☢ ATOM RPG ☢

thanks bro :)

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Just got an email from steam that the game is out. Forgot all about it so guess i'll have to wait a month before i can play it. Ohh well. More time to get some reviews going :)
 
Showcased on youtube by LadyLilia. Looks quite promising I would say. I really hope they accomplish that perfect blend of Stalker and Fallout.

 
A new big update is out:

Now, the total change list:
  • Locations populated with new NPCs;
  • 10+ large new quests;
  • A secret way to get into the bunker if you're male;
  • An ability to meet old friends from the Factory;
  • Dog fights in Peregon call out to all spectators;
  • 35+ new NPCs, like always, with unique dialogues and portraits;
  • Additions to the music and sound library;
  • New items, from a bra to some nice BBQ;
  • New plot elements for the Myselium;
  • 5 new guns to craft, from flinthlock to a pneumatic!
  • As well as new bullets for one of those guns;
  • Game re-balanced to meet your requests;
  • Changes to the inventory; the items are now in two stacks;
  • Addition of Ragdoll Physics (WIP)
  • Weather effects completely overhauled, now everything is much more moody;
  • The exit spots on maps are now better looking;
  • Added another kind of enemies. Beware!
  • Another machine gun - an old FM Minimi (trophy weapon)
  • Armor is now separated into two categories - helmets and body protection. Wearing a vest and no helmet won't save you from headshot damage!
  • Five new issues of a self-help survivalist journal "The Red October".
  • And last but not least, amazing quantity of bugs got fixed;
Click to expand...
 
New update out!

Here's the changelog:

- New video briefing segment
- Skill tree
- 36+ NPCs, most have quests on them.
- 20 new quests
- Better graphics v/ SpeedTree™ system
- Earn a fair buck travelling with the caravans
- More craftable weapons
- Shields
- Improved Melee and HtH.
- Beets, onions, cheeses and more!..
- Dog Armor
- New location Fogelevka village (in dev)
- New location Old Scrapyard
- New follower
- Strippers!
- Ten new books
- Yashin’s quest has a conclusion
- A way to Die for the God-Emperor!
- Throw grenades anywhere you want in the throw radius
- Exploding terrain, watch out for red barrels!
- An ability to leave your followers near the bunker
- A gym
- Knocking down doors with melee
- Many more little things and tweaks!
- A way to turn off cinematics through game settings (helps with bugs with old ATI 5xxxx, 6xxxx models)
Click to expand...
 
A user on RPG Codex just posted this, it's his impressions of the game. There are some serious deviations from the Fallout formula in there. Levelscaling and a perk tree. This would be of great concern to NMA. It's not to late to change this!

Codex user said:
Ok, I'm 20 hours in my 3rd playthrough (for a grand total of 48 hours spent in ATOM world's), and I am ready to deliver my feedback on version 0.8
The best format I could come up to do this would be a video comment showcasing everything i am going to discuss, but time is a luxury i do not possess.
And ofc, this post is going to be full of spoilers.

The last time I checked with ATOM was a couple months ago, possibly 6, and at the time, the game was beat-able in about 12 hours. The length of the game is thus twice as it was before (or about).
The notable additions to the game since i last played are:
- the many perks (distinctions)
- the followers
- the capital with NPC
- another big city with NPC
- the crafting system
- some new shiny armors and weapons
- the ''stronghold''
+ Otradanoye got some ''new content''.

Basically, on paper, everything is really juicy. In practical, some items of this list are... kinda... ''old''.
The reason I mentioned I was a bit skeptical about the dev being capable of achieving some stuff is this:

- The world is level-scaling capitalist scum.
You are level 1? Well good, because the cultists that you are about to meet are naked, they will attack you with a brick in their hand.
You are level 1 and lost in the forest? Good because the wolves are 16 Hp.
And you want to shop at the store? Well... this part is less attractive for you dear level 1, because the shop only sells one rusty marakov pistol.
BUT now! look at you! You're level 16! Great, the wolves are now 68 HP, the cultists are much more numerous and equiped with armors, helmets, firearms (although rusty). AND THE SHOPS! Dear, what a marvel, you're now able to buy the pricest weapons and armors.
Thus, there is no ecosystem in trade, the world pretty much evolves with the level of the player.
Fallout to name the prime reference of ATOM, didn't do this mistake. The hub Armor Combat and Super Hammer were there from the start of the game. The only thing dictating the capacity of the player to procure those items wouldn't be his level, but his money.
The plastic of ATOM is really crying authenticity, but its inner soul is sometimes telling a different story.

