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You wake up in an abandoned lab unsure of how you got there in the first place. A scientist then tells you to find a keycard, which allows you to escape the facility. From there, you’re thrust into a strange landscape — familiar yet peculiar — a place where robots walk around in cities, where druids roam the countryside, and where disembodied voices on the telephone tell you to kill a certain “Oberon.”
This is Atomfall, a post-apocalyptic survival first-person shooter developed and published by Rebellion, the makers of the Sniper Elite and Zombie Army franchises. There’s an air of mystery surrounding this world, one that slowly unravels as you progress through the campaign. Regrettably, several flaws also cause the experience itself to unravel.
Atomfall is set in Cumbria in northern England in an alternate 1960s. The Windscale nuclear disaster had occurred just five years prior. This event, considered as the worst nuclear disaster in the history of the United Kingdom, was contained and the site was decontaminated in reality.
In Atomfall’s world, however, this event led to the establishment of disparate factions. These include the Protocol, a paramilitary force of first respondents that have begun policing towns, and the British Atomic Research Division (BARD), which aims to delve deeper into what caused the accident. And, given that this part of Northern England turned into a quarantine zone, lawlessness and pagan worship became commonplace, too. Segments of the populace turned to druidism or cult worship, while others resorted to banditry.
Right from the get-go, I found Atomfall’s worldbuilding highly engrossing. There were segments where I had to explore small towns, all while under the watchful eye of towering mechs. Then, when I traveled to a forested region, I marveled at imposing wicker man statues next to rolling hills and abandoned castles. Eventually, when I stumbled upon a red telephone booth, the phone started ringing and I answered it only to hear cryptic messages.
It’s this aforementioned air of mystery that sets the tone for the rest of the campaign. This is further complemented by the investigation system, where you have to find leads to complete certain objectives. Just as well, there are a few side quests to tackle, including those that lead to multiple endings. To be clear, all of these ingredients would’ve been enough to keep me engaged in the long run had it not for several glaring issues.
It’ll take more than silly signs to keep a self-respecting gamer awayThe weakest aspect of Atomfall, by far, is its combat system. Throughout the campaign, you need to deal with enemy types from the aforementioned factions — i.e. rampaging druids, gun-toting Protocol soldiers, and terrifying mechs. Likewise, there are strange and deadly mutants known as Ferals. Trying to fight these foes in melee is nothing short of an atrocious experience.
You have your regular melee strikes with cricket bats, wooden boards, and batons, and a kick to push opponents away — that’s it, you can neither dodge nor block attacks. At best, melee combat is akin to a battle of attrition where people whack each other on the head or poke each other with sticks.
I tend to prefer ranged combat if only to save myself from more headaches. There are a handful of weapon types to acquire, such as pistols, rifles, shotguns, and submachine guns, though inventory space is fairly limited so I had to be mindful of the firearms that I’d pick up.
That said, the gameplay faltered once I realized that enemy AI was downright inconsistent. There were times when hostiles would detect me from a great distance or even through obstacles, and I’d have no choice but to run far away just to “drop aggro.” Instead of stealth mechanics leading to a tense and exhilarating gameplay hook, encounters devolved into getting spotted for no reason and coming back later once my foes were no longer aware of my presence. Needless to say, these engagements became repetitive and dull really fast.
Moreover, there were instances when I didn’t realize that I was about to step foot into unmarked restricted areas. That led to NPCs immediately running toward me to investigate or accost my character. And so I’d go back to the ol’ “walk away and wait for enemies to drop aggro” process. It’s a reliable method, albeit one that’s equally boring. The game would’ve been better served if it had an expansive dialogue/role-playing system — i.e. bribery, intimidation, etc. — instead of half-baked ideas.
The above issues are further exacerbated by drab visuals. Yes, the ways in which regions are designed and interconnected are intriguing, but the environmental textures and character models look outdated even at the highest settings.
It’s all par for the course, but that’s itStill, Atomfall manages to have flashes of brilliance owing to the secrets that you need to uncover during your playthrough. While small towns themselves are interconnected via streets and sewers, there’s also the Interchange, a massive underground complex with entrances and exits to other regions/settlements.
The campaign arc basically involves finding power sources to reactivate the Interchange’s abandoned wings. These areas lead to quest objectives, loot, and even more puzzling conundrums. Exploration, thus, becomes rewarding, as long as you’re willing to delve deeper into the unknown.
Make no mistake, Atomfall offers a surprisingly surreal romp across the English countryside with its uniquely refreshing setting. The ways in which levels are designed, along with the vastness of the Interchange, encourage you to explore dark and dangerous areas. Sadly, this whole trek is bogged down by poorly conceived combat and stealth gameplay.
Score: 7/10
– Rappler.com
Atomfall is available now for the PC, PlayStation 4/PlayStation 5, Xbox One/Xbox Series X|S. We reviewed the game on PC using a code provided by the publisher.
