Atom RPG
- December 18, 2018
- AtomTeam
- 32h median play time
ATOM RPG is a single-player, shedfully hilarious post-apocalyptic CRPG, inspired by classics like Fallout and Wasteland. Create your unique character, explore the Soviet Wasteland, and investigate a dangerous conspiracy in this epic saga, complete with masterful music, beautiful visuals, and lots of grinding. Despite some bugs, ATOM RPG delivers a phenomenal atmosphere and engaging roleplaying experience.
Reviews
- Engaging and well-written story with a lot of attention to lore and world-building.
- Challenging and strategic turn-based combat reminiscent of classic RPGs like Fallout.
- Impressive graphics and sound design that enhance the immersive atmosphere.
- Imperfect English translation that can lead to confusion in quests and dialogue.
- Some quests and dialogue can feel repetitive and lack depth.
- Companion AI is often unhelpful and can lead to frustrating combat situations.
- story1,110 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story in "Atom RPG" is generally praised for its engaging narrative and rich world-building, reminiscent of classic titles like Fallout. Players appreciate the depth of side quests and character interactions, which often feature unique and humorous dialogue, though some criticize the main plot for being less compelling and the quest design for lacking clarity. Additionally, translation issues and a lack of quest markers can lead to confusion, detracting from the overall experience.
“The game's story is engaging and well-written, with a lot of attention paid to the game's lore and world-building.”
“The story is great - the world you interact with feels immersive and alive.”
“This game has an amazing story line with lots of side quests and unique events so every playthrough will be different.”
“Some of the game's quests and dialogue can be confusing or unclear due to translation issues.”
“The main story was not interesting or inspiring either, or it simply did not start off in time.”
“The story is simply bad, and you get forced into most situations with other options.”
- gameplay437 mentions
- 28 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Atom RPG is heavily inspired by classic titles like Fallout 1 and 2, featuring turn-based combat, character progression, and a rich narrative. While many players appreciate the nostalgic mechanics and engaging quests, some criticize the janky interface, steep difficulty spikes, and lack of clear explanations for certain mechanics, leading to a mixed experience. Overall, it offers a solid RPG experience for fans of the genre, albeit with some outdated elements and balancing issues.
“The gameplay is pretty similar to Fallout 1 and 2, though it runs a little smoother and there are fewer crazy minigun crits.”
“Atom builds on and improves the Fallout 1 formula to make a fun and engaging CRPG that harkens to the nostalgia days without being trapped in and brings improved mechanics and a fascinating, grounded world.”
“Gameplay is hard at first, but became very easy towards the end with ammo and power-ups available in great quantities.”
“The gameplay is bland, with no cover mechanics to speak of.”
“The mechanics are not good either but they would be bearable in an otherwise captivating world.”
“The gameplay is a standard AP-based combat, similar to Fallout and old XCOM.”
- graphics234 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many praising the modernized visuals and attention to detail that evoke the classic Fallout aesthetic, particularly in its Soviet setting. While some players appreciate the high-quality graphics for an indie title, others criticize them as bland or outdated, noting issues with the camera and user interface. Overall, the graphics are generally considered competent and fitting for the genre, though they may not impress those seeking cutting-edge visuals.
“The graphics are superb, once you consider this was made by a small indie team.”
“Graphics are incredibly good for a Russian dev team; all the environments are incredibly well detailed and mapped out with multiple small things hidden about.”
“It's an indie project, and if you can get over the graphics and are fine with text-only dialogues, you'll have an atomic blast :)”
“The worst are the terrible engine (bad graphics + high energy consumption == bad coding skills), the crappy camera (no freedom), lousy map and UI, and the almost non-existent world atmosphere.”
“The graphics: I don't much care for graphics, but the game is a mix of great graphical detail and horrible mashup textures that look like they belong in a game from 30 years ago.”
“For a game that was released in 2018, the graphics and coloristics are tragic; it really felt better to play damn Fallout 1/2 than this.”
- humor152 mentions
- 99 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with many players appreciating its dark, biting wit and clever character dialogue reminiscent of classic RPGs like Fallout. While some find the cultural references and quirky Eastern European humor to be a highlight, others feel that the humor can be hit-or-miss, with some jokes not translating well for those unfamiliar with the context. Overall, the game successfully blends humor with serious themes, offering a unique and often hilarious experience for those who resonate with its style.
