Atomfall is a brilliant dystopian survival RPG which sees England’s green and pleasant land overrun by radiated nutters

WHEN you first stagger out of a dark bunker into the world of Atomfall all dazed and confused, you’d be forgiven for thinking you’re actually off on a lovely stroll through the English countryside.

There are lush green fields, woodlands, birds chirping, fresh air, cobbled streets . . . and, of course, a classic red telephone box randomly plonked on the pathway in front of you.

All that’s missing are some fish & chips, cream tea, a nice long queue, and a cuppa (actually, that one does pop up later).

But don’t let the tranquil setting fool you.

Because Atomfall is not a glorified episode of Countryfile – it’s actually a post-apocalyptic romp where England’s green and pleasant lands have been overrun by mutated beasts, violent gangs and psychotic, flame-throwing bots.

It’s how Emmerdale would look, post-watershed with a few radiated nutters thrown into the mix. Atomfall is a delightfully British attempt at an end-of-days video game that takes you on a good old-fashioned Armageddon adventure. Though in this case, it’s more Farmergeddon.

Inspired by the true events of the Windscale nuclear fire of 1957, Atomfall is set in the alternative universe in the Lake District where the disaster has turned much of the North of England into a radioactive quarantine zone.

Which is where you start the adventure. You play the classic doomsday survival protagonist – waking up in a bunker without a clue as to how you got there.

Chaos soon ensues as you’re tasked to uncover the truth behind the Windscale accident.

It’s a very quick tutorial which introduces you to basic equipment making concepts (cloth + alcohol = bandage) plus the decision making mechanics – save the scientist who will give you a keycard needed to escape, or just kill him and take it.

And then you step out into the lush lands of Slatten Dale. So far, so Fallout. But the comparison with Bethesda’s humongous affair isn’t a fair one to make.

For a start, there’s no horrific wasteland strewn with death and destruction laid bare in front of you. Indeed, Slatten Dales offers up a lovely landscape of rolling hills bathed in glorious sunshine.

And, unlike Fallout and co (think Metro 2033 and The Witcher III), Atomfall is smaller in scale. And that’s much to its benefit.

This belter from Rebellion doesn’t force you to follow the bog-standard post-apocalyptic gaming map.

There’s no specific route you need to take, no main path to deviate from – you remain wonderfully confused as you wander from place to place, soaking up little clues and hints as to where you might head next.

And instead of one massive world, there are lots of smaller, interconnected areas which all link to the main storyline.

There are plenty of side missions – or leads – to distract you but essentially you’re left to work it out for yourself. Which is how a survival action adventure should be.

The unsuspecting nature of the environment soon lures you into areas of unwanted chaos and destruction. And trouble seems to be round every corner.

Atomfall maintains a nerve-wracking atmosphere throughout. It’s incredibly easy to kill or be killed – a desperate scramble to survive.

Most post-apocalyptic games don’t really have that fear factor . . . you eventually find a way to dispatch the enemy. Whatever guise it takes.

Atomfall, however, forces you to think really hard about whether or not you want to engage in battle. A lot of the time, the best bet is to turn back, hide and get well away from the bad guys, even if there’s just a handful of them.

This in turn leads to carefully planned takedowns when you do enter the carnage – often you sit patiently, out of sight, waiting for a straggler to leave their gang so you can go in for a silent kill and loot some much-needed ammo.

Weapons range from rusty pistols to pristine Enfield LMGs. There is also a quintessentially English arsenal too – the cricket bat offers a wallop and there’s a homemade poison bomb, which you craft using a pint glass from the boozer.

And if you get injured or raise your heart-rate? Well, a decent cuppa will fix that obviously. It’s a very brutish, sorry, British affair.

But the key to success for me was to go silent and violent. Stay hidden in the long grass and take out your foes with a bow. This helped me save on ammo and the quiet kills resulted in less attention.

The melee and combat is a little clunky and inconsistent at times but not enough to distract from the joys of the game.

The skills tree is basic but enough, with each section – ranged combat, melee combat, survival, conditioning – offering up a handful of perks.

You can focus on your damage increase for kicking or boost weapons for a better kill at distance. Again, you shape the game as opposed to the game shaping you.

The enemies range from a doomsday cult to occupying military brutes and psycho killbots. The druids also come with heavy Wicker Man vibes.

It’s not a long game (maybe around 17 hours) but there are multiple endings and plenty of replayability.

Atomfall is a brilliant game. Although it might not sit on the top shelf alongside bigger apocalyptic action RPGs like Fallout, it certainly deserves a spot in the same vault.

It’s an organic adventure with more shock and awe than a Gandalf fireworks display in The Shire.

A proper doomsday delight.

Atomfall

• FORMATS: PlayStation 5 (reviewed), Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, PC
• PRICE: £54.99
• PUBLISHER: Rebellion
• DEVELOPER: Rebellion
• RELEASE DATE: Out now
• AGE RATING: 18
• SCORE: ★★★★