Atlas Fallen in the technology test: Grainy mix of Forspoken, Gothic and Prototype

That’s right: Atlas Fallen based not on the Unreal Engine 5, even if this supposed information persistently haunts the internet. “Whenever we read a comment claiming that we use the Unreal engine, one of our engine programmers has to cry,” Frankfurt-based developer Deck 13 recently commented at Twitter. In fact, Atlas Fallen uses their in-house Fledge engine, which already powered The Surge and its successor. It’s the eye-catching graphics that caused this misunderstanding. PCGH found out what qualities Atlas Fallen really has in around 14 hours of play using an almost finished review version.

Atlas Fallen: content and gameplay

In Atlas Fallen, players alone or in online co-op take themselves to a “timeless land full of dangers, mysteries and fragments of the past”. Uncover ancient ruins and the mysteries of a fallen society while battling monsters known as phantoms with a shape-shifting weapon. The upgrades for this gauntlet are scattered across the map and allow interesting special functions to defeat the sometimes enormous opponents. As we discovered from the Atlas Fallen trial, it’s fun even after many hours. The fights are fast, effective and (on the medium level of difficulty) not overly difficult, so that with a little practice and a few upgrades impressive choreographies are possible. Almost everything boils down to direct contact, long-distance combat is limited to a few special attacks. Most of the time we target weak spots with our Power Glove… sorry, the Gauntlet.

The rest of the game consists of exploring the interestingly designed planet, never getting bored. The desert world Atlas does not consist of sand dunes, but mainly of ruins of the fallen civilization, which invite you to discover them and reward them with objects and small stories. Thanks to the direct control and the high game speed, this is always smooth and fun. We surf the sand, do double jumps – not just up but sideways – run (over grass) and climb rocks and walls. “Vertical gameplay”, a catchphrase a few years ago, is clearly written larger here than in most other games. Of course, natural barriers such as cliffs and some walls prevent the player from too bold tours of discovery, but the basic rule is: what you see, you can also climb. The developers surprise regularly. We thought several times “That was tricky, we probably shouldn’t come up here” … and then a chest or a diary was actually waiting for us. Class!

As you can see, we’re into Atlas Fallen, which is why we’re talking more about the actual game than we’re used to from PCGH. This is also due to the vibrations that Atlas Fallen emits. Right from the start the game reminds us of Gothic, which is mainly due to the medieval ambience and the rugged characters. After the first hour of play, this impression gives way to a forspoken one (coupled with the fights that are latently reminiscent of prototypes), but the melange is tasty for fans of the genre. Incidentally, Atlas Fallen dispenses with Soulslike aspects – saving is not penalized. The excellent German dubbing, which numerous well-known speakers bring up, also contributes to the good impression. When Julia Roberts serves as the narrator, Our Gun is voiced by Edward Norton, and a key supporting role is played by Nicolas Cage, there’s joy. This list is neither complete nor verified, we completely trust our ears here. Who else did you recognize? Unfortunately, the music falls a bit short in comparison – not necessarily because it’s weak, but because it’s played too softly. But we digress – time for the technical part.