ATLAS

About

ATLAS is a single player and multiplayer role playing game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by Instinct Games and was released on December 22, 2018. It received neutral reviews from players.

ATLAS: The ultimate survival MMO of unprecedented scale with 40,000+ simultaneous players in the same world. Join an endless adventure of piracy & sailing, exploration & combat, roleplaying & progression, settlement & civilization-building, in one of the largest game worlds ever! Explore, Build, Conquer! A massively multiplayer first-and-third-person fantasy pirate adventure. ATLAS will host up t…

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48%

Audience ScoreBased on 39,210 reviews

gameplay768 positive mentions

stability2.4k negative mentions

gameplay
3,504 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
66%
12%
The gameplay of Atlas has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its similarities to Ark: Survival Evolved, including shared mechanics and UI elements. While some appreciate the engaging shipbuilding and sailing mechanics, others criticize the game for its numerous bugs, poor optimization, and frustrating survival mechanics, such as the vitamin system. Overall, players express a desire for improvements and refinements to the core gameplay experience, indicating that while there is potential, the current state of the game is often marred by technical issues and unbalanced mechanics.
- “The gameplay in Atlas is very similar to Ark with a lot of major bonuses.”
- “With its vast open world environment, advanced sailing mechanics, and engaging gameplay, it has been popular among players looking for a challenging and rewarding online multiplayer experience.”
- “The ship mechanics are really nice.”
- “Ultimately, most of the core mechanics barely work.”
- “The game has now gone down the trash can with bloated updates filled with flair and gameplay ruining content.”
- “The graphics, mechanics, and even some of the creatures feel like they've been lifted directly from Ark: Survival Evolved.”
stability
2,430 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
97%
The stability of "Atlas" has been a significant point of contention among players, with many describing it as a "buggy mess" riddled with glitches, crashes, and performance issues. While some players find enjoyment in the game despite these problems, the overwhelming consensus is that it remains unpolished and frustrating, particularly in multiplayer settings. Many reviews suggest that the game is still in a rough state, with ongoing bugs and server instability detracting from the overall experience, leading to recommendations to wait for further updates before purchasing.
- “When it's not buggy, it runs very smooth and plays very well.”
- “There's a lot to do, it's more or less bug free and it runs perfectly on my PC.”
- “Game runs great with some bugs that the devs are working hard to fix with patches almost on the daily.”
- “Full of bugs, glitches, and crashes.”
- “This game is a buggy mess and no where near worth the asking price.”
- “The game is buggy as hell in the sea especially when the magical cyclone comes and follows my boat around everywhere I go and wipes out my boat within seconds.”
optimization
1,728 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
57%
32%
The optimization of "Atlas" has been widely criticized, with players reporting severe performance issues, including low frame rates, frequent crashes, and lag, particularly in crowded areas. Many reviews highlight that the game feels unoptimized even on high-end systems, often requiring players to lower settings significantly to achieve playable performance. Despite some improvements over time, the consensus remains that the game is still in dire need of further optimization and bug fixes to enhance the overall experience.
- “After 5 years, it still feels like a beta version, with too many bugs and unoptimized graphics.”
- “The game is so unoptimized and the system requirements on the game page are misleading; do not waste your money on this game unless you have a high-end PC.”
- “Performance is terrible and not even a little optimized.”
- “The game's performance has been a source of frustration for many players, with bugs, glitches, and optimization issues hampering the overall experience.”
- “This game is a joke... try to imagine an even worse optimized game than ark at launch, and then add unplayable official servers, and then the many release date delays, and then the many lies about the gameplay itself.”
graphics
1,544 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
54%
13%
The graphics of "Atlas" receive mixed reviews, with many players noting that while the game can look stunning at high settings, it often suffers from poor optimization and significant performance issues, especially on lower-end systems. Critics frequently compare its visuals unfavorably to "Ark: Survival Evolved," citing dated graphics and numerous bugs that detract from the overall experience. Despite some praise for the ocean and environmental graphics, many players express frustration over the game's inconsistent performance and graphical fidelity, leading to a general consensus that improvements are needed.
- “Beautiful graphics with the right settings, varied and flexible ship building and sailing mechanics, tons of things to build allowing you to make an entire rudimentary civilization, decent amount of creatures/enemies, and an absolutely massive map with well designed islands.”
- “The graphics are amazing and while on the ship you can almost close your eyes and feel the salty sea air hit your face.”
- “The graphics are stunning in high and ultra.”
- “Graphics are terrible......could not ignore on 3090ti”
- “The graphics, mechanics, and even some of the creatures feel like they've been lifted directly from Ark: Survival Evolved.”
