Long before Bethesda took the reins of the series and Walton Goggins donned ghoul makeup for his captivating role in the adapted TV show, Fallout was known for its isometric, bird's-eye view action RPG style. The upcoming game Survive the Fall seems to pay homage to this classic aesthetic, as evidenced by my initial hours of gameplay. This post-apocalyptic survival tale builds on the original Fallout’s foundation, particularly through its detailed camp development system. With squad-based combat and scavenging mechanics, it delivers a refreshing experience, although the somewhat static storytelling holds back its full personality from emerging.
Unlike typical post-apocalyptic scenarios, Survive the Fall’s world wasn’t devastated by nuclear fallout but by a comet strike, reminiscent of the event that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs. This catastrophe left a crater emitting a toxic mist known as Stasis. Survivors either avoid this mist or harness its otherworldly energy to gain mutations at the cost of their humanity. As you navigate through Survive the Fall, your growing squad must forge alliances with various factions across three distinct biomes, ranging from the Stasis-absorbing Shroomers to the enigmatic Sighted cult, to ensure survival and prosperity.
I quickly grew fond of Survive the Fall’s squad-based mechanics. While exploring the expansive national park that serves as the initial setting, you can manage a party of up to three survivors. You have the option to manually scavenge for resources like chemical compounds or lumber, or delegate these tasks to your team members, allowing you to focus on other activities. This division of labor not only feels more realistic but also streamlines the process of plundering settlements. The only minor drawback is the occasional clutter of button prompts in densely packed areas, but this was not a frequent issue.
Combat in Survive the Fall is also team-oriented. Given the scarcity of rifle and shotgun ammunition in the early stages, I prioritized stealth during encounters with marauders and ghouls. Approaching enemy camps felt akin to navigating the stealth missions in Commandos: Origins, using tactics like hiding in tall grass, throwing stones to distract enemies, and carefully avoiding their vision cones before silently taking them out. My team would then dispose of the bodies. Environmental hazards, such as explosive barrels and precariously hanging cargo, added an extra layer of strategy to these engagements.
Survive the Fall - Preview Screens
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Clearing out clusters of cultists was satisfying, but when my cover was compromised, the combat became slightly cumbersome with a controller. Aiming with the lasersight was tricky, leading me to rely more on melee attacks and dodging. Thankfully, the ability to pause combat and direct my squadmates to target specific enemies, similar to systems in Wasteland or Mutant Year Zero, helped manage tougher encounters effectively.
After a day spent battling mutants and gathering resources in the dangerous badlands, Survive the Fall transitions into a base-building management phase. Documents found during exploration can be researched to gain knowledge points, which can be invested in a comprehensive technology tree. This allows you to craft everything from bunk beds and kitchens to water filtration systems and armories. Resources like timber can be turned into planks and used to construct new structures such as plant boxes or protective gates. Foraged herbs and meat from local wildlife can be prepared into meals for your team's expeditions. The depth of this system suggests I could spend significant time transforming my settlement from a dilapidated mess into a thriving community.
Beyond my base, I discovered a variety of intriguing locations to explore. From a repurposed crashed passenger plane now serving as an enemy stronghold to a ghoul-infested farmstead, Survive the Fall offers unique environments in every direction. However, the impressive detail in these areas, such as the luminescent mushroom clusters in the Mycorrhiza swamplands, occasionally came at the cost of performance, with a fluctuating framerate. Additionally, I encountered some game-breaking bugs that required me to reload my save, particularly when stuck in menus. There's still time before the game's release in May for Angry Bulls Studio to refine these aspects.
The absence of voice-acted dialogue somewhat diminishes the interactions with my squad and NPCs, which are conveyed solely through text. While some characters, like the amusing Blooper who calls Stasis "fart wind," provided light-hearted moments, most conversations felt more like prompts for the next task rather than opportunities to deepen character relationships.
As Survive the Fall nears its release on PC this May, it holds significant promise for post-apocalyptic gaming enthusiasts. If the developers can smooth out the existing issues with controls and performance, this survival-based action RPG could prove to be a worthy addition to the genre, earning its place among the classics.
