Fallen Tear: The Ascension beginner path
New 1.0 file. Apex Minikin, one Fated Bond, Alps town. Pre-1.0 walkthroughs are stale.
You are not late. 1.0 rebuilt the opening on purpose. If you are coming from Early Access, start a new file.
First-hour order (1.0)
| Step | Why it matters | How you know you did it |
|---|---|---|
| Wake up | Tutorial gate | Achievement "You're Finally Awake" |
| Beat Apex Minikin | First named hunt | "Fall of the Protector" (~80% of players) |
| Recruit one Fated Bond | Combat and story both change | "Bound by Fate" |
| Grab an Ancient Text | Progression currency, not flavor | "Whispers of the Past" |
| Reach the Alps town | First real hub | "First Step, Alps" (~20%) |
Those percentages are Steam achievement snapshots from 26 September 2026, not difficulty ratings. The drop from "first Bond" (61%) to "first town" (20%) is the real early-game filter.
What 1.0 changed from Early Access
The studio said this out loud in the 1.0 launch post:
- The opening is more open. EA was semi-linear.
- Quests, economy, and the leveling curve were rebuilt.
- EA saves may load, then fail later. They want you on a fresh file.
If a YouTube "full walkthrough" is dated before 23 September 2026, treat the route as stale. Use it for boss names, not for "go here next".
Controls and performance
Full game: keyboard and controller, remapping is in. 60 FPS and 4K are on the FAQ. Ultrawide is not. Steam threads already report frame stutter; that is a player report, not a patch note. 1.0.1 did not claim a stutter fix.
FAQ
Should I keep my EA save? The studio says start over.
How long is the first town? There is no official minute count. The achievement data says most people have the first boss and a Bond before they have the Alps town.
Is there a map marker for the next quest? Not reliably in 1.0.1. That is a promised improvement, not a current feature.
