One Major The First Descendant Issue Is Holding Back Multiplayer Missions

Summary Displayed multiplayer levels in The First Descendant are actually Descendant levels, which aren't indicative of a player's experience.

Level discrepancy can lead to misunderstandings of power levels, as gear progression is more important.

Suggestions for improvement include displaying mastery rank or average gear level instead of Descendant level.

The First Descendant has been taking the gaming community by storm since its launch day on July 2, 2024. Hundreds of thousands of players have logged in on Steam alone, and its multiplayer community continues to thrive. This is largely due to The First Descendant's seamless crossplay and its multiplayer content, but its multiplayer gameplay is not without its issues.

It is common for players to try to go through content solo as much as possible, but solo players will likely first experience forced multiplayer in a Special Operations mission. These missions often involve defending against waves of enemies. While this can be enjoyable, it can also lead to the thought that the player is underleveled, as teammates will often steamroll enemies without taking a bit of damage, while one's own attacks are seemingly ineffective, a confusion that stems from the displayed levels for teammates.

Related When The First Descendant's New Descendants Will Be Playable The First Descendant is getting its first new characters soon, and an official date has finally been revealed without a big announcement to herald it.

Displayed Multiplayer Levels Are Based On Descendant Levels

Confusion Regarding Other Players' Levels

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When a player joins a multiplayer mission, they will see HUD elements for each of their teammates on the right side of the screen. This section of the HUD will show each player's current HP and Shield, their username, whether they are playing on PC, PlayStation, or Xbox, and, most confusingly, their level. Levels are commonly shown in multiplayer games, so players may gauge each other's relative skill and gear level. However, in The First Descendant, the displayed level refers to the Descendant level, which can be a problem.

A level 10 Descendant can thus carry a level 100 weapon without issue, and this is the ultimate cause of the multiplayer confusion.

As players go through the content of The First Descendant, they will eventually unlock other Descendants, complete with their unique stats and abilities, but this level is independent of the game's gear progression. A level 10 Descendant can thus carry a level 100 weapon without issue, and this is the ultimate cause of the multiplayer confusion. Any player comparing their Descendant level to others will eventually learn the number is essentially meaningless to understanding relevant overall power levels, as most power comes from gear, not Descendant level.

The First Descendant's Level Display Problem Could Be Improved

Changing Displayed Levels For An Average Would Be A Simple Solution

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With a level display system which is meaningless at best and confusing at worst, there is obviously room for improvement. While this would be too big a change to expect for The First Descendant's July 31, 2024, update, it could potentially be added in a future update. The quickest way to improve this system would be to display mastery rank rather than Descendant level. Mastery rank takes many of the game's mechanics into account, as it is based primarily on how many weapons and Descendants the player has leveled up, in addition to missions cleared for the first time.

Each Descendant has their own level, which must be increased separately. This means that progress made with one Descendant does not carry over to others, requiring players to individually develop each character to reach the maximum level.

Alternatively, the game could also display the average level of the player's gear. While this solution might not reflect the skill level of the player as well as the mastery rank solution, it would still provide an indicator of how powerful the player is at a glance. Whichever solution may be chosen, The First Descendant will hopefully implement a change soon.