Long before Bethesda's stewardship and Walton Goggins' captivating performance as a ghoul in the TV adaptation, Fallout was an isometric action RPG viewed from a bird's eye perspective. This classic style of wasteland exploration is the clear inspiration for the upcoming game, Survive the Fall, based on my initial hours with it. This post-apocalyptic survival tale builds directly on the original Fallout's template, especially in its robust camp development system, and its squad-based combat and scavenging mechanics offer a fresh take, though the somewhat static storytelling holds back its full personality.
Unlike many post-apocalyptic scenarios, the devastated world of Survive the Fall wasn't caused by nuclear fallout but by a catastrophic comet strike reminiscent of the event that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs. This disaster left behind a crater that emits a toxic mist known as Stasis. Survivors either shun this mist or harness its otherworldly power, mutating into stronger forms at the cost of their humanity. Throughout the game, your squad of scavengers must form alliances with various factions scattered across three distinct biomes, from the Stasis-embracing Shroomers to the enigmatic cult, the Sighted.
I quickly grew fond of Survive the Fall's squad-based setup as I completed tasks from its myriad quest-givers. Navigating a national park that sets the stage for the early story, you can manually search for resources or delegate tasks to your team, streamlining the scavenging process. This approach feels more intuitive than micromanaging every action, although the screen can get cluttered with prompts when interactive elements are close together.
Combat in Survive the Fall is also team-oriented. With limited ammunition early on, I prioritized stealth, approaching enemy camps with tactics similar to those in Commandos: Origins. Using environmental hazards like explosive barrels and collapsing cargo pallets added a strategic layer to encounters. However, when stealth failed, combat with a controller felt less precise, though the ability to pause and direct squadmates mitigated this somewhat.
Survive the Fall - Preview Screens
14 Images
After a day of battling mutants and gathering resources in the wild, Survive the Fall shifts to a base-building management sim at your camp. Here, you can research documents to gain knowledge points, which unlock various upgrades on a comprehensive tech tree. From bunk beds and kitchens to water filtration systems and armories, the depth of the base-building system promises hours of engaging development, turning your settlement from a heap of rubble into a thriving community.
Exploring beyond my base revealed intriguing areas like a repurposed crashed plane and a farmstead teeming with Stasis-infected ghouls. While the detailed environments were impressive, some areas like the Mycorrhiza swamplands suffered from performance issues, with a fluctuating framerate. Additionally, occasional game-breaking bugs forced me to reload saves, though there's still time before the May release for developer Angry Bulls Studio to address these issues.
The lack of voice acting in Survive the Fall slightly dampens the experience, as interactions with squad members and NPCs feel flat through text alone. Though some characters, like the humorous Blooper who calls Stasis "fart wind," provided moments of levity, the dialogue often felt more like a setup for the next quest than a means of deepening character connections.
With Survive the Fall set to launch on PC this May, it holds great promise as a survival-based action RPG. If the developers can smooth out the control and performance issues, it has the potential to be a worthy addition to the genre, deserving of your hard-earned bottlecaps.
