Lord of the Sands.
Atlas Fallen is the latest from Deck13, a new title that has nothing to do with a Souls-like. Instead, the action RPG is aiming to be more akin to an Assassin’s Creed, God of War or Tomb Raider.
While it doesn’t have the same staying power as those big-name franchises, it certainly is an enjoyable romp.
Players will fill the shoes of an Unnamed, a lower caste human that is both protected by, and subserviant to, an upper class set of Knights, Priests and the like. Called by a forgotten god, you find a powerful gauntlet and gain the powers to take on devilish wraiths and monsters yourself. The fantasy world of Atlas Fallen is awash in sand; luckily, your newfound powers tap into this, allowing you to sandsurf, block damage and reinforce your own attacks.
Clad with two unique weapons, combat is mostly a barrage of heavy and light attacks. They’re bolstered by a momentum system that builds as you attack and defend. As you play, you’ll earn new perks, new sets of armour that boost your stats, and new pieces that can plug into the momentum bar’s three tiers. While some of the plugins are passive (providing a boost of momentum, perhaps, or health), others are skills you can use in battle.
My favourites were a purple lance that helped to freeze a baddie in place, and a red lance that that dealt devastating damage. When you fill each portion of your momentum’s gauge, you also have the opportunity to hit LT and RT to deliver a crushing shatter move; the real question is whether or not you use it at 1/3 power or work towards a fully charged use.
Combat’s a mixed bag. Enemies will usually spawn in groups, with cannon fodder usually protecting a larger baddie with several points that you’ll need to rob life from. A lock-on system is meant to assist you in connecting with enemies, but it doesn’t quite feel right at any point. Playing in co-op with a friend seems to make this worse as the lock-on tends to work against you when trying to team up.
So much of the combat relies upon the momentum system, and you’ll frequently find yourself going backward as you’re hit by an enemy that’s offscreen (and again, this is exacerbated when playing in co-op). Deck13 admitted that some bosses were too difficult to play, pre-launch patch, and I found this to be very true; setting the difficulty to easy fixes this issue (and doesn’t impact Achievements), so I’d recommend that for people butting their heads against a wall.
Exploration, however, is great fun. I had the most enjoyment from Atlas Fallen simply roaming the map, finding new side quests and collectibles. Being able to surf along most surfaces, coupled with a double jump and upgradeable air dash, only aid in this. It can become tedious, however — having to play this in such a short span of time started to make things feel very much like a recent Assassin’s Creed: there are too many things on a map, and repetition can set in quickly. This is certainly best experienced in short spurts.
Aside from a map covered in icons, Atlas Fallen also pads its playtime through main quests that rely upon vague exploration to progress. Most of the blockers come in the form of gauntlet upgrade pieces that sometimes need to be stumbled upon. Those locations aren’t marked on your map, nor are locked doors and chests that can only be opened with a late-game upgrade. That’s no fun.
There’s a lot of lore to be uncovered, and those that appreciate Atlas Fallen‘s setting will certainly eat up all the fantasy mythology that can be found within. I got a bit tired of it about halfway through, skipping conversations just so I could get back into exploration or combat. Doing so perhaps shed a light on the limited offerings available. You will either chase a point of light from one area to the next, fight the same wraiths countless times, or pick up collectibles.
Atlas Fallen‘s core is solid — though combat still needs some work — but it seems a bit sparse. Much like the original Assassin’s Creed far before it, I hope Deck13 builds upon what they’ve started to create a far more enjoyable experience in a sequel. While we wait, though, there’s more than enough here to warrant a try.
Atlas Fallen is now available on Windows PC, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X and PS5.
Atlas Fallen was reviewed using a promotional code on Xbox Series X, as provided by the publisher. Click here to learn more about Stevivor’s scoring scale.
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Atlas Fallen10 August 2023PC PS5 Xbox Series S & X
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