- “What isn't okay is how incredibly bad this game runs at high settings, forcing me to scale down the graphics settings to the point of the game looking like a turd.”
grinding
1,338 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
99%
The grinding aspect of the game is heavily criticized, with many players noting that it requires excessive time and effort to gather resources, build ships, and progress. While some find satisfaction in the grind, especially when playing with friends, others feel it detracts from the overall enjoyment, leading to frustration when hard-earned progress is lost due to bugs or player raids. Overall, the game is described as extremely grindy, often compared unfavorably to its predecessor, Ark, with many players suggesting it is best suited for those who enjoy persistent resource gathering and teamwork.
- “I had my ship destroyed every time I got off, but the process of building a ship is fun and not very grindy.”
- “The game is not really grindy per se (it's comparable to Ark, but there is a much bigger variety in resources to gather), but it just seems clunkier than Ark (the constant comparisons are inevitable with a re-skin) and much less tense/exciting.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Not sure how this game is even legal to publish, on single-player the game will crash every time you quit on the main map, but due to immense bugs and balance problems there are barely any servers with people online and even then the official settings are made so grindy that when you do make a decent ship and inevitably lose it from bugs, it's tens of hours of work gone.”
- “You will spend hours grinding for materials to build a ship just to watch it sink within seconds of trying to launch it from a dock.”
- “After grinding a lot we did not get the feeling of having achieved anything as it all felt like a checklist more than fun.”
story
642 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
81%
7%
The story aspect of the game is largely criticized for its lack of depth and coherence, with many players noting that it feels more like a sandbox experience than a narrative-driven adventure. While there are some quests and activities, they often lack meaningful context or structure, leading to a repetitive gameplay experience. Overall, players express a desire for a more robust storyline and quest system to enhance the game's potential.
- “Overall, it's a quality game with hundreds of hours of grinding and at least 40 hours of story content if you decide to pursue that goal and not only to build a paradise on an uninhabited island in the middle of this gigantic oceanic map this game has to offer.”
- “While there is a sandbox-hobby element to the game - for those who want to suspend their reality and be stay-at-home farmers and enjoy the beautiful landscape, there are also numerous quests that players can embark on for those who enjoy the thrill of fighting crazy beasts, engaging enemy ships, or discovering new and uncharted landscapes... all while trying to stay alive.”
- “The game in general is not bad; I like that the more you play, the more the game starts to look like it has a storyline that is attached to it, but then the small problems start to kick in.”
- “The condition of the game now and the developers who completely abandoned it makes a very sad story.”
- “There isn't a huge emphasis on story (from what I've found) and it can get repetitive quickly.”
- “Story-wise, Atlas has no more storyline than Ark honestly does, maybe even less so.”
monetization
370 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
3%
96%
The monetization strategy of the game has been widely criticized as a blatant cash grab, with many reviewers expressing disappointment over its perceived lack of development and support. Players feel misled by deceptive advertising and believe the game is essentially a poorly executed DLC for another title, leading to frustration over the value for money. Overall, the consensus is to avoid purchasing the game, as it appears to prioritize profit over quality and player experience.
- “It almost begs for microtransactions.”
- “So in the event it does go free-to-play, it has all the necessary little quirks to support microtransactions, pay-to-skip schemes, and buy more energy/time mechanics.”
- “And there are no microtransactions :)”
- “They really did this as a cash grab with 0 care for the long run.”
- “This game is a cash grab, nothing works, don't buy.”
- “This game had a lot of potential, but because of underhanded advertisement, an abysmal launch, hordes of technical issues, and absolutely trash private servers... it's not worth the money, the time, or your hopes.”
music
290 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
55%
4%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with many players praising the main menu and loading screen music as standout features, often describing it as epic and engaging. However, there are significant complaints about the in-game music being repetitive, overly loud, and sometimes glitchy, leading to a frustrating experience. Overall, while the soundtrack has its highlights, it suffers from technical issues and a lack of variety that detracts from the overall enjoyment.
- “The soundtrack is outstanding; it really does give off that epic pirate adventure vibe.”
- “The music and environment are engaging.”
- “Awesome detailed game with nice soundtrack.”
- “The sound and music offer nothing special and does not deserve any special attention.”
- “Incredibly long load times, choppy framerate, annoying looping music.”
- “Lagging hard, clunky UI, clunky controls, overly loud music!”
humor
244 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
94%
6%
