There are a number of post apocalyptic stories out there. Whether it be in on the big screen in movies such as Children of Men, to TV shows like The Walking Dead, there is no shortage of post-apocalyptic tales for people to digest. The realm of video-games is no stranger to this. A number of titles offer their own unique take on the genre with some even obtaining critical acclaim such as The Last of Us and Fallout. Rebellion Developments wanted to get a slice of the post apocalyptic pie with their newest title: Atomfall. A first-person, action survival game set in the land of good ol’ England after a disaster rendered part of the country a quarantine zone. Whilst Atomfall will feel quite similar to other games in the genre, it presents it’s ideas and mechanics in a new and refreshing way even if not all of them work the way the developers intended.
Gameplay
Atomfall’s biggest strength is its exploration. Whereas similar games have a marker telling you exactly where you need to go, Atomfall has decided to do the exact opposite. As you play the game and explore the world, you’ll uncover leads that will assist you with ongoing investigations. These investigations could either continue a main part of the story or be a side quest that introduces new characters and settings. Part of Atomfall’s fun lies in this mechanic. Every time a new lead is discovered it feels rewarding for the player from a story and gameplay perspective. Notes scattered around the world will give you more information about past events which link to your ongoing investigation, or an item that you’ve collected will be used to open up a new section of the game. Each piece of the puzzle you find factors into an investigation in one way or another and they are all incredibly satisfying to locate.
But Atomfall isn’t all just finding items and reading notes, you actually have a combat system. There are three main elements to Atomfall’s combat: melee, shooting and crafting. Melee is the one that feels the most clunky. Different weapons will have different damage output and attack speed, and you’ll also have a kick. Whilst this is good for one on one fights – sometimes two on one – it starts getting a little frustrating when multiple enemies are thrown into the mix. You’ll have to manage all of them as best as you can and time your attacks to take them all out, this can get especially frustrating if you have enemies with guns shooting you from a distance. There are a large variety of guns to choose from such as pistols, shotguns, rifles and SMGs. Each gun feels heavy and impactful when taking out enemies, however, you will find that a majority of the gunplay will mostly involve head shotting enemies which can get quite repetitive. The final piece of the puzzle is crafting. Junk such as glass, scrap and cloth and littered throughout the world and can be used to craft certain items to assist you in fights. This could be a nail bomb to help you take out a group of enemies or a bandage to recover some lost health, each item you craft is helpful in its own way. Combining all three of these elements together offers a very brutal and challenging gameplay experience that will constantly have you on the edge of your seat.
However, there is one noticeable part of the gameplay that is severely lacking depth: the stealth. Atomfall’s stealth will amount to you crounching up behind enemies and perform a takedown to kill them. Whilst simple enough, it is very barebones. For starters, whenever you do silently take an enemy down the other enemies around them will be aware of your presence immediately forcing you into a fight and wasting precious resources. On top of that, performing a takedown is the only way to silently kill enemies, there’s no objects you can throw to cause a distraction, no silencers you can craft for your guns and no tagging options to make keep track of enemies easier. It feels as if stealth was an afterthought during development, and with how barebones the system is you’ll quickly forget about it and decide to go in guns blazing or avoid fighting altogether. There is the option to use a bow later in the game which does make stealth encounters easier, but the main set of options you have presented to you is significantly lacking and could have used some further refinement.
Story
The story of Atomfall takes place during the Windscale Fire of 1957. A couple of years afterwards your character wakes in a bunker waking up to a panicked scientist who is bleeding out. After you help them they give you a keycard, tell you to leave the bunker and head to somewhere called the Interchange. You take out some bad guys with your bare knuckles, scavenge some materials, answer a phone to a cryptic voice on the other side and set off into the open world to start your journey. The thing is thought, you don’t actually have to do any of that. Instead of helping the scientist you can instead kill him and take his keycard by force. The voice on the telephone? You can just ignore them. Much like the exploration there isn’t any set way for you to experience Atomfall’s story, you have many different ways to go about finishing the main campaign. Every NPC you meet, every note you find, every quest you complete it’s entirely up to you which path you take. Do you want to be an unmitigated psychopath and slaughter everyone you come across, or are you a pacifist that values human life? Whereas most mainstream RPG’s will restrict player freedom to go on one linear story path, Atomfall decides to put the player first and allows them to create the story that they want to make.
However, that doesn’t mean to say Atomfall’s approach to storytelling is perfect. The cracks do start to show towards the final hours of the game. Certain characters that you meet along the way are necessary to achieve the game’s 6 endings, each one will have their own goals and objectives for you to complete. However, within the last few hours Atomfall’s freedom slowly fades away and will force players to go on one long linear train ride to the end. The endings themselves are also a disappointment. Whilst some of them will give players a satisfying resolution, a majority of them will leave you with a lot more questions than answers. There’s one ending in particular which is constantly building up to a grand reveal throughout your playthrough, but by the time you get to that final scene it amounts to nothing and provides you with even more vague explanations. With a story expansion for the game already in the works, it seems as if Rebellion is keeping the true endings hidden behind a pay wall, but nothing has been confirmed as of yet. As it stands though the story is a mystery ride with a lot of twists and turns, but depending on which ending you go for you may feel that there is a lot to be desired.
Technical
Atomfall’s graphics won’t blow you away with detailed character models and stunning cutscenes, but that doesn’t mean to say it isn’t beautiful in its own way. For one the environments are stunning, with each section of the world being littered with an immense level of detail and colour. From the vibrant green grass, to cold industrial Interchange and the bioluminescent infected caves, Rebellion has put a lot of effort into Atomfall’s detailed world. However, the game does have its fair share of technical glitches. The biggest glitch I encountered was where the whole game crashed after entering one of the game’s sections, a slight hindrance that only happened once during my 18 hour playthrough. There were also a surprising amount of audio bugs I encountered, whether this be audio completely cutting out unexpectedly or music playing for a couple of seconds only to be abruptly cut off. For a brief moment these glitches did break my immersion, however, for most of the time, Atomfall ran incredibly well throughout.
Conclusion
Atomfall is a brilliant game that will keep you hooked for it’s 18 hour run time. The game’s approach to player freedom allows for you to shape the story the way you want it to be, which is more than can be said for most modern RPGs. Add on brutal gameplay, beautiful environments and so much lore to dive into, and Atomfall is a must play for those longing for a new immersive experience. Despite it’s flaws, Atomfall provides a lot more to players than most AAA RPG’s on today’s market, and for that it shouldn’t be ignored. Brew a tea, grab your trusty Lee Enfield, and set off on an adventure through jolly old England.
The Review
Great
