Angels Fall First is a tactical FPS with space, vehicle, and ground combat. Strangely Interactive has been developing the game for over 10 years, built upon a sci-fi universe that started as a simple mod. If you are looking for a new tactical sci-fi FPS that is overflowing with opportunity for an in-depth experience, this may be what you’re looking for. It is only available on PC via Steam.
Familiar, Yet Not Really
I hadn’t heard of Angels Fall First until it popped up as a recommended game on Steam right around the time of its 1.0 release. At a glance and the brief description I had read, I was expecting more of a sandbox style of game. Instead what I found upon loading up was a very intricately detailed tactical FPS that reminded me of late nights playing coordinated operations in Planetside 2. Apparently I had misread or misinterpreted the experience I was expecting. Regardless, I pressed on to take a deeper look and the review below reflects what I found.
Gameplay
Angels Fall First is a tactical FPS that covers ground, space and vehicle combat. The game apparently started as a mod for Homeworld, then Unreal Tournament, but grew over time into a whole universe of its own. The end result is a completely standalone game with a combination of several different play styles and modes. You can experience these online or offline, with friends or alone. You also find yourself without a full server of players, but the game backfills matches with AI opponents and teammates as needed to help keep matches balanced. From what I can tell the overall objective of the game just seems to be to play and enhance your loadout budgets, as they control what you can take into battle.
Speaking of loadouts, this was something that I felt is completely overlooked by the default tutorials. When I first started playing, my first few rounds against other players were confusing and I felt very underpowered. Not to mention it was in close quarters and I didn’t feel I could hit anything I was aiming at. Angels Fall First also has a UI that is very complex with a lot of noise on the screen. Once I realized how to change my loadout, things improved slightly. What you can and cannot equip in your loadout is determined by what your overall loadout budget is. The bright side of this is there doesn’t seem to be any restrictions of things like weapons and attachments that need to be unlocked. Raising your loadout budget appears to advance just by playing the game; earning points for Combat, Support, and Command.
Game Types
The two game types are Incursion and Territories. Territories is the objective capture mode in Angels Fall First. It reminds me most of Battlefield’s conquest mode. Whereas the Incursion game type is more unique. Incursion consists of sets of rounds, each with their own objectives. For example, you may start the match as the attacking force against a space station. You pilot a fighter and take out objectives, often defenses, around the space station so that you can board it. Then the next set of objectives is the boarding party and moving into the station. There are a number of maps for each game type, but I seem to only be getting the same couple when I hit instant play.
You also have the option, as long as you don’t have opposition, to take on the role of commander. This role provides the team with objectives using a tactical overview. If you are playing online and don’t have a commander, the AI will also fill this role. It’s always nice having some direction, especially when you’re already out in the field.
Graphics & Audio
Angels Fall First is only available on PC and isn’t very demanding at all. That being said, it does look it at times too. The models and environments seem a bit dated rather than a visual choice. This was one of the few games where I dove straight into the graphics settings after the first match or two to see how I could possibly make things look better. Though I’ve been able to make some adjustments to improve things for my eyes, I can’t quite seem to hit the same fidelity as seen in some of the store’s screenshots and videos. I also didn’t try playing this on my Steam Deck since when it comes to FPS games I’m strictly a keyboard and mouse warrior.
It’s also worth noting that the UI seems to be of a certain style that feels more retro than modern. Watching through some older videos, it looks like they changed the UI look and feel at some point and I almost prefer the before. The current UI just seems to blend together without a lot of contrast for some parts but too much for others. Regardless, as previously mentioned, the UI also feels like it has a lot of noise and at times there’s just too much going on. Especially when it’s something like the vehicle available notification that takes up so much of the center of the screen.
Here’s where I usually say something about the audio. But Angels Fall First doesn’t really have anything that stands out. That’s not really good or bad. Just nothing that really made me take note.
Longevity
The longevity of Angels Fall First has already been established. The game has been available on Steam in early access since October of 2015. However there seems to be an underwhelming number of players playing the game. Thankfully with a variety of different ways to play the game, online and offline with AI units picking up the slack, there’s always something to do. It could be more popular with exposure and interest from clans and groups of players that enjoy working together in a tactical FPS. (Wait… are clans still a thing? I mean I know there are competitive pro clans but like just for your average guy that doesn’t want to play everything alone all the time?…)
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, Angels Fall First can be really kind of whatever you want it to be. Whether that’s a solo game, a server of your own, or just a jump in and fight. Whichever you end up choosing, it allows for robust customizability to tweak things however you want. Although it does have various ways to play and ample customization, it felt very overwhelming as a new player. It is built for a very particular kind of player. There is a dedicated tutorial where you are able to play around with the various scenarios, but it doesn’t really cover loadouts and customization and how those mechanics work. The UI is a bit overwhelming as well. With these items in mind, I’d give the game the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
If you enjoy this review, be sure to check out my other reviews here.
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