And to lesser concern, questions about the studio’s own origins and location.

Plus this old gem for good measure: “we do not comment on politics or religion.”

And there’s also the"racist cartoons" controversy.

Lead character in Atomic Heart

And there’s more!

Three or four though and you really are rapidly approaching the region of naivety and ignorance.

Fool me twice, and all that.

Cover image for YouTube video

What is Atomic Heart?

stuff is just marketing; lots of people have that one exact, historically significant, Ukrainian hairstyle!

And changing the release date would, er, require a bit of paperwork?

Atomic Heart review - a crowd looks up at a giant government building in white stone draped in red banners against a blue sky during a big parade

  • but it’s enough circumstantial evidence to know that something here seems, at very best,off.

What’s strange, though, is that all of this sits in quite stark contrast to theactual game.

Its story is a condemnation of Soviet power struggles, corruption, and willful bureaucratic ignorance.

Atomic Heart review - a poster showing a pig’s head charicatured as Hitler inside a black boot with a caption mocking fascists

A granny, but she has guns andswears!

All this stuck together like the Homer Simpson Car in playable form.

  • instead of being spurred on internally by cohesive design.

Atomic Heart review - confetti cannons fire as you approach a destroyed facility

Which is a shame because, individually, these disparate parts are often quite good.

Combat, to be fair, is a little rudimentary.

To them, to criticise a game is to criticise all who even thought of playing it.

Atomic Heart review - a testy exchange between members of the shadowy politburo

Never mind the irony of what the game itself is really about.

That’s one, cynical reading, at least - the trouble with Atomic Heart is nobody really knows.

With other games there will be other problems.

Atomic Heart review - the two ballerina robots stand in front of you with suggestive pertness

It means you should try harder.

Atomic Heart review - the upgrades menu with information videos playing in the style of Fallout

Atomic Heart review - a spooky dark corridor with an impaled body at the end glowing red, giving horror vibes

Atomic Heart review - your arm extended out towards a yellow-painted ledge to grab

Atomic Heart review - fending off a vending machine which is trying to murder you while screaming in sexual pleasure

Atomic Heart review - a strange granny tells you to take cover with hurried sweariness

Atomic Heart review - P-3’s face looking confused as his glove, Charles, explains things to him

Atomic Heart review - a dead body on the floor having a chat with you via its THOUGHT device