If you’ve scrolled through gaming TikTok or Steam’s new releases tab lately, you’ve probably seen clips of flashy boss fights and customizable characters from the free-to-play looter shooter The First Descendant. The most common question new fans ask right off the bat is can you play the first descendant without spending money, or meeting strict hardware requirements? I’ve put 70+ hours into the game across PC and console, so I’m breaking down everything you need to know to jump in without wasting time or money.
Can You Play The First Descendant on All Popular Platforms?
The short answer is yes, for almost every major gaming system on the market. The game is fully free to download and play on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S, with no upfront purchase required to access all core content. Cross-platform play and cross-progression are enabled by default too, so you can switch between your PC and console without losing any of your character progress or unlocked items.
PC players don’t need a high-end rig to run the game smoothly either. Minimum PC requirements only ask for an Intel i5-4430 or AMD FX-6300 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a GTX 960 or equivalent GPU, which most gaming laptops built in the last 10 years already meet. If you’re playing on console, you don’t need a paid PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live subscription to play the solo story campaign, only if you want to join co-op missions or PvP matches. Cloud gaming support is also available on GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming, so you can even play on low-end laptops or mobile devices if you have a stable 10mbps internet connection.
The only exception is a small handful of regions where the game is not officially available, but most players can access it without any extra work. If you’re in a restricted region, you can use a gaming-focused VPN to create an account and download the game, just make sure you pick a VPN with low latency to avoid lag during boss fights.
What Game Modes Are Available for New Players?
You don’t have to jump straight into high-difficulty 8-player raids the second you log in, which is a common misconception a lot of new players have. The game caters to all play styles, whether you prefer playing entirely alone or teaming up with friends for chaotic group missions. If you’re just getting started, these are the most accessible modes to try first:
- Story campaign: Fully voice-acted, introduces the game’s world and core mechanics, and rewards you with free characters and rare gear as you progress through each chapter
- Normal difficulty void battles: 1-4 player missions that let you test new character builds without the pressure of high-stakes endgame content, with generous rewards for first-time clears
- Training grounds: A free, no-risk area where you can test every playable character and weapon before you invest resources into unlocking or upgrading them
- Weekly challenge missions: Low-difficulty repeatable tasks that reward premium currency you can use to unlock new cosmetics or characters without spending real money
You don’t have to team up with other players to access 90% of the game’s core content, so if you hate playing with randoms, you can still get full enjoyment out of it. The only content locked behind higher player counts is the extreme difficulty endgame raids, which are designed for players who have already put 20+ hours into building their characters and want a bigger challenge. You can easily sink 30+ hours into solo content before you even need to think about joining a group.
How to Optimize Your First Playthrough for Success
If you’re just figuring out can you play the first descendant and what to do first, focus on completing the story campaign before you dive into side missions. The campaign unlocks core features like crafting, character upgrades, and higher difficulty missions as you progress, so skipping ahead will only make your grind harder later on. You’ll also get a full set of usable rare gear and two free characters just for finishing the first 10 chapters, which is more than enough to get you through most normal difficulty content.
The best free character to unlock first is Bunny, who has high mobility and area-of-effect damage that clears low-level missions in seconds. You can unlock her for free by completing the third chapter of the story campaign, so you don’t have to spend any premium currency to get her. Don’t waste your premium currency on cosmetics right away either; save it for unlocking meta endgame characters like Viessa or Ajax, which will make your endgame grind way faster and more fun.
I made the mistake of upgrading every common weapon I got during my first 10 hours of play, and I wasted hundreds of upgrade materials that I later needed for endgame gear. Don’t make that same mistake. You don’t need to upgrade any gear below purple rarity before you hit the level 30 cap, because you’ll outlevel it in just a few missions anyway. Save your upgrade materials for purple or orange rarity gear that you plan to use long term once you hit max level.
Common Barriers to Playing The First Descendant (and How to Fix Them)
Most players won’t run into any issues downloading and playing the game, but there are a few common problems that pop up for new players. The first is performance issues on PC or console. If you’re getting low FPS on PC, turn off ray tracing and dynamic resolution first. Those two settings are the biggest drain on performance, and you barely notice a difference in visual quality when you turn them off. If you’re playing on console, switch to performance mode instead of quality mode for a much smoother 60fps experience, even during crowded boss fights.
Another common issue is cross-progression not working properly. If you’re trying to link your PC and console accounts, make sure you’re using the same email address for your Nexon account across all platforms. Don’t create separate accounts for different systems, because you can’t merge progress later, and you’ll lose all the items and progress you earned on your first account. If you run into linking issues, log out of all accounts first, then log back in on your PC first before linking your console account.
If you’re in a region where the game is not officially available, make sure you use a VPN that is specifically designed for gaming, not a regular free VPN. Free VPNs usually have high latency and data caps that will make the game unplayable, and they can also get your account banned if the system detects you’re using an unreliable IP address. Paid gaming VPNs cost just a few dollars a month, and they’re the only safe way to access the game if it’s not available in your region.
At the end of the day, the answer to whether can you play the first descendant is almost always yes, no matter what platform you use or how much experience you have with looter shooters. It’s one of the most accessible free-to-play games on the market right now, with very few pay-to-win mechanics and tons of content for both solo and co-op players. If you’ve been on the fence about trying it, you have nothing to lose by downloading it for free and testing it out for a couple of hours. I’ve gotten dozens of my friends who don’t usually play looter shooters hooked on it, and most of them have never spent a cent on the game after months of play. You might be surprised by how much fun you have, even if you don’t usually enjoy live service games.