ATOM RPG: Post-apocalyptic indie game

So, essentially, this is a damn good game. It's Wasteland in the post-nuclear Soviet Union with an endless supply of - honestly - pretty clever easter eggs in the dialogue. It's rare that I'm this impressed by the amount of gaming culture puns, since they're rarely hidden very cleverly and an onslaught of puns that feel forced is, well, just not fun. In this case, they're seamlessly knit into the dialogue, so it's all fine. The actual game functions a lot like Fallout 2 did. You get this mission in the start that you're not going to do anyway, not because it's bad but because the world enthralls you to do other stuff, endlessly. You do this by crafting your very own homemade four-barreled shotgun with which you shoot the bad guys with your action points in a turn-based combat. Pretty straightforward, but the writing and setting is where this game is set apart from other not-so-impressive titles in the genre, and I highly recommend it to any and all enthusiasts of the nuclear wasteland.

While not perfect, ATROM RPG does justice (and more) to the genre. All the conversations are unique overall (no generic phrases that repeat for dozens of NPCs here) and the way they are written every interaction is interesting and none feel like a repetition of existing games at all! For a completionists it will be a quite long game filled with detailed environments, quests and conversations. 120 hours in and I am ready to move to the 2nd (out of three smaller) map having already completed dozens over dozens of quests in details on the first one! Some locations of the map might seem empty at first but most locations end up being used in later quests so speaking to notable NPCs multiple times is recommended! It took me a good few hours of gameplay before getting the interface and some behaviors of the game (some took many hours to figure out). The companions control system (dialog based) is quite complete - when you find how to use the right click on the companions in particular (took me 60 hours to figure out) so make sure to check the right click button on your companions for additional control options. > Make sure to check the options of the game as the zoom level, view angle and battle speed (good to accelerate after playing for a while) contain relevant game changing options. The game is immensely stable game as of 1.112 (2020) – not a SINGLE crash as of writing at 140 hours of gameplay - I would certainly love to get to play older games of that genre in a rebuilt version using their UI ! Just make sure to read a bit about the game as some Skills are underutilized (as original Fallout) and some player Characteristic are over emphasized and not all of them can be increased after player creation. The game's price is more than fair and the level of originality and value surpasses any negative aspect for me - be sure to get the supporter pack which also adds a few early items to support the developers – they deserve it for their continuous support! - 4.5/5!

Rightfully so this game is often compared to Fallout 1 and 2 but I feel like it deserves both more and less credit then that comparison brings. It might be because it is Russian game first but the humour isn't nearly as funny to my Canadian brain (still pretty decent though) and the look does blend into S.T.A.L.K.E.R or Metro while Fallout's 50s Americana is more unique. Having said all that, this game is far more friendly then those old Fallouts to the player. If you are put off by the difficulty or jank (ie. controls, resolution even after fan patches) Atom has very good difficulty selection and most importantly generous autosaves. Yes the game is harder early and you can get crit to death or stun locked but the game auto saves constantly so you never lose much progress. Broke and low level? There are tons of "talking" quests to get you yoyur first 1000+ rubles and some levels. Survival? Even with the (reccomended) 2x hunger for 2 Endurance perk it's really not that bad and food is cheap and plentiful (plus you can fish or hunt). Really the biggest complaint I have is that you can tell the game is "low budget" with tiny areas, decade old visuals and no voice acting outside of opening cinematic... except the game is $17 CAD ($15 USD) so who cares, heck with the amount of hours I've clocked even my cheap self think it's worth double that easily.

When you don't have something important to do and you like rpgs like Wasteland 2 and Expeditions: Viking go for this game. I sunk over 100 hours into this little gem, even though it started out roughly (the tutorial does not show, what you should actually expect from fights). What I liked about it the most is its humour. From its setting alone you cannot expect the numerous references (pokemon!) that game throws at you, I probably missed half of it anyways. On the negative side I experienced quite a bit of grinding mid-game, the followers are sometimes plain suicidal and I rather have a cover-system in these kind of turn-based fights. But that wasn't a game-breaker at all, it just felt like a lack of tactical possibilities. Thumps up from me, totally worth the full price or even more, devs are constantly working on the game too.

First of all, you have to keep expectations realistic. This is not an "AAA" title. It was created on a budget. So you can't expect voice acting. But if you keep that in mind, this is a great title. It captures much of the feel of other "wasteland" adventures. There is a lot of content, and many hours of gameplay. However, some comments... First, forget crafting: it is mostly useless. The weapons and armor that you can craft are vastly inferior to the ones that you loot from your foes. You should know how to make a sharp knife, cigarettes, and joints -- this is just for making money. These items can be sold for more than the cost ingredients. Second, the "lone wanderers" that you meet in the wastes never have anything interesting to say, and their speech is even stilted and just plain "wrong" to an English speaker. Finally, the FO series had a lot of cool weapons such as Gauss rifles, and laser and plasma weapons. In this game, the most advanced weapons all use gunpowder. Plus, the best ammo is rare. I also noticed that for all of the talking about communism, there was none to be found in the game. Russia is firmly capitalistic in this game Bonus game hints (mostly spoiler-free): In Krasnoznamenny, the hospital has a man who will give you a quest: do this earlier in the game. Then, go to your new house and upgrade the basement ASAP for good perks. Also, never sell newspaper, gunpowder, scrap metal. You will find a use for those.