“Love the wasteland-like tongue-in-cheek humor.”
“Biting, dry humor; amusing character dialogue, and excellent plot.”
“The quests often take deranged turns (in the most positive way) with hilarious dark humor and winks to other cult games.”
“The much bigger issue (for me, at least) is Atom's tendency to attempt what I'll charitably call witty dialogue, which is pretty universally not funny, and also the incredibly awkward references to pop culture and other RPGs.”
“The writing is awful and disjointed and usually filled with unfunny memes and grammatical errors that don't fit the world at all.”
- atmosphere122 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive environments, evocative sound design, and strong narrative elements that evoke a post-apocalyptic Soviet aesthetic reminiscent of classic titles like Fallout and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. However, some players note inconsistencies in execution, such as technical issues and lackluster graphics, which detract from the overall experience. Despite these flaws, many agree that the atmosphere effectively captures the essence of its inspirations, making it a worthwhile experience for fans of the genre.
“The game's environments are beautifully rendered, and the sound effects and music add to the game's immersive atmosphere.”
“This game is truly one of the greats, as you bask in its glorious Soviet beauty, take in a wonderfully crafted and atmospheric world with a blend of Fallout, Metro, and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.”
“The atmosphere is amazing, the stories are amazing, the more I play it the more I love it.”
“The worst are the terrible engine (bad graphics + high energy consumption == bad coding skills), the crappy camera (no freedom), lousy map and UI, and the almost non-existent world atmosphere.”
“As much as this game tries to be a positive emulation of those Stalker and early Fallout titles, it just lacks the atmosphere and decent writing they had.”
“I tried very hard to get into this game, but I just couldn't get past the lackluster story, the dull characters, the imbalances in the gameplay, and the poor atmosphere.”
- grinding102 mentions
- 1 % positive mentions
- 2 % neutral mentions
- 97 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game has received overwhelmingly negative feedback, with many players finding it tedious and time-consuming. While some appreciate the challenge and immersion it offers, the repetitive nature of grinding for levels, items, and quests often leads to frustration and boredom, particularly in the later stages of the game. Overall, the grinding experience is seen as a significant drawback, detracting from the enjoyment of the gameplay.
“The open world is not huge and there is a lot of walking back and forth, but it's not tedious.”
“Most of the achievements are fun, but the achievements for level 27/30 are pretty bad because it's just a matter of wasting time grinding since you max out around level 20-22 after almost 100%ing everything.”
“Overall, the game starts out fun but just grows more tedious the longer you play.”
“And everything about this game is made so mindbogglingly slow, that grinding becomes an absolute nightmare, since the only way I could find to do it was run around the map in search for encounters, and the speed at which you move across the map is ridiculously slow.”
- music83 mentions
- 39 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its atmospheric qualities and ability to enhance immersion, while others criticize it for being bland and forgettable. Many players appreciate the nostalgic nods to classic titles like Fallout, but some feel the soundtrack lacks the depth and variety expected from a post-apocalyptic setting. Overall, while the music contributes positively to the ambiance, it often falls short of making a lasting impression.
“The game's environments are beautifully rendered, and the sound effects and music add to the game's immersive atmosphere.”
“The music is very atmospheric and works very well to set the mood for the different areas of the game.”
“The excellent music, and the style of the art makes for a more cathartic experience, as you wander around a desolate post-apocalyptic Soviet landscape.”
“In that sense, it inherits the flaws of its inspirations and adds its own to them: no quest log, boring combat, needless obtuse systems, and many more. It has to boot a pretty bland OST and an even blander story and characters.”
“The soundtrack is nearly non-existent and does not make much of an impression.”
“Without voiceovers and the music so basic and low, it was hard to get immersed in the game's world.”
- replayability34 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
Overall, the game offers significant replayability due to its diverse character customization, multiple quest solutions, and impactful choices that alter gameplay experiences. While some players note limitations in combat depth and a few design flaws, many appreciate the variety of approaches to challenges and the engaging interactions with NPCs. However, opinions on replay value vary, with some feeling it lacks depth for repeated playthroughs, while others find it infinitely replayable.