- The item slots of the loose
In Fallout 1 and 2, you could equip 2 items. Those items are initially your capacity at using your fists or your legs in combat. Which means, you can equip a pistol on your leg quickslot, but then, you cannot use your legs to kick someone if you are using that pistol. You would need to go back into your inventory to deposit the gun or else to drop it on the ground to use your legs.
That's nonsensical, and imo, a limitation of the time.
ATOM is new and fresh. It could be somewhat progressive in its approach. But in many aspects, it's older than the oldies. And it really likes to throw its references to the player (Planescape Torment, Fallout, possibly Wasteland...).

- The Perks and Perk tree
For that one I should really have brought some screenshots.
Ok, so the devs are toying with the perks, throwing some % here, and some x there. Just to get their feet in this system and to later adjust it.
But atm... one can really wonder wtf is going on.
Where to start. As I mentioned earlier, the perks (aka distinctions here), although there are 3 sort of different distinctions in ATOM. But anyway.
The starting perks bring minimal properties to the player in the form of ''you get +1 there but -1 there'', but ill not spend more time explaining the issue, i already did in the past:
This game guide otherwise does it perfectly: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1413991946

But I'd like to talk about something new: The perk tree, because this thing is new to me.
I am R.E.A.L.L.Y glad that perks are a thing in ATOM. Even as it is, it gives it, something ''kewl''.
But, again, Fallout did it correctly, as well as Underrail, as well as many other games, and I am a bit astonished that ATOM devs didn't go the... prestigious way and instead went with a tree.
So basicall you got branchs of perks, evolving in trees and if one perk interest you, you need to pick every other perks in the path.
Thus, lowering the kind of versatility that your imagination might have brought and forcing you to pick what you need to unlock ''that'' specific perk.
Just as a reminder, in Fallout, some perks were not accessible to every player. Which means, you couldn't just pick whatever you wanted: you had to have specific stats to unlock them.
Thus, the decision between having 7 or 8 in perception was a major deal, because at a later time it could unlock SNIPER (the funniest perk of Fallout for sure).
The guy behind Underrail understood that as well. Stats are not just going to bring +1 damage, +2% treshold. They lock or unlock specific perks that change the whole process you can build up your character.
That's far superior from having a tree which force you into a role.
But, it's not just that: There is a trait which makes poison to heal you instead of hurting you. I would rate this kind of perk ''Mutation'' (there is mutation ingame and some guys can do crazy thing), but in the perk tree of ATOM, the first perk you need to pick in order to unlock this is: +10 in First Aid.
So basically, the game is telling us: Because you are better in First Aid, when you get level xx (awesome), ''yo'', you can heal with poison.
It kills the charm of me/you thinking about your char having mutated, and instead, present a completely irrational bs, because it decided to have skill-tree system for its perks.

Should I keep on? No because, there is really, some funny things in this tree.
There is a special melee tree. When evolving upon this tree, you get and increase in the melee damage you can make.
The increase is 50%.
And, there is a universal branch which tells you ''Double damage''.
So you have to choose between one universal branch which affects melee, unarmed, ranged damage to do Double Damage, and one branch which will increase your melee damage by half.
Ok, sure. This is pre-alpha, and the devs are possibly at this time brainstorming everything...
But still, ''wtf''.


- The stronghold.
Do you remember this stuff?
From BG 2, from Pillars of Eternity if you played it...
This shallow thing (BG2 still handled it ''ok''), that was just there to satisfy the people who wanted a house?
But which could really harm any feeling of RP because everything was so... stupid... so robotic...
Well, welcome to ATOM RPG stronghold, keeping up with the tradition.
There is a guy, and... he knows somewhere that we can make a ''town'', and maybe people will join.
But we should keep it secret because we are part of ATOM, but yo, people will join anyway.
And dude... was he correct, because as soon as we get there, there are already traders bumping upon this otherwise unknown location, spreading the words, and the random guy from the wasteland already knocking at the door to offer his services.
BUT NOPE. The dude is not random at all, he can make ammo.
He is not like ''yeah maybe i can go to the capital and become rich because i am skilled'', not man. Lol. Are you serious? Are you capitalist too or what?
No, i tell you. He comes to you. Because your ''town'' is desert, and he heard some traders... and you know... well think of something!
And so... you have this ''technician'' guy who is sitting on a chair and you give him 2000 gold for a kitchen, 4000 for a cat on a table, 6000 for your special dressroom, 8000 for a ken and barbie etc.
And he will take 1 day, or 2 days, or 3 days, or maspjfas
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AND then, suddenly, your sense awake, and you remember that you were previously playing a RPG.
Not just any RPG, a russian post-apo euro-jank RPG.
You know, this kind of game that makes you erect.



