Fallen Earth

Last updated

Fallen Earth
Feboxart.png
Developer(s) Icarus Studios, Fallen Earth
Publisher(s) K2 Network
Platform(s) Windows
ReleaseSeptember 22, 2009
Genre(s) Massively multiplayer online role playing
Mode(s) Multiplayer

Fallen Earth is a free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game co-developed by Icarus Studios and Fallen Earth. [1] The game takes place in a post-apocalyptic wasteland located around the American Grand Canyon. Fallen Earth's gameplay features elements of both first-person shooter and role-playing video games, first-person/third person views, hundreds of items, including improvised equipment and weapons, a variety of functional vehicles, a real-time, in-depth crafting system (which includes vehicles), various skills and abilities, factions and tactical PvP, all existing within 1000 square kilometers of usable terrain based on real-world topographical maps of the area. The game was released on September 22, 2009. Two years later, GamersFirst purchased the intellectual property and made the game free to play. It was acquired by the publisher Little Orbit in 2018. Two years following its initial shutdown, Fallen Earth's servers were brought back online on October 28, 2021, as a free to play classic server.

Contents

Plot

The Fallen Earth story begins in the 21st century, when the first in a series of natural disasters hits the United States. As Americans struggle to recover, an investment tycoon named Brenhauer buys a controlling stake in a mega-corporation named GlobalTech. By 2051, he moves his headquarters to the Grand Canyon Province, where GlobalTech eventually creates a self-sufficient economic and military mini-state. Meanwhile, in India and Pakistan, the Shiva virus, named for the dance-like convulsions that it caused in its victims, appears among the human populace. As the infection starts to spread, countries accuse each other of engineering the virus. Political paranoia turns to open aggression and nuclear conflict. The nuclear conflict combined with the virus devastates the United States. Less than one percent of Earth's population survived the Fall, and the Hoover Dam Garrison and Grand Canyon Province are the only known outposts of human civilization. Outside the protective confines of the Hoover Dam Garrison, the player encounters ruins of the old world, genetically altered creatures, strange technology, and six warring factions. Some factions seek to rebuild the old world, others wish to build a new one in their own image, and some simply desire chaos and anarchy.

Gameplay

The game world of Fallen Earth is based on a real-world topographical map of the Grand Canyon. The world map covers more than 1000 square kilometres of usable terrain. [2] The environment is zoneless and set in sectors which continue the story-arc of the game, and which can be advanced through at the player's own pace. Parts of the map will be unreachable at release, but will be gradually opened as more content is developed.[ citation needed ]

The game includes first-person and third-person views, a classless system, Player-versus-Player combat, mounted combat, crafting, and a noise-based stealth system. Fallen Earth offers customizable features, including: clothing, facial features, skin tones, hairstyles and colors, age, body and facial hair, body art (tattoos and piercings), height, and makeup. Also after this process players can add points to their character to build strength and other skills. Fallen Earth does not have a fixed class system. It uses skill-based character development with a strong emphasis on flexibility and player preference. The game features active skills—trade-skills as well as mutation-based skills—which can be increased through Advancement Points (APs) or skill usage. Advancement Points are earned alongside level experience, and aside from increasing skill points, can also be used to boost Attributes. Players can undo and "re-spec" their skill point allocation.[ citation needed ]

Combat in Fallen Earth is generally in a first-person shooter format. The camera can be moved to alternate between third and first person modes. Players will need to manually keep their targets in a targeting reticle to actually hit them in combat. Skills can be used to influence combat in different ways, but again, enemies must still be manually targeted. There is no "target locking" as in other MMOs. There are three main methods of dealing damage in the game. These are broken down by a weapon's effective range. Rifles, pistols, and melee are the primary weapon types. Rifles specialize in long distance damage, but are capable of using some short distance weaponry. Pistols are considered the most balanced of the weapon types, able to do damage at medium to short range. Melee, with its short range, is for close-quarters combat. [3] Fallen Earth has thousands of items as well as equipment and accessories of varying strength for players to craft and equip in up to 22 separate equipment slots. Each piece of equipment varies in weight, and possesses different qualities. Heavier equipment, for example, will generally offer higher defense bonuses, but also increases noise while moving – making stealth more difficult. Fallen Earth allows its players to carry as many as six active weapons which alter the character's appearance. The game also has a variety of vehicles. Players start out neutral in Fallen Earth and can remain neutral or choose to align themselves with a particular faction. Aligning with a faction will give characters a head start in skills and specialized equipment.[ citation needed ]

