Ahead of this week’s ‘Breakthrough’ update for Nexon’s The First Descendant, Final Weapon had the opportunity to chat with the developers behind the game about the update. We dove into content for newcomers, solo player options, and potential future crossovers. We hope you enjoy this exclusive interview, and we’d like to thank the wonderful team at Nexon for making this possible! Enjoy!
Be sure to check out our exclusive preview of the Breakthrough update.
With just passing the year anniversary and this new season starting, there is a good amount of content available. Are there any current steps, or ones you plan on taking, to assist with new player onboarding as the amount of content continues to grow?
A: This initiative is called the “Descendant Boost-Up” event. Currently, many players are active in the “Hard” mode, and with the launch of Season 3, Axion becomes the new core region. As a result, normal story stages are becoming less active and less suitable for co-op play. We noticed that players who didn’t reach the main farming phase often left the game early. The Boost-Up event allows new and returning players to skip normal difficulty and jump straight into “Hard” mode, helping them quickly experience the latest story and content.
After that, the “Boost Path” provides structured guidance and rewards to help them adjust and enjoy the game alongside existing players at a similar stage of progression. This makes it an ideal time for both new players and those considering returning to the game.
The game can be played solo or co-op, but some parts work better with multiple players. Has the team explored whether there is a way to alleviate the issue of solo players not being able to do some of the big bosses, such as bots or scalable health?
A: Most of the content in The First Descendant features a scaling system where monster stats adjust based on the number of players. However, there are exceptions, specifically, the new field bosses, the Wall Crasher, and missions in Axion. Axion was designed with the premise that playing together enables faster progression, though we made sure it doesn’t require strict role-playing. Players can still make meaningful contributions in multiplayer, even if they simply want to enjoy the content using their favorite Descendants and weapons. The Wall Crasher is our first attempt at 8-player content. Since it’s naturally time-consuming when played solo, we’ve intentionally restricted the times during which it’s available and designed it so that players can freely join in, encouraging as many participants as possible.
Something new in Breakthrough is your first crossover. The NieR: Automata skins look really good. Are there any plans for more crossovers like this, and will they stay purely cosmetic?
A: Yes, we are preparing another crossover for later this year and are also exploring opportunities with other IPs. The NieR: Automata crossover is focused on cosmetics. Our intention was to deliver a strong visual homage and tribute to the original IP. While this crossover doesn’t include story or combat content, we’ve put significant effort into capturing the characters’ tone and essence through emotes and decorative items. For future crossovers, we are open to expanding the scope to include additional content.
