Atomfall – Review

After years of playing snipers in various theatres of war, Rebellion Developments are back with a bang – this time with a British adventure spiced with radiation and alternative history. We teleport to a period when The Beatles released “Help!”, but this time, help comes too late… and with a Geiger counter in the background.

Shadows of Windscale

You wake up suddenly, head throbbing, in a cold room, soaked with the smell of mould and stale damp. The mattress you’re lying on is clammy, and the heavy air presses on your chest. You try to get up, but a loud noise makes you jump. You open your eyes – the image is blurry at first, but slowly, a yellow silhouette takes shape before you. Perhaps it’s daylight filtered through a crack? Not a chance – you realise you’re in a bunker. And the silhouette isn’t a hallucination, but a scientist in a hazmat suit. His face is hidden by a gas mask, and his voice, when he speaks to you, is trembling:

— Is… is anyone there? I urgently need help!

You get up, dizzy, your head ready to explode, trying to understand what’s happening. Every step is an effort, but you approach him. The man looks at you, scared, and asks, in a faint voice:

— What are you doing here? I thought there was no one left in the area… Where is Dr. Powell?

You don’t know what to answer. You’re still trying to gather your thoughts, but something distracts you – the man’s yellow suit begins to take on shades of dark red. Your gaze falls on a stain that is alarmingly widening in his abdomen area. He’s seriously wounded. Bleeding. You look at him in amazement, but he raises a trembling hand, stopping you:

— Don’t… don’t waste my time. Listen carefully. It’s more important that you know this while I’m still lucid…

His speech is heavy, punctuated by pain. He fixes his gaze on you through the fogged lenses of his mask.

— You’re in a quarantine zone… near the Windscale atomic plant. That’s where it all started. Something… something got out of control.

He swallows hard, then continues, in a weaker voice:

— The only way to get there is through a place called Interchange. You’ll need my access card. Without it, you can’t get past the security gates. There are people who can help you escape from here, but… they won’t do it for free.

He laboriously pulls a blood-stained card from an inside pocket and hands it to you with a trembling hand.

— Take it… and take care of it. Now… please… help me. I need a bandage. I’m bleeding too much…

His eyes close for a moment, and his voice almost fades to a whisper:

— In the adjoining rooms… there are rags, alcohol… you can make a makeshift bandage. Please…

Thus begins the adventure in Atomfall – the new post-apocalyptic title, with British pedigree, freshly released by Rebellion Developments.

Fallout in the Land of Hope and Glory?

I’ll start with an (innocent) joke: if Fallout 3 and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 had a child, it would probably be called Atomfall. Even the “fall” in the title is there, like a subtle bridge between the two universes. No, it’s not a copy or plagiarism, but a title that clearly draws inspiration from these post-apocalyptic series, yet comes with a distinct identity and its own atmosphere. To be honest, I wouldn’t recommend Fallout, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 or Atomfall as alternatives to each other, but rather as a solid trio, each with its own story, world, and vibe.

As soon as I received the review code from Fireshine Games, I fired up Steam and jumped into the game. I wouldn’t say I was hyped for it, but I admit I was curious, especially since the action takes place in Great Britain – a place I’m fond of and have always enjoyed for city break getaways. From the very first minutes, Atomfall won me over with an essential detail: it respects the player’s time. After a short cinematic, you wake up directly in the middle of the action – literally, with rubbing alcohol and a rag in hand, improvising a bandage. You’re not given many explanations. It’s just you, a mysterious character called “The Scientist,” and the first task that opens the story (and the bottle of rubbing alcohol).

You also get a mini-tutorial that involves a brawl with a dubious individual, as if he’d escaped from a radioactive circus, at which point you learn you can kick and also do the “Ocna Town perversa”. Compared to the epic introductions in Fallout 3 or even Fallout 4, things here are much more direct – or, as a Brit would say, straightforward. Exiting the bunker isn’t conditioned by tens of minutes of dialogue or narrative setup; it happens after just 5-10 minutes. Quick, simple, and efficient.