Development

After a number of years in the making, Fallen Earth developers announced in a June 2008 press release that the game had reached feature-complete status. [4] In October 2008, the Fallen Earth website reported that the game had reached content-complete status. [5] The first wave of Alpha tests began in August 2008, and closed Beta testing began in February 2009. [6] As part of a promotional campaign, Fallen Earth announced a National Tour on their website in February 2009. [7] They planned to sponsor IGDA meetings, and participating in events across the United States, doing public demonstrations promoting the game and taking part in question-and-answer sessions with the audience.[ citation needed ]

The game was released on September 22, 2009, with pre-orders from Direct2Drive, Steam and the official website granting early access from September 9, 2009. [8] [9] On March 10, 2010, Icarus Studios announced the beta release of Fallen Earth for the Mac OS X platform. The Mac OS X version of Fallen Earth uses Wine technology and requires an Intel-based Mac system with a discrete graphics processor. [10] On April 5, 2010, the Fallen Earth team announced that Lee Hammock was leaving Fallen Earth to work as story designer on a new MMO title, Gargantuan. [11] On April 30, 2010, chief executive officer of Icarus Studios, Inc., James Hettinger, announced a restructure of the company resources and staffing, effective immediately. [12] Among these changes was the promotion of Fallen Earth writer/content developer Wes Platt to Director of Content Development. [13] On May 4, 2010, Fallen Earth, LLC, announced a new distribution partnership with Interactive Gaming Software (IGS), [14] a subsidiary of Atari USA.[ citation needed ]

In June 2011, it was announced that GamersFirst had purchased the intellectual property of the game and that the game would be going "free to play". [15] The game became free to play in October 2011. [16]

Fallen Earth server's were taken offline in October 2019. On October 27, 2021, Fallen Earth's servers were put back online by Little Orbit subsidiary Gamersfirst.

Reception

Fallen Earth earned the runner-up spot for Best New MMO of 2009 by Beckett Massive Online Gamer . The award was announced on March 11, 2010 [17] The game also won the Best Online-Only Game of 2009 award by Game Industry News. [18]

Fallen Earth has been criticised by IGN for low-quality animation [19] and by other reviewers for numerous bugs. [20] [21]

Related Research Articles

A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game.

Guild Wars is an online role-playing game franchise developed by ArenaNet and published by NCSoft. The games were critically well received and won many editor's choice awards, as well as awards such as "Massively Multiplayer/Persistent World Game of the Year" by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, as well as Best Value, Best Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), and Best Game. Guild Wars was noted for being the "first major MMO to adopt a business model not based on monthly subscription fees", its instanced approach to gameplay, and the quality of the graphics and play for computers with low specifications. In April 2009, NCSoft announced that 6 million units of games in the Guild Wars series had been sold. The sequel and fourth major entry into the series, Guild Wars 2, was announced in March 2007 and released on August 28, 2012. It features updated graphics and gameplay mechanics, and continues the original Guild Wars tradition of no subscription fees. The Guild Wars series had sold 11.5 million copies by August 2015

<i>Star Trek Online</i> Massively multiplayer online role-playing game

Star Trek Online is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by Cryptic Studios based on the Star Trek franchise. The game is set in the 25th century, 30 years after the events of Star Trek: Nemesis. Star Trek Online is the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game within the Star Trek franchise and was released for Microsoft Windows in February 2010. At launch, the game required a game purchase and a recurring monthly fee. In January 2012, it relaunched with a tier of free-to-play access available. After a public beta testing period, a version of the game was released for OS X in March 2014. Due to technical issues with the port, support for OS X ended in February 2016. It was later released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in September 2016. The game has received several expansions since release and has gotten mixed reviews from critics.

<i>Vendetta Online</i> MMORPG by Guild Software launched in 2004

Vendetta Online is a twitch-based, science fiction massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Guild Software for the operating systems Android, Linux, Mac OS X, iOS, and Microsoft Windows. It uses the NAOS game engine, a fully real-time flight model and combat system, to offer first-person/third-person shooter-style player versus player and player versus environment battle action against the backdrop of a massively multiplayer universe. Vendetta Online shipped as a commercial MMORPG in November 2004 with a subscription-based business model, although it has been running continuously since April 2002. Vendetta Online is available to play across a wide array of platforms, including the Oculus Rift virtual reality display, allowing all users to directly interact in a single, contiguous galaxy. It is also notable for its twitch combat and fidelity to real physics.

<i>The Secret World</i> 2012 video game

The Secret World is a massively multiplayer online role-playing video game with a dark urban fantasy theme, in which players play characters defending the world from occult threats.

