Altas Reactor is a sci-fi themed 3D turn-based strategy game that offers a unique twist to the typical tactics game. Players utilize a revolutionary four-phase turn system to plan out their attacks and take out opposing teams in instanced close quarter battle arenas. Atlas Reactor offers a refreshingly unique art style and gameplay concept.

Outwit, outmaneuver, and outlast your enemies in Atlas Reactor, a turn-based tactics game with a unique four-phase turn system never before seen in the genre. Choose from 16 readily playable Freelancers and experience action-packed PvP matches across a variety of sci-fi themed closed quarter battle arenas. Strategically plan your moves to make use of your chosen freelancer’s and react to enemy movements, but do it fast because you only have 20 seconds to decide. Work closely with your team to coordinate movements and attacks to effectively use your arsenal of abilities against the enemy. Play through multiple game modes: Practice, Coop, Versus, or complete challenges and objectives in the Season campaign to earn bonus loot and rewards. Atlas Reactor intiailly launched as a buy to play game, but went free to play on January 17, 2017.

Full Review

Atlas Reactor Review

By, Marc Marasigan

Atlas Reactor is a buy-to-play sci-fi themed 3D turn-based strategy game set in Atlas, a towering megacity where players, called Freelancers, fight each other for control of the last remaining reactor on the planet. The game features great-looking cell-shaded graphics as well as awesome artwork and character designs. The soundtrack and sound effects have a futuristic vibe to them and fit rather well with the game’s sci-fi theme.

Newbies Beware

Atlas Reactor is a one of a kind game and probably the first in its genre, which is why it would probably be a good idea to watch the “How To Play” video and play through the tutorial before jumping into a match. The playable tutorial can be found in the settings menu which can be accessed by clicking on that little gear icon on the top right of the lobby screen.

I missed the tutorial when I first launched the game. I did watch the video though thinking that it would be enough to get by. How woefully mistaken I was. I spent the first few matches moving aimlessly through the map with absolutely no clue on how to attack or use my abilities while the battle waged furiously all around me. Needless to say, it wasn’t my idea of fun. Fortunately, Atlas Reactor’s playing community is fairly tolerant of noobs. My teammates didn’t exactly tell me what I was supposed to do, which is perfectly understandable considering the 20-second time limit, but at least I wasn’t trolled for practically giving the game away by dying twice in a race to 5 kills match.

A New Breed Of Game

It’s hard to describe what type of game Atlas Reactor is because its gameplay is so unique and is probably the first of its kind. It’s like rock-paper-scissors, chess, MOBA, XCOM, and Super Robot Wars all rolled into one. Personally, the game reminds me of Trap Gunner for the Playstation, a strategy game I spend hours on when I was a kid. Atlas Reactor’s selling point is in its unique four-phase turn system.

Players can perform any one of three action types: Prep, Dash, and Blast, plus a Move during their 20-second turn. Prep abilities are usually buffs or attack abilities that are activated a turn or two later. Dash abilities are skills that allow a player to evade attacks by moving to a different location and sometimes even deal damage while moving. Dash should not to be confused with Move which is simply moving to a different location without using a skill. After selecting an ability, players may choose to move to a different position or stay where they are. Once the 20 seconds are up, the match moves to Resolution which is the time when the player’s decisions are played out. Prep abilities are played first, followed by Dash, then Blast, and finally move all in one turn. Alternatively, players can choose not to use their skills to be able to move further. Keep in mind though that all the other abilities have to be played first before a player can move.

A Match In The Life Of Player C

The game can be a bit hard to pick up at first but here’s a quick example to get you up to speed. Say we have Player A, B, C, and D all neatly lined up one after the other. Player A, who’s a complete noob, runs out of time trying to figure out how to attack B but succeeds in making his character move behind a barrier. Player B, who likes to play it safe, chooses a Prep skill that gives her a temporary shield. Player C, who just got dumped chooses to unleash his rage on Player D with a damage-dealing Blast skill. And finally Player D, who’s been playing since Closed Beta and has anticipated all of their moves, decides to go with a Dash skill that will allow him to move from his current position to a spot just past A’s position and deal damage to the other players as he passes.

Once the 20 seconds are up the game follows the order of play: Prep, Dash, Blast and Move. Player B, who chose a Prep skill casts her shield first followed by Player D who dashes and hits C, and A, but fails to deal damage to B because of her shield. Player C then throws his attack at thin air (sorry buddy) since Player D already dashed out of harm’s way. And finally, Player A gets to move behind the barrier after taking damage from Player D. Confused yet? It gets easier when you start playing. The key is anticipating what a player is going to do or where he’s going to move and plan your moves accordingly, like what Player D did. He not only avoided taking damage, he was also able to deal damage to two other players as well. But then again players in the game don’t usually arrange themselves in neat lines. Teamwork is also vital in effectively cornering enemies and dealing massive damage with ability combos.

Choose Your Game

Atlas features multiple game modes to satisfy any type of player: Practice, Cooperative, Versus, and Season. Newbies can practice by themselves against AI or with up to 3 other teammates in Cooperative Mode. Solo players, provided that they’ve reached an account level of 10, can also experience the game’s story by playing through the Season campaign which offers bonus loots and rewards by completing certain objectives and challenges during the Season arc. In Versus mode a team of four players goes up against an opposing team in real-time fast paced closed quarter combat across three different maps. Players can also opt to watch other players in Spectator mode.

Credits and ISO

All matches, except for Practice, reward players with ISO and experience points. ISO is in-game currency which can be used to buy skins, taunts, and mod tokens which can be used to customize your abilities. ISO can also be exchanged for Credits, Atlas Reactor’s premium currency. Credits can also be purchased with real-world money and can be used to buy GG boosts which give temporary ISO and experience bonuses. Experience points on the other hand count towards your account level and any Freelancer you’re currently playing with. As Freelancers level up, they gain points that they can use to customize and improve their abilities. This gives veterans a bit of an edge during matches but not enough to ruin the game’s balance.

The Final Verdict - Great

Atlas Reactor takes elements of MOBA’s, strategy games, and RPG’s and adds their own secret sauce to the mix to come up with a deliciously delightful concoction which is surprisingly fun and addictive despite being turn-based. Top it off with well-designed characters and great-looking cell-shaded graphics that will undoubtedly age well, and you’ve got a recipe for a great game that will probably be entertaining players for years to come. The learning curve is a bit steep but should become easier the longer you play the game. I highly recommend this game and is well worth the $20 just for the sheer uniqueness of it. Update: It went free to play on January 17th, 2017, but a one time purchase unlocks all of the game's freelancers.