Theoretically, I should have helped the gentleman in the yellow suit not to die. Practically, I completely forgot about him and, at the first opportunity, went out to explore the area. Spoiler alert: the game takes into account what you do. If you forget about the Scientist and return to the bunker later… well, you’re in for an unpleasant surprise. Mwhaha.

Once outside, in the fresh but slightly irradiated air, the first thing that catches your eye is the classic red telephone box, typically British (the red double-decker bus is also present). Yes, the one everyone wants to take pictures in, only it smells suspicious and is clearly overrated. Still, the phone rings. If you pick up the receiver, a deep, sinister voice tells you: “Oberon must die.” Who is Oberon? I have no idea, but we’ll probably find out along the way. Or not. But the adventure continues.

The area is called Slatten Dale and, although not huge, it has enough content to keep you busy: an abandoned train station, a crashed helicopter, a small village with the scent of Scottish whisky, and several waterfalls worth inspecting. By the way, don’t forget to check what’s hidden behind them. You’ll thank me later… on Discord.

Aesthetically speaking, Atomfall looks good – surprisingly good, in fact. The game has a picturesque feel, and the British vibe is rendered with attention to detail. Kudos to the artist team at Rebellion! Each point of interest has a unique charm, and if you want to better understand the world and your purpose in it, I recommend exploring everything you see and collecting all the letters left behind. These provide context, unlock side missions, and, more importantly, guide you – because the game doesn’t give you markers or precise directions on the map. No. It’s the old-school type. You find a note with a destination or coordinates, and from there… Good hunting, stalker! Pardon, I meant good luck, lad!

It might seem confusing at first, but once you get used to the system, the game becomes surprisingly captivating. That’s how it hooked me too, even though I initially didn’t give it much of a chance. After two hours of playing, it’s hard to put down the mouse or controller…

One aspect I disliked, however, are the textures – sometimes they look like they’re from 2005. In a screenshot I’m attaching to the article, you’ll see exactly what I mean. I should mention that the game ran at 2K resolution with all settings on High. It’s not the end of the world, but it deserves a little polish, especially since, overall, the game looks quite good. I hope a future update will fix the texture issue.

If you’re a curious player and explore every nook and cranny, the game rewards you. For example, when you exit a cave you find right at the beginning, you can discover a metal detector in a puddle, next to a lifeless body – which unlocks a new mechanic: you can find metal boxes with secrets, hidden in certain key locations on the map. Classic looting is also present: metal, superglue, bandages, alcohol, ammunition… and even British tea that lowers your blood pressure and calms you down. Yes, you read that right. The HUD system is simple: you have a health bar and a “pulse” that functions as stamina. If you overdo it with running or fighting, your pulse increases, and your actions become slower, more imprecise – similar to the mechanic in Sniper Elite: Resistance.

During exploration, you’ll also encounter NPCs who offer you information, goods, or trade opportunities. Dialogue is based on emotional choices – you can lie, be honest, uncertain, or firm. The interactions aren’t very elaborate, but they add a layer of depth by describing emotions. If you want to be the bad guy, you can. You approach NPCs and press the “C” key to put them down for good, but this action also comes with certain consequences…

The areas are dangerous. I’ll return to Fallout, more precisely to a reference from the series, where the main character says that outside the Vault, everything you see tries to kill you. Well, it’s the same in Atomfall where almost everything tries to take your breath away. At one point, I approached a tree that had a glowing purple thing. It looked like a fruit or even a crystal. When I got too close, I was attacked by swarms of killer bees. I ran like hell across the ground and grass. In another situation, I was looking for a metal object in a dilapidated house when I heard a whistle. I looked out the window and saw a band of robbers. I hid in a corner and waited for them to leave. The tension was real…

However, the AI is a bit unbalanced. Patrols are well thought out and keep you on your toes, but in direct combat, they can sometimes become ridiculous. In one case, the villains entered through the window, and I hit them with the cricket bat, one by one, without much effort. In the end, I counted about 12 bodies… Either I’m too good at combat, or the climbing animations through the window create a disadvantage for them against the player, making them vulnerable to any type of attack.

