Atlas Fallen Releases to a Resounding ‘Meh’
The latest game from Deck13 (the developers behind ‘Lords of the Fallen’ and the fan-favourite ‘Surge’ series) has launched to some disappointing scores. With a 64 critic and 5.7 user rating, ‘Atlas Fallen’ is a short and unengaging mess which may be in the running for the most forgettable game of the year. The general consensus is that Atlus Fallen is just ‘fine’, which may be even worse than being a complete critical failure like Redfall was. At least with Arkane’s disaster, a lot of people were talking about the game. I wouldn’t be surprised if nobody is talking about Atlus Fallen in a few weeks time.
Set in a world of sand, Atlus Fallen is a departure from Deck13’s soulslike roots and instead takes inspiration from the Legend of Zelda games with a mix of combat and puzzles. Unfortunately, it seems that neither of these elements has worked. With a lacklustre story, boring combat and a playtime of only between 10-20 hours (when a 30+ hour long campaign was promised), a lot of fans are disappointed with Atlus Fallen. What makes this worse is that this is being sold for £49.99- which is a large investment for such a lukewarm product. Even if it looks like something you may be interested in, its definitely worth waiting for a sale- which I expect will come surprisingly soon.
Image by Deck13 Interactive
News publisher Dextero gave the game a 6/10- citing the only worthwhile moments are when you play co-op:
“If you want to have a great time with a friend while playing an action RPG, Atlas Fallen’s co-op mode is an ideal choice. However, if you intend to embark on a solitary adventure out in the dunes, you may find it becoming too monotonous at times when you’re just sliding across the desert in circles.”
Similarly, GameSkinny also gave Atlus Fallen a 6/10- being let down by a lot of missed potential. Considering the solid foundation that it had, it seems Deck13 squandered this by leaving most elements half-realised and uninspired:
“While the game had its high points, there’s a lot of unexplored potential on the table. I found it hard to care about the people of the world, frequently becoming bored. I couldn’t buy into the story and immerse myself into the game as I’ve done with other games. Atlas Fallen isn’t a bad game — it’s just not an excellent one, either.”
Image by Deck13 Interactive
Overall, Atlus Fallen looks to be one of the most forgettable games of 2023- which is a shame considering the intriguing premise and promising combat shown off in the game’s trailers. Unfortunately, it seems that Deck13 just weren’t able to realize their vision for this one. As a whole, the consensus for Atlus Fallen best by Metacritic user SWERY_51, who echoed much of the community’s thoughts with his review:
“The gameplay while moving and gliding on the sand is good, but in combat it is awful, between the weird camera and the unbearable targeting system not working as you wish 80% of the time. It is also kind of short (not especially a bad thing), but i was expecting a little more than the 12 hours it took me to reach the ending.”
Sadly, it looks like Atlus Fallen is doomed to be one of those £10 or less sale options that will forever remain out of the limelight due to its mediocrity.