“There are interesting ways to approach tackling certain obstacles which makes different builds viable and gives it replay value.”
“There are a lot of choices that affect almost every main and side quest, and most have significant impacts on how the game plays out, so there is a lot of replay value.”
“Tons of choices to allow replay value, plus you could do so many experimental builds and can play this game many times over with a different experience each time.”
“The game is good, basically just another Fallout, but especially the bad combat limits its replayability.”
“Depending on your character, it will be enjoyable or a hardship to pass said expeditions, which leaves room for replayability of the game.”
“And unlike the Fallouts, the lack of a respec is near-fatal in itself, because the replay value of the game is near zero.”
- stability28 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 4 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with some players reporting frequent crashes and bugs, particularly when tabbing away from the game. While many users noted improvements after patches, others still experienced minor glitches and technical issues, suggesting that the game requires further polish. Overall, while some players found it stable and enjoyable, others encountered significant frustrations with its performance.
“The game also runs great on Steam Deck.”
“After initial bugs, this game is now mostly, if not completely, bug-free.”
“The gameplay so far is very good with no glitches or issues.”
“This game freezes when you tab away from it.”
“Buggy crashes all the time and no Steam support to fix graphics issues... waste of money.”
“I freezes (forcing a close and restart of the game) on such a regular basis that it is almost not worth playing.”
- optimization20 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its solid performance and good graphics, particularly on high settings, while others report issues such as unpredictable performance, occasional freezing, and an incomplete user interface. Overall, while there are notable optimization problems, many players find the game to be decently polished for an indie title, with acceptable performance on mid-range hardware.
“The game itself can be a bit unforgiving but it's not too hard to figure out and there's plenty of good advice about how to make a good or optimized character build that are worth reading if you're uncomfortable with the sheer amount of options available to you.”
“Very well optimized, all settings on 'max' and solid 60 fps at all times.”
“The game is decently polished for a small indie team, well-optimized and no crash whatsoever.”
“The optimization settings leave something to be desired; windowed mode was no different than fullscreen.”
“Horrible performance optimization.”
“From questionable performance to an incomplete UI (no mouse-wheel support; having to separate stacks by clicking once for each desired unit - even with stacks of 100 or 200 units; no mouse-over tooltips...).”
- character development15 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 20 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is a mixed bag, with some players praising the depth and freedom it offers through skill trees and meaningful choices, while others criticize its slow progression and lack of flexibility, leading to unbalanced builds. The character design and NPC stories are generally well-received, but some players find the overall development underwhelming, particularly in terms of equipment upgrades and quest engagement. Overall, the experience varies significantly, with some enjoying the dynamic aspects and others feeling restricted by the system.
“Good NPC stories, good character development with the skill tree.”
“It feels more dynamic, gives the player way more freedom in regards to character development, and the quests have more depth.”
“Everything seems rather well balanced, particularly character development and advancement.”
“Unbalanced character development leading to only one kind of build being viable.”
“The quests are not fun, the character development is very underwhelming, and after 4 hours of playing, I'm still stuck with a knife as there are no places to find any decent upgrades in both armor or weaponry.”
“A much bigger factor is the lack of flexibility in character development.”
- emotional9 mentions
- 78 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 22 % negative mentions
Players express mixed emotions about the game, with some feeling a strong emotional attachment despite finding the story and dialogues boring. While the game evokes nostalgia and warmth through its authenticity and heartfelt mechanics, others criticize its outdated graphics and lackluster narrative, leading to a divided emotional response. Overall, the emotional impact varies significantly among players, with some appreciating the developers' passion while others feel disconnected.
“It made me feel the same way I felt playing Fallout for the first time.”
“I'll put my frustrations here because I have an emotional attachment to the game.”
“The scenery, the dialogues, the authenticity of it all is really heartwarming.”
“Boring story.”
“Besides that, it's a boring story with boring dialogues and graphics from the early 2000s.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as potentially exploitative, with some users perceiving it as a cash grab that leverages nostalgia for established franchises like the old school Fallout series.
“When a game is a slightly different take on an established idea, it can easily be a cash grab by a development group.”