Angels Fall First: Planetstorm

Angels Fall First: Planetstorm
Developer(s)	Angels Fall First Universe
Engine	Unreal Development Kit/Unreal Engine 3
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Angels Fall First: Planetstorm (Now titled as Angels Fall First; "AFF") is an online multiplayer first-person shooter, combining game-play elements of traditional squad-based shooters with space combat games, with a particular focus on the ability to pilot and crew capital ships, which also serve as infantry combat settings themselves. Previously a mod of Epic Games' first-person shooter Unreal Tournament 3,^[1] AFF has since been moved to the Unreal Development Kit and was released on Steam's Early Access on the 10th of October, 2015.^[2]

Development

Angels Fall First has been in development from as early as 2007 by the Angels Fall First team, planned for submission to the Make Something Unreal Contest hosted by Epic Games. The mod consistently won prizes in the pre-final phases,^[3] eventually winning third place in the Grand Finals.^{[4] [5][6]}

As of 2009, development of the Unreal Tournament 3 mod had ceased, the team having then changed engines to the Unreal Development Kit, which would make the game itself standalone.^[7] A demo version of the mod ported into the UDK engine was released in 2009.^[8] The game is now available on Steam in Early Access.^[9]

Plot and Setting

Angels Fall First: Planetstorm is set in a science fiction universe during the period known as the Second Antarean War. An outbreak of hostilities between the previously subdued and forcefully integrated Antarean Empire and the alliance of several stellar states known as the United League of Planets.

The war itself was inevitably caused by a variety of reasons. The gradual decay of the League (which was itself only created out of necessity during the First Antarean War), the upsurge of nationalism among the Antareans, and the reestablishment of old alliances by the rebel Antarean factions. But it was primarily caused by the event known as the Crowning Day Massacre, in which a naval blunder by the United League of Planets caused the death of thousands of civilians during an Antarean holiday, including that of a well-loved public Antarean figure.^[10] In the resulting chaos, the long lost heir to the Antarean throne reappeared, solidifying the Antarean revolt as well as throwing the regions into a full-scale war.

Gameplay

Angels Fall First combines two types of gameplay: FPS and space shooters. Several of its maps take place on planet surfaces, primarily focused on combined arms warfare, featuring Fast-Attack vehicles, Armoured Personnel Carriers, Tanks and atmospheric Gunships. Others take place in space with a variety of spacecraft ranging from small fighters to large capital ships, all of which can be piloted and crewed by players. Infantry combat also takes place in space maps, with several maps featuring objectives that require boarding by dropship. Furthermore, players are able to board enemy capital ships through the same method, allowing them to destroy its key components and ultimately destroy it. The game is geared towards online multiplayer but has support for offline single-player with bots.^[1]

See also

• List of video games derived from modifications
• Mod
• Make Something Unreal Contest
• Unreal Tournament 3
• Unreal Engine
• UnrealEd, the Unreal level editor
• Red Orchestra: Combined Arms
• Killing Floor
• Project Stealth

References

External links

• Angels Fall First Universe Website
• Angels Fall First Universe Forums
• AFF: Planetstorm ModDB page
• Make Something Unreal Contest Official Site
• Make Something Unreal Contest Forums
• Steam Store Page