Weapons are diverse. From kitchen knives and truncheons used by 60s police, to the classic shotgun or semi-automatic hunting rifle. The downside is that most of them are rusty at first, but they get the job done if you know how to keep your mouse cursor on the enemies’ heads. There are also Molotov cocktails or even grenades. You won’t lack anything, the important thing is to find them. The most valuable resource remains ammunition, which is quite hard to find, motivating you to use it cautiously. The personal inventory is quite generous; you can carry 4 weapons at the same time, but you also have space in your backpack for bandages, tea, pastries, and other items necessary for survival in the area.

There’s also an abilities page that you unlock when you consume certain radioactive drinks. The game doesn’t offer classic character level progression; instead, you need these drinks, which act as skill points. These are diverse, from firearm combat abilities to the possibility of becoming more efficient when sneaking behind an enemy without them sensing your presence.

Without giving away story spoilers, I can say that Atomfall is an experience with a lot of potential. It’s mysterious enough, atmospheric, and surprisingly well-built for a modest-budget game. If you’re looking for something different, with a hint of tea, radiation, and British paranoia, Atomfall might just be the post-apocalyptic adventure you needed.

Optimisation at 50 Degrees

In December 2024, I made one of the best gaming decisions in recent years: I finally upgraded my desktop. No, I didn’t change my wallpaper (good joke), but I switched to an almost new generation processor and graphics card so I could play current titles on PC, not just console. I’m not saying the PS5 or Xbox Series X don’t do their job, but the experience on a decent PC that can run a game in 2K, High details, and a minimum of 60 fps… it’s simply another life – a true gamer’s life (sic).

Perhaps you noticed I didn’t even mention the PS5 Pro. That’s because I’m not convinced to spend almost 1000 euros on a console I already own in a slightly more modest form (PS5 Standard).

The upgrade came just in time because it allowed me to test Atomfall on PC, with high settings and without modern optimisation tricks like DLSS, FSR, MBR, CRBL, and others from the alphabet. And guess what? Atomfall doesn’t even have DLSS or FSR. Woohoo! It’s still possible. And it runs well – very well, in fact.

On a combo consisting of a Ryzen 7 5700X3D and a Radeon RX 7900 GRE, the game runs effortlessly at over 60 frames per second on High settings, in classic rasterisation, without upscalers. I haven’t encountered any bugs, framerate drops, texture popping, or other “surprises.” If you read what I wrote about Avowed and how annoyed I was with that optimisation, here it’s the exact opposite: Rebellion really did an excellent job.

If you have a decent PC, I confidently recommend trying Atomfall either on Steam or via the Xbox app. It looks much better than on console – and if I don’t convince you, the guys at Digital Foundry certainly will.

By the way, the paragraph title isn’t just for effect: my processor stays quietly at 50 degrees during gaming sessions, a sign that the graphics card is doing the heavy lifting, but it also stays below 60. So yes, good performance and decent temperatures. If you want to heat your room in winter, Atomfall isn’t the best example.

Conclusion

We’re only at the end of March, and I can already say, with enthusiasm, that 2025 is shaping up to be a solid year for gaming. Not even three months have passed, and we already have a respectable list of titles keeping us busy – not to mention the backlog we’re still carrying from previous years.

Atomfall easily makes its way among the notable games of this early year, alongside Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Avowed, Split Fiction, and even Assassin’s Creed: Shadows. Moreover, starting today, 27 March, Atomfall is available in the PC Game Pass library, so you have no excuse not to give it a chance. It only costs you 40 lei.

It doesn’t have the best AI or the finest textures – if we dissect it coldly. But viewed as a whole, Atomfall achieves what it set out to do: to be a solid, captivating post-apocalyptic survival title, with a unique atmosphere and well-built enough to keep you busy for a few tens of hours. It’s not even a very long game – you can finish it in 15-20 hours. A clear bonus for those who, like me, no longer have the time they once did for epic gaming sessions.

That being said, I’m off to make the Scientist a British tea and play another round of Atomfall. Cheers, lads!

Played on: PC (Steam)
Release date: 27 March 2025
Developer: Rebellion Developments
Publisher: Rebellion Developments