| Atlas Fallen | |
| Developer: | Deck13 Interactive |
| Publisher: | Focus Entertainment |
| Director: | Jan Klose |
| Designer: | Jérémy Hartvick |
| Engine: | Fledge |
| Released: | 10 August 2023 |
| Genre: | Action role-playing |
| Modes: | Single-player, multiplayer |
Atlas Fallen is an action role-playing video game developed by Deck13 Interactive and published by Focus Entertainment. The game was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on 10 August 2023. It received mixed reviews from critics.
Atlas Fallen is a third-person action role-playing video game. At the beginning of the game, players can create and customize their own player avatar. The player character is equipped with an ancient gauntlet that allows them to manipulate sand, to turn it into weapons. Players can use three different weapons, though they can only carry two at any given time.[1] Atlas Fallen is an action-oriented game; players are required to dodge, counter and block incoming attacks, as well as quickly switching between land and air combat.[2] As players attack enemies, they will gain momentum. At certain momentum threshold, the weapon the player is wielding will transform, and they can unleash a special skill or ability that deals devastating damage to their opponents.[3]
The game features an open world, with regions for players to explore, and players can meet different non-playable characters and complete various side quests and activities.[4] Movement is an essential part of the game's exploration and transversal. With the gauntlet, players can glide through the game's desert landscape. The gauntlet allows players to perform feats such as air dashing. Players can raise buried objects, allowing them to discover hidden areas and open up new paths. As players progresses in the game, they will find "Shards" and "Catalyst Pieces", which further upgrade the gauntlet's combat capabilities.[1] The game includes a two-player cooperative multiplayer mode.
In a post-apocalyptic world, humanity was once protected by gods, but their vanity led to their downfall, and the world was left in ruins. The game takes place in this shattered, dystopian landscape, where the remnants of human civilization struggle to survive.
The story revolves around the player character, who wields an ancient gauntlet that allows them to manipulate sand and use it as a weapon. The gauntlet is tied to the Sun God, Thelos, who is a tyrannical and omnipresent being who imposed his will on the world after the gods’ downfall.
The player’s goal is to uncover the secrets of the world, resist Thelos’ rule, and join a rebellion against his oppressive regime. Along the way, they will encounter various non-playable characters (NPCs), explore ruins, and uncover the history of the world through environmental storytelling and lore.
The narrative is heavily focused on the player’s actions and choices, which shape the storyline and world. The game’s story is divided into five regions, each with its own components to collect and enemies to defeat. The player’s progress and decisions will unlock new areas, abilities, and story events.
Overall, Atlas Fallen’s story is one of resistance against oppression, self-discovery, and the struggle to reclaim a world ravaged by the gods’ downfall.
Atlas Fallen is being developed by Deck13 Interactive using their in-house engine Fledge. According to design director Jérémy Hartvick, the game is not a "Soulslike" like the studio's previous games, Lords of the Fallen and The Surge. Instead, its combat system emphasizes speed and fluidity, and that the game's overall design was inspired by games such as God of War (2018) and the Horizon series. Nonetheless, staples from The Surge games such as a body targeting system were incorporated into Atlas Fallen. The game offers three difficulty modes, with the hard mode designed for veteran players of Soulslike games.[5]
Atlas Fallen was announced by Deck13 and publisher Focus Entertainment at Gamescom in August 2022.[6] While initially set to be released in May, the game was delayed to August 10, 2023, for Windows, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S to allow additional development time for the team to further polish the game and include a full German voice-over at launch.[7] Players who preorder the game will gain access to "Ruin Rising Pack", which introduces various cosmetic items and essence stones into the game.[8] A free content update, titled "Reign of Sand", which introduces new areas and quests, updated voice-overs and dialogue, and a revamped opening act, was released in August 2024.[9]
Atlas Fallen received "mixed or average" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.[10]