Atomic Heart released in February 2023, featuring a fantastic 50s Atomic Punk world, creepy robots, creepier mutants, and plenty of high-octane action. Since then, DLC content has been added to give us even more great gameplay.
Atomic Heart has been available to play on PC and other platforms since February 21st 2023. Today we’re taking a closer look at this action-RPG, exploring which PCs will play it best, and wondering if the Jensen Ackles ad will be included as a tutorial level. (Just me?)
We’ve also got all the deets on the three DLCs and a gameplay review if you’re still on the fence about this one.
Atomic Heart Gameplay
Set in a fictional version of 1955 USSR, Atomic Heart sees players living in harmony with subservient robots. That is until a large-scale accident happens that leads to the robots rebelling and the escape of mutant creatures. All hell bent on seeking revenge on their creators.
You play as Major Sergey Nechayev, codenamed P-3, tasked with the job of eliminating the threat. Equipped with an experimental power glove, take part in visceral yet specular combat. Using your skills and the resources around you, battle will require an adaptive fighting style to overcome each unique opponent. From drone-like robots to mutants that could be on a day pass from the Upside Down, each combat situation will test your skills. No resource is off-limits, either. Use the environment, objects, your own body, and even the enemies! Explore the abilities they create when combined with your power glove.
What’s more, this world is rife with secrets and conspiracy. You need to find out more about the massive research and test facilities, uncover staff secrets, and learn what lies beyond this seemingly once-idyllic world.
Atomic Heart DLCs
There are three DLCs for Atomic Heart, Trapped in Limbo, Annihilation Instinct, and the brand-new Enchantment Under the Sea. Additionally, there is the Midas Glove Skin add-on, which is a powerful weapon used to freeze, burn, and electrify your enemies.
Annihilation Instinct
Annihilation Instinct continues the story of Atomic Heart, taking you through the mind-bending Mendeleev Complex. You must find out the truth about NORA as P-3 is pulled back into Facility 3826.
This DLC adds a whole new area to the Atomic Heart world to explore, the Mendeleev Complex and its surrounding swaps. It is a diverse area, filled with new shape-shifting machines. Oh, and a brand-new boss to take down, too.
On top of this, Annihilation Instinct adds two weapons and a polymeric glove ability. The weapons are the Secateur, a ranged weapon with two firing modes, and the Klusha, which is all about slash and pierce melee. Enhancing the polymeric glove is the new Technostasis ability, allowing you to gain the advantage by manipulating time.
Trapped in Limbo
Trapped in Limbo takes us back into the mad, twisted world of Limbo, first experienced in the base game. Packed with bizarre mini games, you must help P-3 escape the depths of his mind while exploring what happens after the main campaign’s alternate ending.
There are seven unique weapon skins to collect throughout this odd contrast of worlds with unconventional mechanics. Will you escape limbo?
Enchantment Under the Sea
Enchantment Under the Sea joins the Atomic Heart family from January 28th 2025. This DLC takes P-3 underwater on a mission to save all humanity. Navigate your way through a massive underwater complex – complete with a swim or two at the bottom of the sea – as the compelling Atomic Heart story continues.
This DLC brings new abilities, weapons, and a… talking dolphin?
Atomic Heart Review
With the launch of Trapped in Limbo, we received a review key for the base game and new DLC. Simon stepped into this 50s Atomic Punk world, and here is what he thought.
Simon’s Gaming Specs
| Component | Details |
|---|---|
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 5 5600X |
| GPU | AMD Radeon RX 6800 |
| RAM | 32GB DDR4 3600MHz |
| Storage | NVMe and SATA Storage |
Previous Reviews
Simon’s Thoughts on Atomic Heart…
The base game of Atomic Heart is a slow burn. At first, I felt a bit lost. The world is setup magnificently. What I struggled with was the early gameplay. I went into this game expecting a shooter akin to Doom, but it is an action RPG more like a Fallout game. Once I settled into this mindset, I was much more comfortable and spent many an hour just crawling around the labs searching for all the loot I could find.
The world features a gorgeous Atomic Punk style that I really enjoy, as shown in my review of The Invincible. It is lush and vibrant or dark and oppressive, depending on where you may be. Then there are the enemies, who are a unique take on mutants and robots. This includes tiny robotic drones armed with lasers, plants crossed with humans to form Demogorgon-like mutants, and, of course, the ballerina-inspired Twins.
Alongside the spectacular visuals, Atomic Heart boasts amazing sound design. The voice acting is top notch, with my personal highlight being the Tereshkova. Voice actress Jules de Jongh has managed to make them sound like a robotic Harley Quinn! Alongside the stellar voice acting, the soundtrack is phenomenal which is hardly surprising, as it was partially worked on by Mick Gordon, the mastermind behind the epic scores to both Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal.
With amazing visuals and sublime soundscape, Atomic Heart is a fantastic game that will give you hours of fun blasting robots in their moustached faces.
