Atlas Fallen is a new action RPG from the developers of The Surge. This new game features a ton of sand-based powers and combat.

Atlas Fallen is a New Action-RPG Developed by the Minds Behind Lords of The Fallen and The Surge

The sands have many secrets buried beneath, waiting for adventurers to unearth them (just ask the Arid Deserts of Genshin Impact’s Sumeru region). With this, Deck 13 in partnership with Focus Entertainment, have unveiled a cinematic trailer for their newest game during Gamescom 2022’s opening night.

Titled “Atlas Fallen”, this new action-adventure RPG promises to bring us mythical beings, corrupted gods, shape-shifting weapons, and a whole lot of sand.

Atlas Fallen

The magical lands that Atlas Fallen are still unnamed at this time. However, these sand-filled dunes are timeless, and still teeming with life despite the arid heat and lurking threats. It is said that the sand holds memories of the past, holding echoes of what once was greatness.

You see, the gods themselves walked the lands of Atlas Fallen, living in peace and harmony with humanity. Their mutual respect for mankind was so great, in fact, that mortal heroes are said to have walked with these deities. As time went on, this bond waned as the gods’ vanity grew. Mankind was cast aside as the immortal beings squabbled with one another, resulting in corruption.

It countless years since this event, and most of humanity has already forgotten their prime. Sand is the only thing that remembers the greatness of the stories that once were. It is only in ruins and ancient pieces of the old world that remember.

That’s A Lot of Sand!

Atlas Fallen’s Gamescom Opening Night trailer featured primarily cinematics with small snippets of gameplay. While actual in-game footage was brief, the cinematics themselves revealed a lot of what we can expect from this upcoming action RPG.

While the world is bathed in sand, the location where the cinematic takes place isn’t the hottest place on earth. There are still signs of life and vegetation with some patches of grass and trees. It looks more like an ancient European fantasy setting that was trapped in a sandstorm for a few dozen years. A caravan is hurrying along an ancient highway, eager to reach the majestic city in the distance. To cross, however, they must cross a bridge that has already fallen.

Sand’s Like That

There seem to be two available characters in Atlas Fallen, one male, and one female. This gives us the impression that we will either be able to choose between one character to play as the entire game or that certain story segments will give us control of one or the other.

Our armored male character then makes use of his sand magic to lift the fallen debris and quickly repairs the bridge. The effect is temporary, however, as it is still only held together with his magic. It is unfortunate then that the caravan is promptly attacked by a couple of sand beasts that look like lions.

The male prepares for battle by forming a gigantic sword out of the very sands. Our female character who’s watching from a distance then surfs onto the sand, downhill and ready to support her comrade. Apparently, this sand-surfing ability will make up the majority of the game’s traversal systems and will be the primary way of getting around. It isn’t clear yet if this will be an open-world RPG or rather big interconnected areas.

Weapon shifting will also be a large feature of the game. While braving the onslaught, the male character swipes and strikes with his sword. However, he can also transform the blade into a massive whip, giving him a bit of a range advantage over his foes. Similarly, the female looks like she can swap her sand-based armaments from an axe to a hammer.

A Proven Track Record

If Deck 13’s experience with The Surge and its sequel is anything to go by, then we can expect Atlas Fallen to have the same electrifying melee combat. It will be interesting to see how satisfying combat will be as it doesn’t seem that strategic dismemberment will be a big part of this title.

Atlas Fallen’s Steam page does mention though that players will be able to “target and gather the essence of your enemies”. This will likely lead to customization that we got from salvaging enemy parts from The Surge.

Perhaps sand explosions and the glimpses of lightning magic will give us the punch we’ve come to expect with this studio’s games. There also seems to be a “GET OVER HERE!” ability that will drag even the largest of beasts towards your character, setting them up for a world of pain.

Quite Not a Fan of Sand

Atlas Fallen is currently only available for preorder on the Focus Interactive main site. The base game costs $59.99, as expected. It also seems that the only edition currently available is the physical disk version. No collectors, digital, or deluxe editions have been announced as of yet.

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For more news on Gamescom 2022, check out:

• Wyrdsong Revealed at Gamescom; Dark Fantasy Open-World RPG
• The Lords of the Fallen Dark Fantasy Action-RPG Trailer First Impressions
• Lies of P Gets New Gameplay Trailer Reveals Combat and More