<i>Aion</i> (video game) 2008 video game

Aion: The Tower of Eternity is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by the South Korean company NCSoft. The game combines PvP and PvE in a fantasy game environment. As of May 2009, Aion had 3.5 million subscribers in Asia. AION's first major expansion pack was released to North America and Europe on September 7, 2010 under the name Aion: Assault on Balaurea. Truly Free launched on April 11, 2012 with no restrictions. The second major expansion was released in North America on June 26, 2013 under the name Aion: Dark Betrayal. Its most recent expansion was launched on July 13, 2016 under the name Aion: Echoes of Eternity.

<i>Guild Wars 2</i> 2012 video game by ArenaNet

Guild Wars 2 is a free-to-play, massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by ArenaNet and published by NCSoft. Set in the fantasy world of Tyria, the core game follows the re-emergence of Destiny's Edge, a disbanded guild dedicated to fighting Elder Dragons, colossal Lovecraftian-esque entities that have seized control of Tyria in the time since the original Guild Wars (2005), a plot line that concludes in the third expansion End of Dragons (2023). The game takes place in a persistent world with a story that progresses in instanced environments.

Universal Century Gundam Online was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based in the Universal Century Gundam universe that launched in 2006.

<i>Global Agenda</i> 2010 video game

Global Agenda is a class-based shooter online team-based game by Hi-Rez Studios developed using Unreal Engine 3. Global Agenda was started in 2005 as the studio's first project. The game went live on February 1, 2010. In April 2011, Global Agenda was re-released as a free-to-play game. The game's servers were shut down in 2018 and reopened in 2022.

<i>Cabal Online</i> 2005 video game

Cabal Online is a free-to-play, 3D massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by South Korean company ESTsoft. Different localizations of the game exist for various countries and regions. Although free-to-play, the game makes use of the freemium business model by implementing an "Item Shop", both in-game and via web, allowing players to purchase special premium coins using real currency, in order to acquire exclusive game enhancements and features, useful items and assorted vanity content.

<i>Sacred 2: Fallen Angel</i> 2008 video game

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is a 2008 action role-playing game and the second in the Sacred video game series. It is a prequel which takes place 2,000 years before the events of Sacred. Like its predecessor, the game takes place in a fantasy setting. A new game engine allows the game to be rendered in perspective correct 3D, while retaining the viewpoint found in older isometric games. Game designer Bob Bates was involved in its production. Power metal band Blind Guardian wrote the song "Sacred Worlds" as the theme for the game and also make an appearance as characters.

Red Faction is a series of shooter video games developed by Volition and owned by Plaion. Originating in 2001, the Red Faction games have spanned Microsoft Windows, macOS and consoles, including the PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Original developers Volition have retained the rights to the series since 2020, with no updates provided on whether a future fifth game is in the works.

<i>Star Wars: The Old Republic</i> 2011 video game

Star Wars: The Old Republic is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) based in the Star Wars universe. Developed by BioWare Austin and a supplemental team at BioWare Edmonton, the game was announced on October 21, 2008. The video game was released for the Microsoft Windows platform on December 20, 2011 in North America and part of Europe. It was released in Oceania and Asia on March 1, 2012.

<i>Rift</i> (video game) 2011 video game

Rift is a fantasy free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by Trion Worlds. Rift takes place within the fantasy world of Telara. Two competing factions, composed of a selection of races and classes, battle each other and the enemies who emerge from dynamic "rifts". The game was released in March 2011. A port of the game, called Rift Mobile, was released for Android on January 25, 2012.

<i>Dust 514</i> 2013 first-person shooter video game

Dust 514 was a free-to-play first-person shooter video game, developed by CCP Shanghai and published by CCP Games and Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 3. Dust 514 took place in New Eden and was directly connected to CCP's game Eve Online. There was direct interaction between the two; player actions in one game affected the political, economic, legal, environmental, and social status of the other. The two games were officially connected on January 10, 2013 in preparation for the open beta on January 22. The full game was released worldwide on May 14, 2013. While previews of the game were highly positive, the full game received a mixed reception upon its initial release. It received constant updates and hotfixes after release. The game was shut down on May 30, 2016.

<i>Stargate: Resistance</i> 2010 video game

Stargate: Resistance was an online third-person shooter owned and operated by the American studio Dark Comet Games, powered by the Unreal 3 engine, and based on the television series Stargate SG-1. It was originally released in 2010 by Firesky and Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment, however Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment went into receivership in March 2010 and Firesky entered into an agreement with Dark Comet Games for the maintenance, operation and development of Stargate Resistance. The game used a "buy to play" business model, with a one-off purchase fee and no monthly subscription fee. The game servers were shut down on January 15, 2011. A fan powered central server solution has been put in place, making the game once again playable.

