Nexon and its Korean subsidiary NEXON Games marked the 2nd anniversary of the free-to-play TPS loot shooter The First Descendant with a global livestream event, "Descendant Fest 2026." The broadcast delivered a wave of new information, including the first look at the Season 4 trailer, a retrospective infographic covering the game's first two years, the roadmap for the second half of 2026, and a lineup of in-game and real-world anniversary campaigns.
An archive of Descendant Fest 2026 is available to watch here.
Descendant Fest 2026 archive: https://www.youtube.com/live/os6pFAyFwKM
A summary of everything revealed during the event follows.
Season 4 Trailer Revealed
The story preview trailer for Season 4, "The Great Clash," had its world premiere. The new season is set to begin in August. The trailer depicts the Descendants' final battle against Vulgus commander Karel, along with an all-out assault on Albion.
Season 4 trailer, "The Great Clash": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9R3YVlFKBYQ
2026 Second-Half Roadmap
July Update
The second-half roadmap kicks off with the July 15 update, which reworks the existing Void Intercept Battle into "Void Intercept Battle: Extreme." The current "Hard" difficulty and the Void Deep Intercept Battle will be merged into a single mode with more finely tuned difficulty tiers, along with a new difficulty level.
August Update
An update planned for August 20 launches the long-awaited Season 4. Season 4 Episode 1 introduces the "Mega Dungeon," a dungeon larger than any that has come before, featuring a wider variety of stage elements, interactive environments, and a decisive battle against Karel. Multiple bosses appear inside the dungeon, and the fight against Karel in particular delivers a cinematic experience unlike anything the game has offered so far.
Two weeks after this update, the time-limited event difficulty mode "Conquest" will be added, along with a ranking event offering a variety of rewards.
The same update also introduces a new Descendant, Raven. Known as a fixer from Albion and the former leader of a charismatic underworld guild, Raven has a complicated history with Viessa. Raven can summon a "Raven Form" at her side, granting instant repositioning and powerful rapid-fire shotgun bursts, with support from the summoned "Raven Form" enabling stylish combat.
The update also adds a new Exceed Weapon system along with 11 new weapons that use it. Designed for long-term farming content, these weapons gain unique effects depending on how they're combined, so the same weapon can play very differently depending on its build — making them a new core piece of character progression.
Finally, the "Trials" mission type will be added, featuring enemies whose difficulty scales upward without limit.
September Update
The September 17 update adds the Descendant "Ultimate Hailey" to the roster, along with two new Ultimate Skill Modules. It also brings new content, including "Cradle of Evolution," a dungeon with more randomized elements than existing dungeons.
November and December Updates
The November update introduces the "Henosis Sanctuary" dungeon along with a new Descendant, Monet.
The December update adds a new game mode, "Colosseum-A," along with the game's first asymmetrical PvPvE content. In this new mode, players are split into two opposing factions and aim to complete missions while fighting both Vulgus and the rival faction. The mode will also introduce the ability to transform into a giant.
2nd Anniversary Infographic Released
To mark two years since launch, a special infographic looking back on The First Descendant's journey so far has been released. It highlights cumulative playtime over the past two years, the total number of Descendant and mission plays, the most-played Descendant, and the most-used weapon, among other stats.
Players can also check their own personal infographic covering the past year on The First Descendant's official website.
Official site: https://tfd.nexon.com/ja/main
2nd Anniversary Event and Campaigns
2nd Anniversary Event
The in-game 2nd anniversary event begins today. It features newly added customization items alongside the return of 1st-anniversary customization items, plus the first-ever distribution of the Exceed Alignment Device. Various in-game and web events supporting character growth will also run during the event period.
2nd Anniversary Drop Distribution
A 2nd-anniversary drop containing boost items, customization items, in-game currency, and more will be distributed from July 3, 2026 (Friday) at 2:00 PM (JST) through July 29, 2026 (Wednesday) at 11:59 PM (JST). Players are encouraged to claim it before it expires.
Skin Contest Final Voting
With submissions for the skin design contest now closed, final voting on the finalist entries will run from July 6, 2026 (Monday) at 4:00 PM (JST) through July 20, 2026 (Monday) at 4:00 PM (JST). The winning skin design will be produced and added to the game.
Character Figure Pre-Orders Now Open
Pre-orders have opened for three character figures: Nendoroid Bunny, figma Valby, and the Ultimate Bunny scale figure. Each figure can be pre-ordered through its own dedicated product page.
Pre-order pages:
- Nendoroid Bunny: https://www.goodsmile.com/ja/product/1144553
- Ultimate Bunny scale figure: https://www.goodsmile.com/ja/product/1144551/
- figma Valby: https://www.goodsmile.com/ja/product/1144552
Pre-order period: July 2, 2026 (Thursday) at 1:00 PM (JST) through August 31, 2026 (Monday) at 9:00 PM (JST)
For further details on each update, along with the latest news on The First Descendant, check the official website and official X, Discord, and YouTube accounts.
- Official site: https://tfd.nexon.com/ja/main
- X: https://x.com/firstdescendant
- Discord: https://discord.com/invite/thefirstdescendant
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FirstDescendant
Note: Some of the names listed in this release may differ from their in-game names.
About The First Descendant
Launched in July 2024, The First Descendant is a next-generation cooperative TPS action RPG built on Unreal Engine 5, known for its high-quality graphics. Players take on the role of a Descendant, standing against Vulgus — alien invaders who crossed dimensions more than a hundred years ago alongside monstrous giants and widespread destruction — to defend the continents of Albion and Ingris and fight for the survival of humanity. Along the way, players strengthen their characters through a variety of missions and raid content, uncovering the Descendants' secrets as the story unfolds. Four-player boss battles built around teamwork and tactics require close cooperation between players, while new gear, materials, and items earned through countless missions and boss fights let players continue growing their characters.
- Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2074920/The_First_Descendant/
- PlayStation (PS5 / PS5 Pro): https://store.playstation.com/ja-jp/concept/10005318
- Xbox Series X|S: https://www.xbox.com/ja-JP/games/store/the-first-descendant/9P8FBXKMCLWC
Copyright © NEXON Korea Corp. & NEXON Games Co, LTD. All Rights Reserved.
