Something to look forward to: If you think it feels like years since Atomic Heart was first announced, you're right: four years, to be exact. But the long wait will come to an end sometime in late 2022. With that confirmation comes a new trailer, which makes the FPS look very compelling.
The latest trailer for the Soviet Russia-themed sci-fi finishes with a release window announcement of "2022 #######ber," placing it anytime between September and December this year. Developer Mundfish is doubtlessly being vague to avoid any of the disappointment/anger that comes with confirming a game's exact release date and then telling fans it's been delayed.
Mundfish says the game draws inspiration from Soviet sci-fi and the space discovery era in the USSR. With its robots, mutants, powers, weapons, and what looks like a hacking mini-game, as well as the general aesthetic, comparisons with BioShock are inevitable.
The latest trailer does make Atomic Heart look like quite the prospect. There are some impressive weapons and enemies on display, and we also get to see protagonist Major Nechaev's glove, which allows him to fire electrical bolts and lasers, move objects, and freeze attackers into blocks of ice.
The game boasts the musical talents of composer Mick Gordon, who most will know from his pounding tracks on Doom.
Atomic Heart's graphics also look very nice. Speaking to IGN, Mundfish said it is working on implementing ray-tracing on as many platforms as possible, and the game is set to feature DLSS support.
Expect Atomic Heart to start rising up Steam's most-wishlisted games chart from its current position of 17th very soon. We'll get to see if it lives up to the hype and whether the wait was worth it later this year.