Atomic Heart’s “sublime utopian world” was accused of glorifying the USSR

‘Atomic Heart’, a video game set in an alternate 1950s Soviet Union, topped the charts on the Steam digital sales platform upon its release on Tuesday. The title briefly held the number one spot despite not being available to Russian users of the service.

Developed by the Cyprus-based studio Mundfish, ‘Atomic Heart’ managed to briefly dethrone ‘Hogwarts Legacy’ as the top-selling title on Steam, which is the biggest digital distribution platform for PC gaming. The new release soon slipped to a still-formidable second place in the charts, yielding to the overwhelming popularity of the Harry Potter franchise.

‘Atomic Heart’ is a first-person shooter that puts the player in the shoes of a KGB agent “in a mad and sublime utopian world” of an alternate history USSR, shown as a technological wonder of robotics, albeit with a dark conspiracy brewing. The game’s unique retrofuturistic Soviet dystopia aesthetic has been cited as one of its main draws, although the style has also opened the game up to political controversy.

Ukrainian YouTuber ‘Harenko’ claimed that ‘Atomic Heart’ glorifies the Soviet Union and the KGB, and called on Western players to boycott it. However, multiple American content creators discarded that notion, citing the subversive nature of ‘Atomic Heart’ as a commentary on Cold War propaganda. Some also criticized developer Mundfish – many of whose staff are Russian – for not taking a stance on the conflict in Ukraine. The developers tweeted in January that they “do not comment on politics or religion” and are a “global team.”

YouTube game critic Luke Stephens argued on Friday that boycott calls appeared to mean that “a lot of people are simply engaging in McCarthyism, dismissing this studio, because it has Russians working within it.” He added that this kind of logic was “a slippery slope.”

The game’s success on Steam cannot be attributed to Russian users, as the digital storefront suspended sales in the country in response to Moscow’s military operation in Ukraine. By EarthWeb estimates, there are around 11.5 million Russian users on the platform. Instead, ‘Atomic Heart’ is available for purchase in the country via a service called VK Play.

‘Atomic Heart’ was positively received by critics, with review aggregator Open Critic currently listing it as 74/100 and its Metacritic score standing at 75/100.

    • Franfran2424
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      2 years ago

      Buying tactical nukes and nuclear submarines, one vodka at a time!

      Meanwhile, liberals paying to have something written on shells sent to kill donetsk children: I sleep

  • Shrike502
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    2 years ago

    was accused of glorifying the USSR

    They say as if it’s something bad

      • Shrike502
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        2 years ago

        Apparently certain people took offense to this little poem

      • DerPapa69@lemmy.ml
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        2 years ago

        Are you playing it at the moment? If so, how is it in terms of anti-communist propaganda? I’d love to play it, but not if it’s anti-USSR bullshit

        • Inbrededcanadian
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          2 years ago

          Liberal Russian thinking Soviet as their glory days without understanding politics, not so much anti communist but a lot of liberal BS

        • Anatolianin
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          2 years ago

          Nah, my potato laptop would melt if I try to. I am watching play through.

          About anti-USSR bullshit… Eh, hard to say as of right now. Opening scene was beautiful, gonna see what happens in main game.

    • RedSquid
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      2 years ago

      Buying wizard game is a sign you’re actually a piece of shit human being. I’m holding off on Atomic Heart until I find out a bit more about the politics, but might pick it up if it’s not bullshit anti-Soviet propaganda.

      and to support the war effort against the banderites lol

    • Comrade CJOP
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      2 years ago

      I just copied what the article says. None of what I wrote is my opinion or my own words

  • lxvi
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    2 years ago

    It was stupid for Steam to drop Russia. They were getting thirty percent. Does it hurt the Russians to not have to pay a thirty percent cut for nothing? It would be if my landlord decided to not charge me an excess in rent to teach me that I needed him

    • ☭CommieWolf☆
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      2 years ago

      To be completely fair they also dropped Ukraine.

      Also Belarus for some reason.

      • Shrike502
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        2 years ago

        Belarus got hit by a number of sanctions alongside Russia, as they are viewed as “complicit in the invasion”

      • lxvi
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        2 years ago

        it’s the diplomatic approach

    • Shrike502
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      2 years ago

      People still use and even buy games on Steam. It was just posturing on their part, and frankly I doubt it brought them much monetary loss. Same as others

      • lxvi
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        2 years ago

        It’s surrendering market share and fostering foreign competition if nothing else. I’m sure they’re not happy about surrendering to Пар

  • Anatolianin
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    2 years ago

    The opening scene in the game… Ah man, it was so beautiful.

  • 小莱卡
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    2 years ago

    Just like they say, there is no such thing as bad publicity.