There’s no worse feeling than being 10 minutes into a Void Intercept Battle run, 10% health left on the boss, and about to claim that rare weapon crafting material you’ve been grinding for weeks, when your screen freezes and you get booted to the login screen. You hit “reconnect” half a dozen times, only to get an error message saying servers are unavailable. If this has happened to you, you’ve definitely asked how long will the first descendants servers be down, and whether you should stick around waiting or go do something else instead. We’ve put together this guide based on hundreds of hours of playtime and tracking server outages for the game, to give you clear, actionable answers every time you run into connectivity issues.
How Long Will The First Descendants Servers Be Down For Typical Outages
The length of server downtime depends almost entirely on the reason for the outage, and there are a few common scenarios you’ll run into as a regular player. Scheduled maintenance, the most common type of outage, usually lasts between 2 and 4 hours, depending on what the dev team is rolling out. Scheduled maintenance windows are almost always announced 24-48 hours in advance across official game channels, so you can plan your play sessions around them if you don’t want to get caught mid-run.
Unscheduled outages are the more frustrating type, because they come with no warning, and their duration can vary a lot. Minor outages caused by small server glitches or unexpected traffic spikes are usually resolved in 30 minutes to 2 hours, as the dev team can roll out a quick fix without making major changes to the game. In my experience, these outages are most common right after a big update drops, when thousands of players are logging in at the same time to check out new content.
Major outages, like those caused by a broken patch that breaks core game features, DDoS attacks, or cross-platform sync issues, can last anywhere from 3 to 6 hours. These are far less common, happening maybe once every 2 to 3 months, but they do happen. Last year, a patch that rolled out the new character Freyna accidentally broke all cross-play progression sync, and servers were down for just over 5 hours while the team rolled back the patch and tested fixes before re-launching.
How to Check Real-Time Server Status for The First Descendants
If you can’t log in and haven’t seen any announcement about maintenance, the first thing you should do is check official sources for outage updates, because that’s where you’ll get the most accurate and up-to-date info. The fastest place to get updates is the official The First Descendants X (formerly Twitter) account, where the social media team posts maintenance alerts, outage updates, and estimated time to restoration within minutes of an issue being detected.
The official game Discord server is another great source, because there are dedicated channels for server status updates, and community mods often answer questions about outages in real time. You can also check the in-game notice board that pops up before you log in, because the dev team posts maintenance alerts there as soon as they’re scheduled. Avoid third-party status sites that don’t link to official announcements, because they often pull outdated info, or estimate restoration times based on past outages instead of real updates from the dev team.
For example, a few months back there was an unscheduled outage caused by a bug that let players duplicate premium currency. I checked a random third-party status site that said servers would be back up in 15 minutes, but the official Discord announced that the team was rolling back 2 hours of server data to fix the exploit, and servers ended up being down for almost 3 hours. If I’d trusted the third-party site, I would have sat around waiting for nothing instead of going to run errands like I ended up doing.
What to Do While Waiting for Servers to Come Back Online
Instead of spamming the login button over and over while you wait, there are a ton of useful things you can do to make the most of your downtime, that will help you progress faster once servers are back up. We’ve rounded up some of our favorite things to do during outages, based on what we usually do when we get booted mid-run:
- Plan your next character build using the official skill calculator, to figure out what modules and stat rolls you need to farm for once servers are live
- Watch pro player guides for the Void Boss you’ve been stuck on, to pick up tips for dodging attacks and dealing more damage on your next run
- Track your pending weekly and seasonal quest milestones, so you know exactly what you need to do first when you log back in to hit your reward goals
- Trade crafting materials and coordinate future clan runs with your clan mates via Discord, if you’re part of an active play group
Don't try to log in repeatedly during outages, because that puts extra unnecessary stress on the server infrastructure as the dev team is working to bring services back online. In some cases, players who spam login requests end up getting temporary cooldowns once servers are back up, to prevent overloading the system right after launch.
One nice perk of extended outages is that the dev team usually gives out free compensation rewards to all players once servers are back up. These can range from a few hundred premium currency to rare enhancement materials or even limited-time cosmetic items, so make sure to check your in-game mailbox within 24 hours of servers coming back online to claim your reward. Last time we had a 4+ hour outage, I got 500 Premium Quartz and 10 legendary enhancement modules for free, which was more than enough to make up for the run I lost when I got disconnected.
What to Do If Servers Are Up But You Still Can't Log In
Sometimes you’ll see official announcements that servers are back online, but you still can’t log in, or you keep getting disconnected right after you load into your lobby. This usually means the issue is on your end, not the game’s servers, and there are a few quick fixes you can try to resolve the problem without waiting for support.
Always verify your game files first before assuming the outage is on Nexon's end, because corrupted game files are the most common cause of login issues after a maintenance period. On PC, you can verify files through Steam or the Nexon Launcher, and on console you can check for game updates or reinstall the game if the issue persists. You should also check that your internet connection is stable, and that you don’t have any firewalls or VPNs running that might be blocking the game’s connection to the servers.
Another common issue is platform-wide service outages, which are often mistaken for game server outages. If you’re playing on PlayStation, make sure PSN is online, and if you’re on Xbox, check Xbox Live status, because if those services are down you won’t be able to log into any online games, not just The First Descendants. You should also make sure you’re trying to log into the right server region, because if you accidentally switched regions after an update you might get connection errors even if your home region is online.
If you're still having issues after 24 hours, reach out to official support with your error code and account details, because the issue might be related to your specific account, like a temporary ban or a progression sync bug. Make sure to include a screenshot of your error code if you can, because that will help the support team resolve your issue much faster than if you just send a generic message saying you can’t log in.
At the end of the day, server outages are an unavoidable part of playing live service games, but they don’t have to ruin your play session. If you’re still wondering how long will the first descendants servers be down, your first stop should always be official game channels for the most accurate, up-to-date restoration estimates. By following the tips we’ve outlined, you can turn downtime into a chance to plan your next progression steps, and avoid the frustration of waiting around for updates from untrustworthy sources. Next time you get booted mid-run, take a deep breath, check the official Discord, and go do something fun or productive while you wait – servers will be back up before you know it.