Game: Fallen Tear: The Ascension
Genre: Action, Indie, Adventure, RPG.
System: Steam (Windows).
Developer|Publisher: Winter Crew Studios | CMD Studios
Controller Support: Yes
Steam Deck: Playable
Price: US $24.99 | UK £21.99 | EU € 24,99
Release Date: September 23rd, 2026
Review code provided with many thanks to Plan of Attack.
Fallen Tear: The Ascension – Coming Back
When I first played Fallen Tear: The Ascension during Early Access, I came away surprisingly impressed. The world was beautiful, the characters were likeable, and I was genuinely interested to see where the adventure would go. So, coming back for the finished version was rather unexpected. I still think there’s a lot to like here, but my opinion has shifted considerably. The strange thing is, I don’t think Fallen Tear: The Ascension is a bad game, far from it. I can absolutely see why some players will adore it. Unfortunately, I found myself increasingly frustrated by some of its design choices, particularly when it came to exploration and combat. Sometimes a game simply arrives at the wrong time for you. I think that’s what happened here.
A Huge World To Get Lost In
Fallen Tear wastes very little time throwing you into its enormous fantasy world. You play as Hira, a young hunter pulled into a much larger adventure involving powerful gods, ancient mysteries, and a world seemingly on the brink of collapse. The story itself is enjoyable, with plenty of characters to meet along the way, but the real star of the show is the world you’re exploring. There are numerous interconnected regions, each with its own visual identity. Lush forests, watery areas, industrial locations and mysterious ruins all give the world plenty of variety, while the hand-drawn art style makes almost every location lovely to look at. There are also plenty of secrets, hidden paths, collectables, and environmental details to discover. I particularly liked how parts of the scenery can be interacted with, whether you’re breaking through rock piles or clearing foliage. The problem for me was finding my way around.
Exploration Became Exhausting
The map does try to help. Areas gradually reveal themselves, objectives are indicated, and you can place markers to remind yourself to return somewhere later. There’s even information showing you which collectables you may have missed. All of that sounds great, and it is useful. Unfortunately, I still spent an awful lot of time wondering where on earth I was supposed to go. There was a lot of backtracking, revisiting areas and wandering through rooms I’d already explored because I’d missed a pathway somewhere. Eventually, I found myself spending less time enjoying the exploration and more time trying to work out what the game wanted me to do. Now, I know there are players who absolutely love this sort of thing. If you enjoy getting lost in a huge interconnected world and slowly piecing together where everything fits, Fallen Tear could be right up your street. For me, however, it became tiring.
Combat Didn’t Quite Click
The combat initially impressed me again. Hira’s attacks feel responsive, movement is generally smooth, and there’s a decent selection of abilities to unlock. Unfortunately, as I progressed, certain enemies started to expose my biggest problem with the combat. Some opponents require you to react to particular attacks, dodge or parry at the right moment, wait for an opening and then counter. In theory, that sounds reasonable. In practice, it simply didn’t click with me. I found myself getting increasingly frustrated by enemies that seemed to demand that I fight them in one very specific way. Eventually, I was sometimes more interested in avoiding certain encounters altogether rather than engaging with them. There are difficulty options, including an easier setting, and I eventually switched to Easy. Even then, I struggled more than I expected to. Maybe I’ve just lost my adventure game mojo. Who knows? A small feature I really liked is that every so often enemies will attack each other if the stars align, something you rarely see in games.
Companions Add Some Personality
One system I did enjoy was the companion mechanic. You can have up to three companions equipped, with each one providing different benefits and helping you during combat. You can summon them into battle for a quick assist, which reminded me a little of the tag-in mechanics from fighting games. You can also complete side activities to strengthen your relationships with these characters, while spending time with them back at the hub. It’s a nice addition because Hira doesn’t feel like he’s completely wandering around this enormous world alone. There’s a little party-building element here that gives the adventure some extra personality.
Gorgeous From Start To Finish
There really isn’t much I can criticise about the presentation. The hand-drawn visuals are lovely, the different regions have plenty of character, and the world feels imaginative and thoughtfully designed. The soundtrack is also excellent, while the English voice acting remains one of the game’s highlights. The cast is fully voiced, and the performances help give the numerous characters a bit more life. This is one area where my positive Early Access impressions haven’t changed at all. It’s a beautiful game.
Conclusion: Ascension
And that’s ultimately where I landed with Fallen Tear: The Ascension. I don’t dislike what the developers have created. In fact, I can completely understand why someone who loves exploration-heavy adventures would get an enormous amount out of this. But for me, the combination of a huge world, frequent backtracking and combat that increasingly demanded specific responses turned something I initially enjoyed into something I had to push myself to continue playing. I think that’s also why my experience feels so different from my Early Access impressions. At the time, the novelty of the world and combat pulled me along. With the full game, the sheer scale of the adventure became more apparent, and I found myself struggling to keep up with it.
If you have plenty of time, enjoy getting lost, love searching every corner of a map and don’t mind a combat system that asks you to learn enemy patterns, there’s plenty here to enjoy. For me, though, my gaming time is precious, and I increasingly found myself wishing the game would simply point me in the right direction and let me get on with the adventure. Fallen Tear: The Ascension has plenty of heart, some gorgeous presentation and a lot of interesting ideas. It just wasn’t the adventure I needed right now.
Final Verdict: I Like It.
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