Pocket Legends is an iOS and Android mobile 3D MMO developed by Spacetime Studios. It has variously been described as the first cross-platform, mobile 3D MMO.

<i>Age of Wushu</i> 2012 video game

Age of Wushu is a free-to-play 3D martial arts action MMORPG, created by independent developers and procured by Chinese company Snail. The game revolves around the wuxia-inspired lore surrounding martial arts and adventures in Ming dynasty China. The European version, Age of Wulin, which had been published by Webzen, closed in July 2017, with players being given the option of transferring to a new European server established as part of Age of Wushu, the version of the game published by Snail USA.

<i>New World</i> (video game) 2021 video game

New World is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Amazon Games Orange County and published by Amazon Games released on September 28, 2021. The game was previously scheduled to release in May 2020 and subsequently August 2021, but was delayed until its worldwide release on September 28, 2021. Set in the mid-seventeenth century, players colonize the lost fantasy land of Aeternum, modeled after the Americas, where everyone to travel to which becomes immortal.

<i>Foxhole</i> (video game) 2022 video game

Foxhole is a cooperative sandbox massively-multiplayer action-strategy video game developed and published by Canadian video game company Siege Camp, who are based in Toronto, Ontario. The game uses Unreal Engine 4, utilizing an axonometric projection perspective, much like that of a conventional real-time strategy video game with a top-down view. Foxhole's setting is inspired by early 20th century warfare. The game allows the user to join one of two factions as a soldier, having the choice of contributing to a persistent war by gathering, manufacturing, and transporting resources and supplies, providing manpower and vehicles in combat, and building and managing fortifications, with the end goal of annihilating the opposing faction.

References

  1. ↑ "Icarus Platform Interview with Chris Gardner". WarCry Network. Archived from the original on July 7, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2007.
  2. ↑ "Fallen Earth Press Release: Retail Launch". Games Press. July 21, 2009. Archived from the original on July 23, 2009. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  3. ↑ "Combat". Fallen Earth. Archived from the original on May 17, 2009. Retrieved January 19, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Fallen Earth Press Releases". Fallen Earth, LLC. Archived from the original on May 1, 2008. Retrieved June 20, 2008.
  5. ↑ "Fallen Earth hits content complete development goal". Fallen Earth, LLC. October 2, 2008. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved October 3, 2008.
  6. ↑ "Fallen Earth Enters Closed Beta Testing". Fallen Earth, LLC. February 4, 2009. Archived from the original on February 8, 2009. Retrieved February 11, 2009.
  7. ↑ "Fallen Earth MMO Launches National Tour at North Carolina IGDA Meeting". Fallen Earth, LLC. Archived from the original on February 26, 2009. Retrieved February 28, 2009.
  8. ↑ "Fallen Earth Forums: Announcements: Launch Date Moved to Sept. 22, Early Access Sept. 9". Fallen Earth, LLC. September 4, 2009. Archived from the original on September 8, 2009. Retrieved September 4, 2009.
  9. ↑ "Fallen Earth on Steam". Fallen Earth, LLC. September 18, 2009. Archived from the original on September 24, 2009. Retrieved September 18, 2009.
  10. ↑ "Icarus Studios Launches Macintosh Compatible MMO Platform". Fallen Earth, LLC. October 3, 2010. Archived from the original on March 13, 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
  11. ↑ "Fallen Earth". March 7, 2023. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved May 1, 2010.
  12. ↑ "Fallen Earth". March 7, 2023. Archived from the original on May 7, 2010. Retrieved May 1, 2010.
  13. ↑ Reahard, Jef (May 23, 2010). "Fallen Earth promotes new leads to fill Hammock's shoes". Massively. Archived from the original on November 8, 2010. Retrieved November 8, 2010.
  14. ↑ "Fallen Earth". March 7, 2023. Archived from the original on July 10, 2011. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  15. ↑ "Massively: GamersFirst announces acquisition of Fallen Earth with new F2P business model". AOL, Inc. June 15, 2011. Archived from the original on June 18, 2011. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  16. ↑ "Fallen Earth: Free2Play". Fallen Earth Development Blog. October 13, 2011. Archived from the original on October 15, 2011. Retrieved October 14, 2011.
  17. ↑ "2009 Reader's Choice Award Winners". Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
  18. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 28, 2009. Retrieved March 12, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  19. ↑ "IGN". October 21, 2009. Archived from the original on October 14, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  20. ↑ "Fallen Earth: Welcome to Apocalypse Review". Archived from the original on October 17, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  21. ↑ PC Gamer UK Overstretched on launch, Fallen Earth is broken in too many places. Wait a while and the ambitious world could be impressive. [Dec 2009, p.84]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.