I think I had a bunch of other things to write, but time is really not on my side. This is big text already.
The idea is not to be un-supportive of ATOM, despite what I wrote I like this game a lot, mostly for its ambiance. But at this point, it's really for me what's saving it.
I would also like to say that the very beginning of the game is where it is at its best (at least for me).
Click to expand...
 
Proletären said:
A user on RPG Codex just posted this, it's his impressions of the game. There are some serious deviations from the Fallout formula in there. Levelscaling and a perk tree. This would be of great concern to NMA. It's not to late to change this!
Click to expand...
That decreased my already low thoughts of the game.
Really wish lvl scaling was removed, it really breaks the feel of playing in a living world.Perk Tree also doesnt make sense.
 
Yeah the lvl scaling is a complete deal breaker for me. I hate it. I don't want some power leveling super-demi-god by the end either to the point that anything and everything is a cakewalk either. I prefer a combat system where there is a tier system and all but someone with a knife can still fucking stab me unless I'm wearing a tank like armor like Power Armor. Where health and damage doesn't really increase astronomically after 20 levels but rather that it is about what gear you have and how you employ tactics against numerous foes with more varied weapon arsenals as you level up but if you underestimate a bunch of low level gangbangers with SMGs then they're going to rip you to shreds.

I don't like level scaling and I don't like power fantasies that go too far either. And while I rarely see the kinda system I like I'm far more tolerable of "power fantasy" than I am level scaling.

I'm more tolerable of perk trees than level scaling but it's not a selling point for me. It's just something I'll tolerate. A perk/talent/whatever system where you're free to choose the perks you meet the criteria for is inherently superior to a role-playing experience than a x-tree is.

I don't like the idea of the Stronghold. For a game to do that kinda thing well it needs to be a primary focal point for the rest of the game. Otherwise it is just "kinda there".

So, yeah, if it is early on enough to change things I'd suggest scrapping the perk tree completely and bring in free-choice perks with stat/skill requirements.

I'd also suggest just scrapping the stronghold thing completely instead of wasting any more time on it. I know that might seem a bit harsh considering they've already put time into it but they need to ask themselves if the end result is going to be worth it or if it is just spreading their development time and resources thin. Just because you want to have every idea under the sun in a game doesn't mean you have the time or resources to make them worthwhile ideas. And I'd save that idea for a sequel. Focus on what is important. A stronghold system isn't important unless you make it important. So is it? Does it tie into the main story heavily? Is it a necessity to build up your own personal faction for a war later on which will be sadistically difficult if you did not spend any time building an army? If it isn't important and it is just a side-feature then just scrap it. I know it sucks to scrap something you've worked hard on but it's better to cut out something "meh" than to have it potentially taint the rest of the product. AND it frees up your time to develop other aspects of the game... Such as:

Rebalance the game. Fuck level scaling. It is fucking annoying when you just wanna get something done and you get interrupted by early game enemies that are tedious to take care of. And there is no sense of reward either with level scaling. I don't know if this is in the game but I'd also strongly advocate against randomized loot and leveled loot. It's awesome when you find a great weapon or armor in a game with hand placed items as you feel rewarded for either picking the stats/skills that allowed you to get access to the item or because you took the time to explore carefully. With enemies it never feels like you grow as a character if they're always on par with you. With shops... I mean, remember the first time you got to a trader in San Francisco in Fallout 2 and saw that amazing weapons they sold? I was practically salivating at what awesome gear was for sale until I was left breathless at the prices. You don't get experiences like this in a level-scaled system.

Not every game has to be Fallout. But Fallout taught some very very valuable lessons in how to craft a great roleplaying game. Learn from it.
 
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