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Nexon’s Project Magnum now known as The First Descendant

Nexon’s bombastic Unreal Engine 5 RPG looter shooter just got its official title ahead of an appearance at Gamescom: The First Descendant.

Nexon — a South Korean video game developer and publisher known for games like MapleStory, KartRider, DNF Duel, and LawBreakers – first revealed this game under the title Project Magnum in September 2021. It looks like a mixture of every major AAA gaming trend. The First Descendant will be a free-to-play, sci-fi, cooperative shooter. Hot off the heels of games like Outriders, The First Descendant is all about mowing down hordes of enemies and giant bosses with friends to unlock new loot to upgrade your character with. 

The First Descendant│Official Trailer Teaser Reveal (4K)

Taking notes from hero shooters, players will choose from at least 12 characters, all of whom have unique abilities; meanwhile, each character’s grappling hook and the game’s fast-paced gunplay also look like they’ll keep the action moving. While it isn’t the most unique-looking game out there, The First Descendant looks pretty in Unreal Engine 5 and could strike a chord with players if its gameplay is enjoyable and the microtransactions aren’t overbearing.

While we got a brief new teaser with this title change confirmation, Nexon also confirmed that it would show a lengthier trailer and reveal even more about The First Descendant at Gamescom 2022. After that, interested players will have a chance to go hands-on with the game before the end of the year. A Steam beta will occur between October 20 and October 26 this year. There’s no word on when a console beta will happen, but people can sign-up for the PC beta on the game’s Steam page.

Although The First Descendant’s beta in October is limited to Steam, the final version of the game will be available across PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X at an unspecified later date. 

Tomas Franzese
Tomas Franzese is a Staff Writer at Digital Trends, where he reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…
The First Descendant preload guide: release time, file size, and preorder
A squad fires guns in The First Descendant.

While Destiny and Warframe are the two big names in the free-to-play looter-shooter space, The First Descendant looks like it might be able to carve out an audience for itself when it hits. Coming to most platforms on July 2, this third-person shooter using Unreal Engine 5 certainly has the looks to draw people in, but only time will tell if it has the addictive gameplay and enough content to satisfy gamers. It's not often you get to be there on day one for a live-service game like this, so plenty of people are hoping to get in as early as possible to be the first to hopefully get some overpowered gear and guns. Here are all the preload details you need if you want to be ready to roll the second the game drops.
The First Descendant release time

The First Descendant will release at midnight PT on July 2. You can check the handy map above to convert that to your local time.
The First Descendant file size
We don't have any console file sizes yet, but according to the official site's PC requirements, you will need 50GB of storage space for The First Descendant. You should estimate around that much space will be needed on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S as well.
The First Descendant preload options

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Is The First Descendant cross-platform?
Key art for The First Descendant.

The best part of the looter-shooter genre is teaming up with your squad to roll through missions over and over, grinding for that legendary drop. The First Descendant is the latest game to enter this space, only it takes a third-person perspective to let you get a better look at your character and the gear you're wearing. The big selling point to this game, aside from the graphics, are the tough boss fights. Yes, you can play this game alone, but it is designed for teams of four to work together to overcome these challenges. Partnering up means connecting with others online, but will this game block you from playing with a friend on a different platform? Let's review all the cross-platform details about The First Descendant before you drop in.
Does The First Descendant have cross-platform support?
When The First Descendant launches on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, it will indeed have crossplay. It was confirmed the game would have it upon release, but even those who played in the beta were able to test out crossplay between all systems.

The other big question is if The First Descendant will allow for cross-progression. Being a free game, the ability to carry progress from one console to the next, or to PC, would be ideal. Thankfully, that feature is also confirmed. All progress can be moved between any available system as much as you like to continue the fight wherever and whenever you please.

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The First Descendant is a solid shooter, but that might not be enough
A squad fires guns in The First Descendant.

It feels like it's been a while since a game has truly shaken up the live-service "looter shooter" genre. Destiny and Warframe have been forces to be reckoned with for a decade, but few other attempts at the genre have had the same impact. Despite the fact that studios seem so eager to chase the trend, it's a surprisingly stagnant genre.

That could change on July 2 with the release of The First Descendant. Well, maybe change is a strong word. Nexon's latest doesn't so much reinvent the looter shooter as it does peek over Destiny's shoulder and brazenly copy its notes, right down to its enemy designs. It's perhaps a little shameless, but is it fun? A demo I played at Summer Game Fest certainly kept me entertained with tight shooting and high-octane action. I'm just not sure that'll be enough for it to break the mold right as Destiny 2 is at its peak. It's an uphill battle for even the most polished shooter.
Breaking the mold
Before my hands-on demo, a long video presentation gave me a rundown of what to expect in The First Descendant. It was an exhaustive look at the game, including its characters, post-game activities, and more. I was immediately overwhelmed, but that's how I'd feel if I got a rapid-fire rundown of Destiny 2 right now and I can navigate that game with ease. I'm sure The First Descendant will have clearer onboarding that makes it easy to jump into its various activities; that's just a hard experience to demo in an hour.

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