Free looter shooter The First Descendant's big Season 3 overhaul gets early demo

It's been just over one year since free-to-play looter shooter The First Descendant was dominating the Steam charts, boasting over a quarter of a million active players. Since then, Nexon's high-speed, third-person action game has fallen down the list, but the developer has been working its way through a laundry list of major improvements. Now, it's preparing to launch one of its biggest updates yet, appropriately named 'Breakthrough,' and you can try out its vast open-world zone and hover bikes early thanks to a demo available right now.

The First Descendant Season 3, Breakthrough, is focused around a huge new open-world region called the Axion Plains. A formerly thriving outpost, it's become a hive of danger in the wake of void storms and invading forces. It's a major expansion to the world of the free Steam game, featuring massive-scale, eight-player field raids, so Nexon is equipping you with a hover bike to get about the area quickly. With such a big overhaul on the cards, Breakthrough will be a good time to jump back in, and you can do so right now to get an early preview of the update, which is set to launch fully in early August.

The demo lets you test out the newest Descendant, Nell, as she heads out into the Axion Plains. If you've kept up with the story of TFD, you'll already be familiar with the Albion officer, but she's now gearing up to take to the field herself. Nell boasts a skill set that uses telekinetic spheres that can displace and debuff foes, along with the ability to temporarily turn all her shots into weak point strikes.

You'll get to zoom across the zone on a hover bike as you clash with the Legion of Breach, who will throw all-new monsters your way. You'll also be able to experience the field raid against the vast Wall Crasher, an enemy whose slow movement is compensated for by its sheer size and impact. Sadly, it sounds like there's no preview for the incoming Nier: Automata crossover, or for support specialist Luna's ultimate form, but it should still give you a good impression of what's to come, and, if you haven't played in a while, how much the core game has changed since launch.

Complete the demo sequence, and you'll get a big pack of bonus rewards for the full game, including a Spoils Box and a Crystallization Catalyst, with a second catalyst available for completing a survey about your experience. Once Season 3 is underway, Nexon will be sending out an Axion Spearhead Box to all demo participants that will include titles, gold, and three exclusive paints for your hover bike.

The First Descendant Breakthrough demo is available from Thursday July 24 until Wednesday August 6. The full update launches on Thursday August 7. Simply head here to check it out; you can start the 'Season 3 Breakthrough: Axion demo' from the main title screen.

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