The Sniper Elite games are a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine – they’re not GOTY material, but they provide some fun, organ-exploding action that requires just the right amount of brain power. Imagine my intrigue then, as someone who also loves a bit of Fallout, when developer Rebellion said it was making a first-person survival RPG set in my glorious home nation of the United Kingdom. Atomfall had all the ingredients to make me happy, and I’m pleased to say that it’s been doing just that. I’m clearly not alone either, as over a million players have jumped into the British countryside since its launch last week.
While its combat is rather basic and janky, I’m actually enjoying pretty much everything else about Atomfall right now. I’m about eight hours in, but already it’s encouraging me to explore every corner of its beautiful, semi-open world zones and tail off from the main quest regularly with some tantalizing leads. The survival elements and limitations that you play within aren’t overly hardcore or intense, but they still give you something to think about. Plus, it’s a game set in the UK that feels authentic – and that’s something of a rarity. Nat also loved this new RPG when she played it for our Atomfall review, and according to a new press release from Rebellion, it’s resonating with a lot of other people as well.
The developer reports that since it launched last week, Atomfall has attracted over 1.5 million players. That’s an impressive achievement considering it launched in a fairly busy month alongside the likes of fellow RPG Assassin’s Creed Shadows, co-op sensation Split Fiction, and even the hit new soulslike The First Berserker Khazan (which actually dropped on the same day as Atomfall’s full release).
Despite the ongoing popularity and dependability of Rebellion’s Sniper Elite series, this also makes Atomfall the company’s biggest launch ever. It’ll be interesting to see whether that compels Rebellion to go outside of its comfort zone a bit more, and whether we could see its reliance on Sniper Elite games reduced in the future.
Now, it’s worth flagging that 1.5 million players does not equal 1.5 million sales in the case of Atomfall. A big percentage of its player base is likely accessing it through Xbox and PC Game Pass, as it was a day-one launch on the service just like Sniper Elite Resistance earlier in the year. Of course, there are still huge benefits for studios launching games straight onto Game Pass, such as getting people to pay for post-launch DLC expansions (of which Atomfall will be getting at least two). But it’s worth pointing out that not all of these 1.5 million players will have gone out and dropped $50 on the game.
As well as revealing these excellent engagement figures, Rebellion’s also shared some gameplay-related stats. Apparently 316,000 heartless bastards have killed the poor wounded scientist you meet at the very start of the game, 3.7 million enemies have been bludgeoned to death with a cricket bat, and over 4 million pasties have been eaten.
For more experiences like Atomfall, head to our recommendations for the best survival games. Or if you want to see what else you could get with a subscription, check out our list of the best Game Pass games.
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