Long before Bethesda took the helm of the series and Walton Goggins donned ghoul make-up 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 Survive the Fall seems to be emulating, based on the initial hours I've played. This deadly post-apocalyptic survival tale builds on the original Fallout's foundation—particularly evident in its robust camp development system—and its squad-based combat and scavenging create a refreshing experience, though the somewhat static story presentation can dampen its full potential.
Unlike many other post-apocalyptic settings, the ruined world of **Survive the Fall** wasn’t caused by nuclear fallout. Instead, it resulted from a cataclysmic comet strike, reminiscent of the disaster that wiped out the dinosaurs, drastically reducing the global population. This event left a smoldering crater emitting a toxic mist called Stasis. Survivors must either avoid this mist or embrace it, gaining otherworldly powers at the cost of their humanity. Throughout the game, your growing squad of scavengers must forge alliances with various factions scattered across three distinct biomes, ranging from the Stasis-adapted Shroomers to the enigmatic cult known as the Sighted.Engaging with the numerous quest-givers in Survive the Fall, I quickly grew fond of its squad-based mechanics. As you navigate your party of up to three survivors through the expansive national park that sets the stage for the story's beginning, you can choose to manually search for resources or delegate tasks to your companions. This division of labor feels intuitive, speeding up the process of exploring and looting settlements. However, the interface can become cluttered when interactive elements are too close together, though this was a rare occurrence.
Combat in Survive the Fall is also team-oriented. Given the scarcity of rifle and shotgun ammunition in the early stages, I prioritized stealth, approaching each encounter with marauders and ghouls cautiously. This approach felt akin to navigating the recent Commandos: Origins, utilizing stealth tactics like hiding in grass, creating distractions, and executing silent takedowns before directing my squad to dispose of bodies. The environment offers strategic advantages, such as explosive barrels and cargo pallets that can be used to eliminate enemies.
Survive the Fall - Preview Screens
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Clearing out enemy camps was satisfying, but combat became challenging when stealth failed, particularly with a controller. Targeting enemies precisely was difficult, leading me to rely more on melee attacks and dodging. However, the ability to pause and direct my squadmates to focus on specific targets, similar to systems in Wasteland or Mutant Year Zero, helped manage encounters effectively.
After a day of battling mutants and gathering loot in the treacherous wilderness, Survive the Fall transitions into a base-building management sim at your camp. Documents found in the world can be researched to earn knowledge points, which unlock various technologies from bunk beds and kitchen areas to water filtration systems and armories. Resources like timber can be transformed into planks for constructing new structures such as plant boxes or gates to defend against raiders. Foraged herbs and salvaged meat can be prepared into meals for your expeditions. The depth of this system promises hours of engaging base development in the full game.
Beyond your base, Survive the Fall offers a variety of intriguing areas to explore, from a crashed passenger plane turned enemy fort to a farmstead overrun by Stasis-infected ghouls. While the detailed environments are impressive, such as the luminescent mushroom clusters in the Mycorrhiza swamplands, they occasionally led to performance issues, including a volatile framerate and game-breaking bugs. With the game's release scheduled for this May, developer Angry Bulls Studio has time to refine these aspects.
Survive the Fall promised distinct locales in every direction, but the lack of voice acting slightly diminishes the experience. Interactions with your squad and NPCs are conveyed through text, which can feel flat. Despite this, some characters, like Blooper with his humorous reference to Stasis as "fart wind," provided moments of levity. However, these interactions often felt more like prompts for the next quest rather than opportunities to deepen character relationships.
As Survive the Fall approaches its release on PC this May, it holds significant potential as a survival-based action RPG. If the rough edges in controls and performance can be smoothed out, it could become a worthy addition to the genre, deserving of your hard-earned bottlecaps.
