Atomic Heart Review (PS5)

very good
key review info
  • Game: Atomic Heart
  • Platform: Playstation 5
  • Show system requirements
  • Reviewed on:
Atomic Heart key art

Monday starts on Saturday is a term coined in one of the novels by the Strugatsky brothers and describes an ideal where both science and supernatural are harvested by scientists for the betterment of mankind. People are so happy with their lives that they do not need the weekend to take their thoughts off their work, and as such the work week extends into seven days. This ideal is very similar to the premise of Atomic Heart, a game long awaited by Bioshock fans.

Considered by some the bastard child of Bioshock and Metro, Atomic Heart presents an alternative universe where the Soviet Republic overcomes the struggles of mankind through technology and ushered in an era of growth never before seen. But if there is anything that dystopic games have taught us is that there is always a price to pay.

From the very first scene when you peacefully cruise down a small boat in the middle of an idyllic city you will be enveloped by Atomic Heart’s fantastic atmosphere. The designers managed to build a world that you want to get lost in, where you want to explore every corner and wonder at the ingenious way technology was integrated into the daily lives of a world marked by communist landmarks. It is a world that starts out as alive and bustling and then slowly shows its true colors.

Strolling through streets in the boots of Major Sergey Nechayev, codenamed Agent P-3, you will feel like the hero of an immersive sci-fi novel, where technology that we still dream about in the present is already available in the Soviet Union of the ‘50s. At every step you will stumble upon robots that take over all chores, big and small alike, thus freeing mankind to pursue science and art. The new neural implant takes a step even further allowing people to become savants and geniuses in a matter of minutes.

Atomic Heart
Atomic Heart
Atomic Heart
+4more

Atomic Heart starts full of hope and color, and by gradually revealing what lies behind the curtains of the floating city you will discover the bloody price, humanity has to pay for this advancement. Without giving away too much about the story we can say that if something looks too good to be true, it always is. After the first 30 minutes you will be surrounded by dead bodies and murderous robots, your only trusted companion being an AI driven glove.

As good as the build-up is, the way the story itself unfolds can be chalked down as disappointing. Most of the plot twists are foreseeable and the character development is almost inexistent. The relation between your hero and his companion AI, housed in the wonder glove, is presented through dialogues that lack finesse and more often than not prove to be fillers. Throughout the entire game you feel like the soldier you are controlling is no more than a jarhead with some survival skills.

The gameplay itself is an interesting mix of puzzles, platforming and exploration. Due to the setting of the game you cannot really eliminate the robots that are trying to kill you, and you will be constantly challenged to find creative and fast ways to reach your objective. Atomic Hearts encourages you to explore not just the game world, but also the gameplay options. Too bad some of the game mechanics feel like fillers and do not really add value to the experience.

With the exception of the bosses, most robots are rebuilt by flying drones so, eliminating them just gives you a short breather to figure out the puzzles and your way forward. The munition, just as your inventory space is limited so you are being challenged, especially on higher levels of difficulty, to be creative. The good news is that you have a great amount of freedom to modify your arsenal, upgrade it through various materials you collect and freely play around with the abilities of your character.

Next to the traits that offer you extended health and catlike reflexes you can upgrade your skill tree with elemental damage, your robotic opponents having various weaknesses and strengths. The security cameras for example cannot handle electricity too well, while certain robots can be “allergic” to fire or ice. The entire battle system unfolds at a slow pace and while often it feels clumsy, it also grants some moments of great satisfaction.

Improving the abilities of your glove and constantly upgrading your arsenal are the key to success in facing an overwhelming number of opponents. Their lack of AI is compensated for by sheer force, since even the most basic robots can knock you around or snap your neck if you fail QTEs. They also tend to have a bullet sponge nature and stealth will not really help you. Even if you manage to sneak up on your gear headed enemies, many of them will explode as the result of a stealth attack attracting all the unwanted attention you have hoped to avoid.

The game, although is quite spacious, it is not truly an open world experience. In the larger areas you have some leeway to explore for new technologies and upgrades, but the main story itself is as linear as it can be. But Atomic Heart offers you enough freedom so you can feel part of the world, occasionally perceiving the invisible walls that condition you.

The greatest problem that breaks your immersion are the countless bugs. From small ones like the loot prompts not appearing on the screen up to big ones where you cannot manipulate various puzzles as they were designed, Atomic Heart has them all. The limited number of save slots and the lack of direct control over them can mean that a broken puzzle may force you to restart the entire game, if you are unlucky enough to not find an early enough save. It feels like the developers did not have enough time to make sure they delivered a finished product and tried to cut some corners. 

The same can be said about the graphics. While overall the game looks great, it is hard to explain why in some instances you have to deal with pixelated textures or really weird animations. The visual style is eclectic and art deco buildings and direction manage to be at least as eye pleasing as Bioshock. Too bad the lack of polishing sometimes breaks this beautiful illusion.

I can’t end this without praising the soundtrack, which is just as eclectic as the visual identity of the game. The music ranges from soviet pop to opera and more western tunes like Hess is More. It is a weird mix that fits perfectly the game world and is signed by Mick Gordon, mainly known for his work on the recent Doom games.

Atomic Heart
Atomic Heart
Atomic Heart
+4more

The Good

  • Great atmosphere and original setting
  • Beautiful visual style
  • Memorable soundtrack

The Bad

  • Full of bugs and glitches
  • Peculiar gameplay choices
  • Predictable story and weak character development

Conclusion

Atomic Heart has all the premises for a great game. That is why so frustrating that Mundifsh dropped the ball by trying to do too much, and botching up some gameplay mechanics, and also by releasing a game that desperately would have needed more time for fixing the bugs that poison the experience. And while the latter can be solved through patches, some peculiar game design choices and compromises take away from the overall value.

The vibes of the game are great, but when you look beyond the atmosphere you will find flaws that are much more than simple nuisances. Still, despite the disappointment, Atomic Heart is worth playing and hopefully marks the start of a new franchise, that will give the developers the chance to produce a sequel that rises to the level of expectations.

Review code was provided by the publisher.

story 7
gameplay 7
concept 8
graphics 8
audio 9
multiplayer 0
final rating 8
Editor's review
very good
 

Atomic Heart screenshots (41 Images)

Atomic Heart key art
Atomic HeartAtomic HeartAtomic HeartAtomic Heart
+36more