Atomic Heart is a new alternate-history shooter that borrows a lot of its creativity from many notable franchises out there. That said, its story is at least different enough to set it apart from the competition. The game stars Major Sergey Nechayev, who is on his way to get upgraded for an upcoming mission.
On his way to the lab, he is attacked by robots that have gone haywire. Something is not quite right in this utopia and the good Major has to get to the bottom of it. That’s the basic premise of Atomic Heart, but how is it? Scores have been all over the place on Metacritic. While there are negative things to say about the game, there are also a good number of positives.
8 Best: An Amazing Opening
The opening to Atomic Heart is just as stunning as any of the BioShock games. Specifically, it is a lot like BioShock Infinite as this Russian headquarters is set in the sky. It is a fully realized world that throws players into this fantastical alternate world history.
There is a parade celebrating an upcoming event with everything seemingly fine. Citizens are happy. Robots are helpful. It is truly a utopia before things go haywire. It's one of those openings that could go down in history as one of the best, and an argument could be made that the rest of the game isn't as engaging.
7 Worst: Major Nechayev
The main character, Major Nechayev, has to be one of the more frustrating protagonists of the year. It was stunning when Forspoken came out as everyone seemed to dislike that protagonist too, Frey. The two characters have a lot in common as they are angsty for no reason and love to tell their gauntlet/glove to be quiet, even though these guides are trying to be helpful. There is too much snark in Atomic Heart and most of the banter is not particularly witty.
6 Best: Cool Powers
There are a lot of cool powers and weapons in Atomic Heart. It takes a while to unlock the best ones, but patience is a virtue. Two early abilities that players can eventually unlock are Frostbite and Mass Telekinesis.
Frostbite will stream a jet of ice at enemies to halt them in their place. Mass Telekinesis will do the same thing except it raises enemies into the air and holds them there for a brief period. Using both of these abilities is a good way to save ammunition.
5 Worst: Clunky Combat
The game emphasizes melee combat because ammo is limited for a good portion of the campaign. The first gun Atomic Heart players will unlock is the shotgun, which is handy in a pinch. It’s a shame ammo is scarce though, forcing players to use their axe.
There is a dodge ability in the game, but it doesn’t work as well as it should. Combat, overall, does not have much fluidity to it, and it often feels like two children on the playground flailing their arms around.
4 Best: Inventive Tech
To coincide with the praise of the opening, the technology in the game is amazing. It is futuristic, but not in an alarming way like it is straight out of a modern epic like Star Wars. Everything feels like the 1950s but modernized.
Atomic Heart’s enemies, which are mostly robots, are incredibly creepy with their stoic faces and hilarious mustaches as they came from an auto line. While it’s not as satisfying to bash them to pieces as some other robot-heavy games like Binary Domain, the looks of the robots and technology are appealing in Atomic Heart.
3 Worst: No Map
It is incredibly easy to get lost in this game because there is no map. Players will have to rely on some waypoints, their glove Charles and Atomic Heart's scanner to find their way around. Charles is helpful when the Major isn’t screaming at it, but the radar is less handy because it doesn’t do much to highlight things in the environment.
Scanners and radar mechanics have been in games for over a decade now. The Batman Arkham games perfected this idea ages ago, but Atomic Heart doesn't quite nail it. The lack of a map is more damning though.
2 Best: Faux Vault Boy
BioShock is not the only game Atomic Heart heavily borrows from. The Fallout series is seemingly another big inspiration because this game has its own interpretation of a Vault Boy. This boy scout character will appear in Atomic Heart's weapon upgrade menu, the difficulty menu, and the ability menu.
Little cartoons will play out and showcase how powers work, as one example. They are well-animated and inventive. Yes, they do borrow heavily from other media, but the boy scout character is still fun to see in Atomic Heart.
1 Worst: The Load Times
Again, the technology of the world within this game is mesmerizing. However, the technology holding the game together needs some work. There are loads of texture pop-ins, glitches, and the frame rate can dip in the middle of combat or in the cutscenes.
As this is a harder game, players are probably going to die a lot, meaning they have to reload saves. Loading, even on the best systems, takes longer than the typical modern shooter. It can make death feel more punishing which can lead players to lose all desire to continue Atomic Heart.
Atomic Heart was released on February 21, 2023 and is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.