"Survive the Fall: Initial Preview Released"

Long before Bethesda took the helm of the Fallout series and Walton Goggins donned ghoul makeup for the captivating TV adaptation, the original Fallout was an isometric action RPG viewed from a bird's-eye perspective. This classic style of wasteland exploration serves as a clear reference point for the upcoming game, Survive the Fall, at least based on the first few hours I experienced. This deadly post-apocalyptic tale of survival not only builds upon the original Fallout's template but also enhances it with a robust camp development system. Its squad-based combat and scavenging create a fresh experience, though the somewhat static story presentation occasionally hinders its full personality from shining through.

Unlike many other post-apocalyptic scenarios, the world of Survive the Fall wasn't destroyed by nuclear warfare. Instead, a catastrophic comet collision with Earth wiped out a significant portion of the population, leaving behind a crater that emits a toxic mist known as Stasis. Survivors must either avoid this deadly mist or embrace its otherworldly power, transforming into stronger beings at the cost of their humanity. In Survive the Fall, your growing squad of scavengers must forge alliances with various factions scattered across three distinct biomes to survive and thrive, from the Stasis-absorbing Shroomers to the enigmatic cult called the Sighted.

As I embarked on the numerous quests offered by Survive the Fall, 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 for resources or delegate tasks to your team members. This division of labor feels more natural and accelerates the process of scavenging each settlement. However, the interface can become cluttered with button prompts when interactive elements are too close together, 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, approaching encounters with marauders and ghouls much like a careful infiltration in Commandos: Origins. Utilizing stealth tactics such as hiding in long grass, creating distractions with thrown stones, and silently taking down enemies before having my squadmates dispose of the bodies added a satisfying layer of strategy. Environmental hazards, like explosive barrels and dangling cargo pallets, further enhance the tactical depth of combat.

Survive the Fall - Preview Screens

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Clearing out clusters of cultists was rewarding, but when my cover was compromised, combat with firearms became somewhat cumbersome on a controller. I suspect a mouse and keyboard setup might offer more precision, but with a controller, aiming was challenging, leading me to rely more on melee attacks and dodging. Fortunately, 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 resources in the dangerous badlands, Survive the Fall transitions into a base-building management sim at your camp. Researching documents found in the world earns knowledge points, which can be invested in a comprehensive technology tree to unlock crafting options for bunk beds, kitchen areas, water filtration systems, and even an armory. Resources like timber can be transformed into planks for constructing new structures such as plant boxes or defensive gates, while foraged herbs and salvaged meat can be prepared into meals for your expedition team. The depth of the base-building system promises hours of engaging development, turning your settlement from a dilapidated outpost into a thriving community.

Beyond my base, Survive the Fall offers a variety of intriguing locations to explore, from a crashed passenger plane turned enemy fort to a farmstead overrun with Stasis-infected ghouls. Each direction I ventured in revealed unique locales, though the impressive detail in some areas, like the luminescent mushroom clusters in the Mycorrhiza swamplands, occasionally led to performance issues with a volatile framerate. Additionally, I encountered game-breaking bugs that required me to quit and reload my save, such as getting stuck in inventory or building menus. With a release date set for May, developer Angry Bulls Studio has time to refine these aspects.

The lack of voice acting in Survive the Fall slightly diminishes the impact of interactions with your squad and NPCs, which are conducted solely through onscreen text. While some characters, like the quirky Blooper who humorously refers to the Stasis smog as "fart wind," provided moments of levity, most conversations felt more like quest prompts than opportunities to deepen character connections.

As Survive the Fall approaches its PC release this May, it holds significant post-apocalyptic potential. If the developers can smooth out the rough edges in controls and performance, this survival-based action RPG could prove to be a worthy addition to the genre, deserving of your hard-earned bottlecaps.