods to struggle.
I imply, think about my shock once I discovered I couldn’t even crouch. That successfully means there gained’t be any degree design constructed round taking cowl until it’s large enough so that you can absolutely stand behind.
Winner: Warframe
Spherical 2: Visuals and Optimization
Warframe has been round since 2013, and typically that age exhibits – how can it not? Nonetheless, Digital Extremes has upgraded the engine Warframe runs on through the years, which permits for using newer rendering methods and higher textures. This leads to a recreation that appears surprisingly trendy however has been optimized all the time. Mixed with DLSS help, Warframe is assured to run effectively on just about any system and any console made within the final ten years.
Alternatively, The First Descendant makes use of Unreal Engine 5. Now, Unreal 5 has an incredible quantity of graphical constancy, together with some spectacular ray tracing applied sciences like completely correct reflections, shadows, and world illumination. Honestly, The First Descendant is an amazing-looking recreation with a few of the most spectacular cutscenes I’ve seen in a recreation. That stated, there’s a flaw with how TFD performs.
It’s not the worst by far, however if you happen to attempt to use DLSS 3’s body technology, you’re going to expertise extremely uneven gameplay. It was to the purpose the place I discovered myself selecting decrease framerates with increased enter latency over a a lot increased framerate.
Winner: Tie
Spherical 3: Loot and Development
Each Warframe and The First Descendant characteristic a mod system for characters and weapons which are almost an identical, with the mods themselves being the first differentiator. Each video games even have a mastery rank system that advantages the participant by giving extra stock, weapons, and character slots. Absolutely leveling weapons and characters, and finishing missions, additionally helps enhance your mastery rank in each video games.
The place The First Descendant goes above and past is by having weapons and kit that characteristic randomly rolled affixes. The First Descendant additionally drops weapons and kit on enemy kills, versus Warframe, which is essentially crafted-only. That stated, Warframe does have a number of additional development programs like gaining focus to progress your Warframe’s operator skills. Warframe additionally permits you to seize and design your individual upgradeable pets that show you how to in fight or make it simpler to gather loot.
In the end, each video games characteristic some ways to grind and progress.
Winner: Tie
Spherical 4: Honest Monetization
Let’s be sincere right here, with regards to The First Descendant vs Warframe, each video games don’t actually have the perfect monetization programs. Living proof, each video games have Prime or Final variations of characters that price a ridiculous amount of cash or time to grind without spending a dime. Moreover, each video games ask you to attend hour upon hour for the completion of a crafted weapon or character or make you pay premium foreign money to avoid the wait.
That stated, the place The First Descendant falters additional than Warframe is by having all of Warframe’s microtransaction construction (after which some) with not one of the skill to earn premium foreign money through participant buying and selling. Certain, they are saying buying and selling is coming, but it surely ought to have been right here on launch. Particularly since TFD has an terrible beauty system with one-time-use paints that may solely be used on paid skins. No thanks.
Winner: Warframe
Spherical 5: Multiplayer and Matchmaking
Warframe and The First Descendant each have on-line coop and matchmaking. What’s cool about what The First Descendant does is that you may dynamically be part of and go away participant squads within the recreation’s Future 2-esque maps. It’s so dynamic, in actual fact, that each one you have to do is shoot the enemies that have been spawned to hitch one among these open-world quests.
Warframe doesn’t have this sort of open-world dynamic quest-joining performance as its massive open zones are instanced. That stated, for some time, The First Descendant didn’t provide matchmaking for its dungeons known as Infiltration Operations. Fortunately, Nexon simply went on report saying a hotfix is incoming that may add matchmaking performance to Infiltration Operations.
Such a hotfix is a win for gamers who don’t all the time have buddies on-line and don’t wish to go to sure Discord channels to search out assist. This places The First Descendant a lot nearer to Warframe by way of your skill to search out folks to play with. Each video games let you matchmaker into any mode, and whereas Warframe has Railjack missions that permit for a higher depth of co-op play, it’s not sufficient to offer it a win over The First Descendant.
Winner: Tie
Winner: Warframe
The First Descendant does have compelling gameplay, visuals, and options. It’s additionally not the worst strategy to spend your time. Nonetheless, for borrowing so many components from Warframe, The First Descendant doesn’t do sufficient issues by itself which are higher than what Warframe gives.
I can and can minimize The First Descendant some slack for simply releasing the opposite week. So, don’t get me mistaken. What there’s on launch is fairly good. Right here’s hoping The First Descendant continues so as to add extra selection to its gameplay and tones down the microtransactions going ahead. If Nexon can handle that, then they may have a shot at proudly owning a recreation that gamers return to for years to return.
For extra like this, try our different comparability articles taking a look at Content material Warning versus Deadly Firm, Enshrouded versus Valheim, and Deadly Firm versus Phasmophobia. You may additionally be considering seeing what we consider Hoyoverse’s Zenless Zone Zero with our evaluate.