At PAX East 2025, NEXON held a live developer livestream session previewing the groundbreaking mega-update that is coming to their looter-shooter title, The First Descendant. Of course, this includes a look at The First Descendant Season 3: Breakthrough.
During the session, Beomjun Lee, Executive Producer, and Min-Seok Joo, Creative Director of The First Descendant, hosted a presentation previewing the upcoming mega update, Season 3: Breakthrough, launching this Summer. The update features a massive battlefield to explore, a sleek new Hover Bike, the Colossus Field Raid, the introduction of the ‘Lounge,’ a new Descendant, and more.
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When we spoke with the duo at GDC 2025, they talked at length about the ‘Lounge’ and the impact they hope it will have on their community. You can read that 45-minute interview here and learn more about their expanding focus on co-op play and how they’re continuing to listen to their players here.
Additionally, the presentation revealed a highly requested crossover with the beloved Square Enix RPG NieR: Automata. To celebrate the upcoming one-year anniversary of The First Descendant, the team is preparing for the first-ever ‘TFD Fest’ in July, which will feature special events, a skin contest, and various celebratory items. The focus is to give back to the community that has kept the game growing.
While the developer panel at PAX East about The First Descendant Season 3 gave players a lot of information, the Summer update also has more in store. This includes the new “Gilded Death Blossom” skin, which will be released on May 22.
Here’s what’s coming to The First Descendant Season 3:
New Massive Field: Axion Plains
A brand-new, enormous battlefield, once a promising outpost site, now devastated by a Void Storm and overrun by Colossus. Now, it faces a new threat from artificial creatures and mutated beasts, making it more dangerous than ever.
New Vehicle: Hover Bike
- A new vehicle system designed for high-speed travel across a massive field, giving players a thrilling sense of speed.
- Players will be able to unlock the new Hover Bike just by logging in during Season 3, and can collect enhanced ‘Accelerated’ and ‘Boosted’ models by exploring the Axion Plains.
- Each Hover Bike can be upgraded, allowing players to traverse the battlefield with dynamic movement using boost and jump abilities.
New Content: Colossus Field Raid
The new Colossus Field raid pushes for even more collaboration between players in The First Descendant Season 3. It will feature 8-player raid content along with the first-ever reveal of the new and overwhelming colossus “Wall Crasher.” NEXON also took time to note the massive scale designed to match the size of Axion. The vast area also makes the Hover Bike a must before players engage in combat against the Colossus.
New Feature: Lounge
The Lounge is a dedicated social space where players can interact with their Descendants and take a break. It’s also a personalized space where players can display and interact with their Descendants. It was designed to deliver a deeper, more immersive experience within the world of The First Descendant beyond just combat. Players can place their Descendants throughout the space, customize their appearances with skins, and interact with furniture. Collectibles like Colotoys can be placed inside, with lounge-exclusive items to be added at a later date.
The First Descendant Season 3: Breakthrough – Story
The story information so far is sparce, but here’s what we know:
- The reappearance of “Karel,” a key character in the story.
- Season 3 story marks a big turning point for the narrative of The First Descendant.
- Focusing on Enzo and Nell’s romance would be one of the highlights of Season 3
New Descendant: Nell
The First Descendant Season 3 also brings a new descendant to the roster, Nell. A former NPC, Nell joins the roster as a playable character with a brand-new look and unique abilities. Nell utilizes arch-like telekinesis, throwing spheres which form debuffs and also pull nearby enemies. Capable of changing all her gunshots into weak point strikes, making her a perfect fit for aggressive, run-and-gun playstyles. She will be officially added in the upcoming summer update.
New Ultimate: Ultimate Luna
As Season 3 will be divided into multiple episodes, Ultimate Yujin is expected to arrive in Season 3 Episode 2, following Ultimate Luna. Two new Transcendent Modules are being prepared for the release of Ultimate Luna.
- One shifts her playstyle to focus on firearms.
- One enhances her rhythm-based abilities and debuffing potential.
New Weapon: Sword (3 Types)
Swords are finally being added to The First Descendant Season 3. This new weapon can be equipped in the same weapon slot as firearms.
- Performance is enhanced through specialized modules.
- Players can perform both normal and special attacks with swords. The first type, the ‘Shadow’ Blade, features a charged iaijutsu-style dash attack as its special move.
- The Blade and a new dungeon featuring a boss that utilizes sword mechanics will be introduced in Season 3 – Episode 1.
- Additional sword types, including a two-handed greatsword and a lightsaber-style weapon, will be added in Season 3 – Episode 2.
First-Ever Official Crossover with Nier: Automata
- The First Descendant’s first official crossover features the fan-favorite NieR: Automata.
- More IP collaborations are also in the works.
NEXON has continued to encourage players to get involved in their Discord community, which was created as the game’s ongoing commitment to improving communication and gathering valuable feedback from the community.
The First Descendant is available now, with Season 3: Breakthrough launching this summer.
