The First Descendant Developers Reveal What Awaits Players in January
During a live stream, the developers of the looter-shooter The First Descendant unveiled details of a major update, set for release on January 15th.
The main addition will be the "Breach Tracking" dungeon, which will unfold across iconic locations: White Night Gulch, Vespers, and the Fortress. Players will not only have new farming content to master but will also compete for generous rewards. Specifically, by using "Dimensional Stabilization Keys" to open "Amorphous Dimensional Stones," players can obtain valuable Superconductive Cooling units. Meanwhile, Invasions will remain active until the release of the next major update, the "Descendant Mission Dashboard."
Two popular heroes have received significant reworks. Enzo's build options have been expanded: his passive skill now provides a buff when consuming bullets and a bonus to weapon swap speed, and his "Start Supply" skill can be cast instantly when "Instant Cast" is enabled. Special attention was given to the "Compressed Bullets" module: it deals increased damage but requires twice as many bullets for passive skills.
Jayber received buffs to his modules: "Turret Engineering" allows for placing an additional turret, and "Immediate Purge Code" via the "Multi-Purpose Gun" significantly increases turret power. Furthermore, this skill can now be used while moving, and its range and power have been increased.
Players will receive three new "Trigger"-type modules. "Tactical Strike" allows dealing area damage when attacking a target marked as a "Tactical Target," "Kill Chain" provides extra damage to targets marked as "Strike Targets," and "Two Face" grants a chance to apply either the "Front Side" or "Back Side" effects on oneself.
Among the ultimate modules, "Infection Amplifier" stands out, offering a 30% chance to deal 235% damage to targets with "Arche Infection," and "Aftershock Catalyst," which reduces skill cooldown by 10 seconds upon dealing additional damage with "Ground Eruption."
Significant balance changes have been made to weapons. Notable firearms include: "Greg’s Reversed Fate" with a bombardment mechanic every 10 hits, "Afterglow Sword" with automatic weak point targeting, "Nazeistra’s Devotion" which reduces enemy defense and boosts attack, and "Thunder Cage" with "Electric Shockwave" and "Thunder" effects.
Melee weapons have become more versatile: faction damage has been reduced, base damage increased, and the defense mechanic now works as a toggle, remaining active as long as its gauge is filled.
System improvements include the "Instant Cast" function, which can be toggled in the settings, an "Exclude Duplicates" option for filtering low-level components, a new Colossus "Pyromaniac" in the Axion Fields, as well as a trade chat and push notifications for trades with offline players.
Cosmetically, players can look forward to fresh looks: "Albion Girls and CeleXtar" will arrive on January 15th, with retro skins "Dancing Night" and western styles "Retro Shooter and Bad Blood" coming in February. Popular 2025 skins will also return, and the winning entries from the skin contest will be showcased in March.
January will enrich the gameplay with new events. In the "A-Girls and CeleXtar Debut" (starting January 15th), completing missions will earn fan tokens exchangeable for rewards. "Mining Day" (starting January 17th) will bring +20% gold and Cooper Shards on weekends. The "Revealed Truth: Dia" event (starting January 29th) will reward daily logins with valuable prizes.