… And Trapped in Limbo
Trapped in Limbo picks up where the main game leaves off, with P-3 reaching out to take Right’s hand. However, this is soon shattered when you are dropped into Limbo, an alternative dimension where P-3’s mind goes to when he loses control of his body.
When I finished Atomic Heart, I had no idea what to expect from this DLC. I certainly wasn’t expecting them to flesh out the short Limbo sections with an array of mini games. This came as a bit of surprise, going from a battling against robots and mutants to surfing along slices of cake, Kremlin shaped rotating towers, and battling gingerbread men with a candy shotgun. All the while you’re trapped in the body of an anthropomorphic rabbit, with a floating Teardrop talking to you.
All in all, this was a bit of tonal whiplash. But it very much makes sense in the world of Atomic Heart. It’s revealed that Limbo is a different dimension, that is perceived differently by anyone who encounters it. It just so happens, with P-3’s love of cartoons the world appears to him like a trip on Willy Wonka’s boat.
Trapped in Candyland
The only way P-3 can cope with this alternate dimension is to construct a means to picture it. Which is why we experience it as a nightmare version of Candyland. P-3 is a child at heart, really. Here, you partake in a range of mini games. Each draws upon popular titles to provide varied gameplay as you progress through the narrative.
These games are symbolic of P-3’s journey to return to consciousness. Along the way, you will be guided by the mind of Ekaterina, who P-3 has envisioned as a Teardrop of Polymer, encouraging you to push ever onwards and lead you to snippets of P-3’s lost memories. Every so often, you will have to battle figments of P-3’s mind that just want to give up the ghost. Battling these thoughts is represented by fighting Bertie Bassett’s extended family. Obviously.
There are a total of five levels to complete, although only three are mandatory to advance the story. The other two levels simply add to the whole narrative of Trapped in Limbo. Two of these levels are the CS: GO Surfing style games, where you race to the end of the stage collecting apples and coins to buy upgrades and cosmetic rewards for the base game. Then there are two levels of Tower Climbing, where you can come across fragments of P-3’s lost memories, which give you a deeper understanding of his relationship to Ekaterina. Finally, there is the game that lets you escape Limbo, a Subway Surfer style game, with a twist. That twist being a large dose of Untitled Goose Game. You must butt surf after P-3 as an ornery goose, dodging candy canes, trains made of candy, and gingerbread walls. I particularly liked this mini game.
As you can see, this is a wild and crazy DLC! With its varied gameplay, there is sure to be something you’ll like. I can’t wait to see where the story goes from here, I’ll just have to prepare myself for the unexpected.
… And Now Enchantment Under the Sea
Mundfish does like jumping themes with Atomic Heart. From a traditional FPS style for the base game, to a mind-bending group of mini games for Trapped in Limbo. Now with Enchantment Under the Sea, they’ve returned to an old school FPS again. Which, I have to say, was a welcome return for me. There’s only so much candy surfing I can take.
With this DLC, we pick up just after P-3 has woken up from his time in Limbo, standing over the body of Right, one of the Twin bodyguards of Sechenov. During Trapped in Limbo, we learned that these robot ballerinas contained the consciousness of P-3’s dead wife Katya. So, it’s no surprise that he’d reach out towards this link to his past. Which in turn leads to him being stabbed through the hand, and her essence transferring to his glove.
Now with Katya in hand, literally, we’re back off charging through the ruins of Facility 3826 again, in search of the Rings that P-3 was tricked into throwing away by CHAR-les in the main story. This leads us a new location, the Neptune Underwater Research centre. In this vast underwater laboratory, we’ll meet some new allies including the Hunter, some adorable talking dolphins, and Nikolay voiced by YouTuber Kyle Hill!
New Enemies and New Tricks
As you explore Neptune, Sergey and Katya will have to contend with enemies old and new. Alongside the old robots and mutants of Facility 3826, you’ll see giant sea mites and polymeric octopuses who like to throw mini versions of themselves at you, each filled with a poisonous ink.
There are two brand new bosses. First, the Robo Girl, a giant entertainment machine personally approved by Stalin – yes, it is that evil. Then the MO-R4Y, a huge underwater exploration robot armed to the teeth, literally, as this robot moray eel is armed with lasers, mines, electrics fields, and more.
But we have some new tricks up our glove, as Katya boasts code that CHAR-les never did, giving us two new abilities, Whip and Blaze. These offer new exploration options, using Whip for jumping gaps and Blaze to clear out obstacles.
Plus, they offer new combat abilities, such as being able to pull yourself into enemies with Whip for a quick follow-up attack, harking back to the ol’ one-two combo from Bioshock. Meanwhile, Blaze is amazing for tackling groups of enemies, as it is an AoE attack that also sets enemies on fire. It’s a little OP, especially when you level it up.
A Great Penultimate Chapter
Enchantment Under the Sea is a fantastic addition to Atomic Heart, boasting an excellent linear story line that hits the perfect beats to keep you going. It doesn’t outstay its welcome, taking only a couple of hours to clear. The exploration is fun, and the addition of the two new abilities nicely rounds out P-3’s tool kit. Plus, the combat feels incredible. Whether you prefer melee or ranged, there’s something here you’ll love. I can’t wait to see what the final chapter brings and how the duo will end up taking CHAR-les down.
