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Rebellion's upcoming survival action game named Atomfall has been on my list since the first reveal. I loved the unique setting, the concept and I'm usually a sucker for first-person action games, I can't help it.
Recently, I got a chance to play over an hour of Atomfall thanks to kind people at Rebellion, and i have a few thoughts on it. So, what kind of a game is this? The easiest way to describe Atomfall would be to say it's a first-person action survival game set in a sizeable open world with some light RPG elements.
It reminded me a lot of Fallout thematically but at the same time, I found some similarities to Obsidian's recent hit Avowed, mainly in level and world design.
Inspired by real-life events, Atomfall is set in an alternate history, five years after the Windscale nuclear disaster in Norther England, which has turned the land into a quarantine zone but one with lush forests and beautiful nature, which is not something you usually see in post-apocalyptic games. Your job here is to figure out what exactly happened and who's behind the nuclear disaster.
I've spent my time with Atomfall mainly exploring around the and found that sense of exploration and discovery is one of the game's major strenghts, just like in Avowed.
Everyewhere you go there's something to see and find, be it enemy camps or large underground locations that are a joy to explore. The open zones are quite big too, and the design of the world feels really dense and rich with detail.
And the best part? There are no quest markers at all. You'll have to discover things on your own, find clues and hints to complete objectives, which is certainly a breath of fresh air.
I only got to experience a small fraction of one zone but if the quality of other locations is on the same level, then there will be plenty of reason to be excited for Atomfall.
In terms of gameplay, this is a first-person survival action game that aims to make you feel like a regular guy in the world, not some superhero that smashes everything and everyone in their path.
Combat is a bit slower, feels heavy and often clunky but it serves the purpose and with a couple of improvements, I think it could work really well. The devs say they wanted the combat to feel like a pub brawl where players can kick and push enemies around and it does feel that way sometimes. You can dodge, parry and kick and there's stealth too, allowing you to sneak past enemies if combat is not your thing.
There's guns and ranged weapons like bows but ammo is scarce so you'll have to combine melee and ranged weapons most of the time, which is fine given that both work well, but do need just an extra tweak or two to have that impactful and crunchy feeling.
Visually, Atomfall is gorgeous with lush green forests and iconic North Britain landscapes with stone walls and there's the iconic red telephone booth too in some places, which make the world feel really authentic and realistic.
All in all, I've genuienly enjoyed my time with Atomfall and can't wait to see what this unique survival action title has to offer on March 27, 2025, when it releases on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
Atomfall is also on Game Pass so it becomes an automatic recommendation in my book if you're a subscriber.
