Gaming press and community don’t always agree. A critically acclaimed title can still flop, but games that have failed the press can sometimes have many fans. While Atomic Heart isn’t one of those extremes, it’s coming from Metacritic only
to a solid 77 points for the PC version. On Steam, however, there are now signs of far better ratings.
You can read what we think of the shooter in our detailed test:
What do players say?
What is praised?
The shooter is currently available on Steam 89 percent positive reviews, so a much more positive picture emerges than with Metacritic. The reviews praise the chic graphics and atmosphere in the alternative Soviet Union, but the fights are obviously fun for many players. The technology also seems to participate: many reviews emphasize that the shooter can be played without any performance problems. So writes about InfestedDemon:
Atomic Heart has that heart in the right place
The comparison to Bioshock, Half Life or Fallout is made relatively often. With its mix of weaponry and elemental powers, physics-based puzzles, and retro-futuristic scenario set in the 1950s, Atomic Heart reminds many of those games series. In addition to the setting, many reviews also mention the story, reviewers like drproof but also see minor weaknesses:
The start is great, then it gets a little long-winded, but I just love the humor. […]
I also have to give credit to the developers for coming up with countless ideas for puzzles. There are different lock puzzles, laser puzzles, magnet puzzles, switch puzzles, etc… variety is simply provided.
Some players are also positive recently the soundtrack by Mick Gordon known for his music for Doom and Wolfenstein. Liver writes in a more humorous review:
This new album from Mick Gordon brings an excellent machine and mutant fighting game to the table.
What is criticized?
While the game runs technically quite smoothly, one or the other feature is missing, such as a FOV slider. According to the developers, this will soon be delivered with an update. The built-in mouse acceleration and the lack of RTX features advertised before the launch also met with incomprehension.
10:52
Atomic Heart – After almost 5 years of RTX advertising, ray tracing is suddenly missing
Another point of criticism is the story and characters from time to time. While positive reviews have often pointed out weaknesses in the story, others are completely disappointed in the main character’s personality, such as it HEIR describes:
The game has an excellent atmosphere that is CONSTANTLY interrupted by the annoying protagonist and the awful story. For the first two hours, you’re just busy opening doors and solving simple but strenuous puzzles. Meanwhile, your character tells their gauntlet Duke Nukem jokes.
This game would be amazing if they had focused more on the mysterious and unique atmosphere instead of adding dialogues that are just crap. You can’t ignore it either, because the protagonist and the gauntlet talk so much that when I do something new they want to talk about, the dialogue is often cut short by other dialogue.
But the fights are not well received by all players, and occasionally have to take criticism. So writes about Wyrd Nexus:
The fights don’t feel good at all so far. Very slow charged attacks against fairly fast robots. The game teaches you an evasion mechanic, but you can only use it in the short window of a particularly strong robot attack. Other than that, it’s all about moving and making light attacks. Really? Quick time events as the main combat mechanic?
Finally, the background of the developers of Atomic Heart is a reason for one or the other discussion. You can read more about the controversy surrounding the shooter here:
Have you bought and tried Atomic Heart yet? What do you like about the shooter so far and which aspects do you see more critically? Or do you wait with a purchase because you are still skeptical or the criticism has changed your mind? Feel free to write your opinion in the comments.
