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First Hour with... Fallen Earth
Icarus Studio's MMO title is certainly different, but does it make a good first impression?
Written by Andy Griffiths, 12 January 2010
Over the past few years there have been plenty of gaming opportunities to explore barren wastelands created by cataclysmic worldwide events. If Fallout 3's wrecked Washington didn't take your fancy there was always Stalker's experimental Chernobyl, but these titles stayed within the realms of an RPG and we never had a fully fledged MMO step up to the apocalyptic plate, until now.
Levelling up..the first of many.Fallen Earth is a gritty and, dare we say it, realistic game set in the backdrop of the Grand Canyon in 2156. At least that is what we were told because during the first hour we didn't manage to actually get outside. Usually we hate the first hour of most MMOs, especially when they hold our hands and tell us how to successfully click on a object, but Fallen Earth's was actually quite fun.
Unfortunately the sight wasn't working.After spending some time creating your character you wake up in the Hoover Dam, emerging from a suspicious pod hearing a helpful yet distraught voice via the base's PA system. Soon you're made aware of your artificial clone roots - it is the future after all - and to save yourself from imminent death at the hands of organ harvesting scientists, you'll need to escape from the base post haste. Thankfully the announcer helps you through everything, telling you where to go, warning you of ambushes and who you can trust.
MMOZine Issue 27
For our latest Fallen Earth coverage, click here to download MMOZine Issue 27 for free.Along the way you'll meet members of all the games major factions - Chota, Light Bearers, Travellers, Techs, Enforcers and Vistas. It became clear that if we helped one it would be to the detriment of the other, so we only followed the main story to get out of the base.
Going prone allows you to move slowly and silently.The entire tutorial sequence was fully voiced and to a reasonably high standard, we met several NPC's including a military general, freedom fighter and dodgy salesmen. We aren't sure whether this support will be extended past the tutorial, but it does a great job of easing you into the fiction.
Fresh out of the cloning chamber.Our first attempt at combat was cutting down an enemy soldier with an axe, but you soon gain access to an assault rifle and later on a rocket launcher. Other MMO's have tried to incorporate shooting before, but Fallen Earth's combat seemed much more fun. You revert from normal to combat stance at the push of the scroll button and you can only shoot when in the appropriate stance. There was a few times where we accidentally shot NPC's in the face when we wanted to talk to them, but that's what a tutorial is for right?
Can we borrow that axe or are you using it?At just over an hour the opening tutorial level is a bit long, but it does an admirable job of introducing you to this interesting world. You immediately feel a connection with the clone protagonist and the way help is distributed never over steps the story's boundaries or make you feel like you are playing what is essentially the worst part of an MMO.
Fallen Earth may not be about neon elves or sparkly magic, but it's so much better as a result. The fantasy genre has been done to death, and it's refreshing to see a developer take this area of gaming in a new direction. Our first hour gave us just a taste of what the game is really made of, nonetheless it did impress us and we are looking forward to playing more.
Fallen Earth coverage available in MMOZine Issue 27 - click here to download it for free!
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