Atomine

ATOMINE delivers a solid albeit somehow mundane interpretation of the twin-stick shooter that will still satisfy those with cravings for something new within the realm of the genre but will probably not convert any newcomers to the format. We still give it a recommendation despite feeling that while polished, its premise might have allowed for a more extravagant visual experience. Hack away humble little program, hack away.

ATOMINE does not bring any big surprise to the Nintendo Switch catalogue. It's a twin-stick shooter and a competent one at that. If its plot is somewhat original, the rest of the game is not. Thanks to its minimalist but not any less stylish visuals and variety of weapons and enemies, ATOMINE is enough to keep the players amused for some time but it doesn't take long until it starts feeling too repetitive and too demanding on the player's energy.

undefined.I find myself having a hard time recommending Atomine to anyone but those looking for a repetitive game and feel like the different ways in which you shoot the enemies isn't enough to sate your interest in a twin-stick shooter. I understand there are those who appreciate the feedback loop of going through a run, seeing how far you can go, and then trying to do better in your next run, but that alone wasn't enough to keep me engaged in this one.

Taken as a whole, ATOMINE largely succeeds at what it is trying to accomplish; the game simply wants to be a solid twin-stick shooter with rogue-like elements and it fulfills that goal precisely. Of course, this means the game never really rises to greatness and is unlikely to be all that appealing to those looking for a more innovative or compelling experience. Regardless, if you have a love for this type of game, or at least a momentary lust, then ATOMINE should be a perfectly suitable way to fulfill those desires.

Atomine is decent but it doesn't do anything unique. The whole experience is brought down by annoyances such as randomly spawning enemies, boring level design, a lack of variety, and unbalanced weapons. There are worse roguelikes out there, but there are also way better ones.

If you're a die hard twin-stick shooting fan Atomine is a bit of a breath of fresh air among the offerings already available. Its more arcade-like sensibilities make it a bit more friendly to pick up and play and the runs tend to be on the quicker side, though if you get rolling it can take a bit. More mainstream gamers who're in search of a shooter to check out may find there are better examples of the genre on the Switch but could find the relative simplicity of it all appealing, especially in handheld more where its more chunky look works well on the smaller screen. If you're looking for a very cyberpunk-looking twin-stick experience it is worth a look.

Atomine is a challenging twin-stick shooter with an interesting setup and a well elaborate environment. The roguelike elements are not so well introduced, though.