Atomic Heart Official Specifications
You have your power glove, but what hardware is needed to run it? Check out the official specifications for Atomic Heart.
| Component | Minimum Specs | Recommended Specs |
|---|---|---|
| Operating System | Windows 10 (20H1) 64-bit | Windows 10 (20H1) 64-bit |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 3 1200 Intel Core i5-2500 | AMD Ryzen 5 2600X Intel Core i7-7700K |
| Memory | 8GB RAM | 16GB RAM |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon R9 380 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 4GB VRAM | AMD RX 6700 XT NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 8GB VRAM |
| DirectX | Version 12 | Version 12 |
| Storage | 90GB available space | 90GB available space |
| Notes: | 30 FPS, 1920×1080 in low | SSD recommended 60 FPS, 1920×1080 in ultra |
Best Gaming PCs to Play Atomic Heart
In need of a gaming PC with a bit more oomph to play Atomic Heart? Here are our top picks to play this explosive robot apocalypse. Should these not fit your atomic punk vibe, you can explore the full Overclockers UK collection of gaming PCs and laptops with just the click of a button!
OcUK Gaming Mach 3 Pre-Built PC
Level up to 1440p gaming without breaking the bank! The OcUK Gaming Mach 3 utilises an AMD Ryzen 5 5700X3D CPU and NVIDIA GeForce 4070 Super GPU to optimise gaming performance on all your favourite titles. Plus, with 32GB DDR4 RAM and a 1TB NVMe SSD, you can game on with near-zero latency and ultra-fast loading times. No being trapped in limbo for you!
The OcUK Gaming Mach 3 is covered by our three years parts and labour warranty, for that extra peace of mind. Better yet, if ordered before the cut-off point, the Mach 3 is eligible for next-day delivery! (Stock allowing.)
OcUK Gaming Calcite Pre-Built PC
The OcUK Gaming Calcite is packed with cherry-picked hardware based on our best-selling specifications, making it well-suited for Atomic Heart. The Intel Core i7-14700KF CPU and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super make the perfect team for taking on wayward robots – in 1440p resolutions no less. They can effortlessly handle all your multi-tasking, AAA gaming, and streaming needs. What’s more, it is covered by a comprehensive three years parts and labour warranty, for that extra peace of mind.
ASUS TUF Gaming A15 Gaming Laptop
Dive into the action, with the ASUS TUF Gaming A15. This gaming laptop features phenomenal gaming hardware contained in a highly portable chassis. The A15 boasts an AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS CPU, a high-performance processor that has 6 cores and 12 threads. This is coupled with 16GB of blazing fast DDR5 memory, which allows it to deliver outstanding performance across a variety of workloads. Alongside this, the ASUS TUF Gazming A15 features a powerful NVIDIA RTX 4060 GPU, perfect for playing the latest modern games with stunning graphics and buttery-smooth frame rates. Plus, with a 15.6” FHD 144Hz display, your games will look and play better than ever before.
OcUK Gaming Radiance Ember Custom PC
One of our configurable gaming PCs, the OcUK Gaming Radiance Ember is a high performance PC with an Intel Core i5-13600 CPU with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super GPU. Airflow is enhanced by an ASUS TUF Gaming 240mm AIO cooler, keeping the Radiance Ember at optimum temperature whilst you take on robots, mutants, and soviet secrets.
Your configurable options on the OcUK Gaming Radiance Ember are the graphics card, cable colours, storage drives, and operating system. Any changes to the base spec may affect the price and lead time.
OcUK Gaming Buzzard Custom PC
The OcUK Gaming Buzzard is another of our configurable gaming PCs, harnessing the power of 13th Gen Intel CPUs and AMD Radeon RX 7000 Series GPUs. As standard, it is equipped with an Intel Core i7-13700F CPU and Radeon RX 7800 XT GPU, expertly bringing Atomic Heart and all your favourite games to life in stunning quality. The DDR5 RAM will keep this gaming PC running smoothly, with quick fetch rates and ultra-fast frequencies. Plus, the Kolink Unity Solar case offers fantastic airflow, perfect for keeping your PC at optimum temperatures.
If you wanted to change the base spec to better suit your needs, you can configure the PC case, CPU, memory, GPU, AIO cooler, storage drives, cables, and operating system. Please note that this may affect the price and lead time.
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Have You Been Playing Atomic Heart?
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PC specs are subject to change.
- 15 min read
Emily Haylock
Author
Emily is a board and cosy gamer, keyboard obsessive, and content copywriter for Overclockers UK. She has been with Overclockers UK since 2020, writing about everything from noblechairs to 8Pack PCs. She writes from within her desk nest with a foster pup at her feet. (What, a desk duvet is a totally normal thing!) In her downtime, she likes to play board games, farming sims, and old-school Final Fantasy. IX to be specific. It is the best, and that is a hill she will die on.
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