The humor in this game is largely derived from its numerous bugs and glitches, which players find amusing rather than frustrating, especially when playing with friends. Many reviews highlight the game's chaotic and janky mechanics, such as ships behaving erratically or characters experiencing bizarre animations, leading to hilarious moments during gameplay. While some players express disappointment over the game's shortcomings, they often acknowledge that the absurdity of these issues can create a fun and entertaining experience.
- “The first time I was told by other people in the community I was playing with that this is a game mechanic, I could not stop laughing at how bad it was.”
- “The barrel roll bug is still in the game so you may be sailing along and all of a sudden your ship decides it's gonna start flying and barrel roll onto an island and explode... it was kind of funny the first time it happened but not when it's on a fully loaded galleon.”
- “From creatures defying gravity to ships mysteriously turning into submarines, it's a hilarious parade of chaos and confusion.”
- “Don't waste your money... what they advertised is now so far from what they provide, it's not funny anymore.”
- “They have utterly screwed this game up so bad, it's not funny.”
- “This game is so broken, it's not funny.”
replayability
76 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
79%
5%
Replayability for this game is a mixed bag; while some players find it has immense potential for long-term engagement due to its player-driven interactions, many express frustration with repetitive mechanics and frequent wipes that diminish the experience. Recent updates have improved playability, but issues like lag and bugs persist, leading to a consensus that it may take significant time before the game reaches its full potential. Overall, players recommend it for those who can tolerate its current state, but caution that it may not appeal to everyone due to its grind-heavy nature.
- “Replay value: it's a game you could play for thousands of hours potentially, as it has no actual story; each bit of story comes from your interaction with other players and what you choose to do within the world of Atlas.”
- “This game has an immense amount of depth and replayability.”
- “Overall, this is an awesome game with endless replay value, especially for 26 bucks!”
- “Direction and their obsession with keeping it in game preview and wiping it over and over for years is really a downside to the game's replay value; it died out ages ago. It's more of an annoyance to have to redo the same thing over and over rather than build and maintain your kingdom.”
- “Freshness and replayability: the only reason to replay is after a wipe to get where you were or if you lost your save. I honestly did not touch this game for years and tried again on a whim.”
- “Tread lightly, collector; this one has minimal replay value if you hate tedious decay mechanics and 'chop till you drop' grinding for components.”
emotional
46 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional responses to the game are highly polarized, with some players expressing deep sadness and frustration due to gameplay mechanics and technical issues, while others find joy and a sense of accomplishment in building and sailing their ships. Many reviews highlight the potential for emotional investment, particularly in the loss of in-game creations, but caution against the game's current state, suggesting it may lead to disappointment and distress. Overall, the emotional experience varies significantly among players, reflecting both the game's potential for connection and the frustrations of its early access status.
- “This game made me feel sad when I played it, and I don't recommend anyone to play this game because you will become depressed like I am :(”
- “Tears welled up in his eyes when he realized what exactly was at stake.”
- “As such, your ship will be a labor of love, an emotional vessel made from the hopes and dreams of everyone who partakes in building it.”
atmosphere
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
54%
34%
12%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive and realistic depiction of a pirate-themed world, featuring beautiful oceans and detailed islands that enhance the seafaring experience. However, some players note inconsistencies, such as a disconnect between promotional materials and the in-game environment, as well as technical issues that detract from the overall atmosphere. Despite these criticisms, many players still find the atmosphere engaging and enjoyable, contributing to their overall fun with the game.
- “The atmosphere of the game is amazing; they nailed the theme of pirates out on the high seas.”
- “Beautiful oceans, awe-inspiring atmosphere, and detailed islands.”
- “Incredible oceanic atmosphere, very immersive and realistic with extensive on-land and deep-sea exploration.”
- “The video gives a crazy atmosphere, while in the game the atmosphere is dead.”
- “Outside of that was probably 20 minutes running around starting islands, lagging so badly that mobs would desync across the map and fly into the atmosphere.”
- “The developers seem content to allow a toxic racist atmosphere.”
character development
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
37%
38%
Character development in the game is praised for its depth and well-structured skill trees, allowing for meaningful progression. The introduction of new character design options and shipbuilding functionalities enhances the overall experience, contributing to a rich and engaging gameplay environment.
- “The skill tree and character development are well done.”
- “I mean, as far as crafting depth, sailing, skill trees, character development, cooking...heck everything.”
- “The visuals, character design, and UI are very similar in a lot of ways, but also a lot different.”
- “I mean, as far as crafting depth, sailing, skill trees, character development, cooking... heck everything.”
- “They made a whole new shipbuilding functionality, added new animals, changed the character design possibilities, added new items.”