Atomic Heart is a first-person shooter with challenging combat that has players taking on the role of P-3 as he explores a futuristic facility that has been taken over by robots in Soviet Russia. Although a lot of the main story missions take place indoors, up on the surface is land for the player to explore.
While adventuring in Atomic Heart, players are sure to run across testing grounds to find upgrades for their weapons as well as being able to appreciate the beauty of this facility. The facility itself is rather big, and these are the best places players should consider visiting while on the surface.
8 How Did A Giant Submarine Get On The Road
Although the future is now in Atomic Heart, there are still some situations that players will walk past in the game that will make them question why something is there and how it got there in the first place. The submarine-like vehicle that sits across one of the roads in the facility gives many players this confusing reaction.
While there is, unfortunately, no way to enter the submarine itself, there is Polymer surrounding it which allows the player to at least scale the large metal object to sit upon it and take in their surroundings.
7 Battles At The Arena
After completing the first area of the game, the Arena is the first location that players will be tasked with adventuring to once entering the game's open world. This location itself leads to another interesting location of the game that will be mentioned later, but the beauty of this park itself is something for players to behold.
By hopping onto a Hawke nearby, players will be able to get a bird's eye view of the arena and the intricate 'peaceful atom' pattern that has been marked out into the ground. Not to mention the players will face their first official boss fight within the Arena.
6 The Worker And Kolhaz Woman
An interesting fact about Atomic Heart is that many of the locations in the game are based on real-life Russian monuments and locations. This means that many of the statues players may come across in the game may be similar if not identical to those found in the Motherland itself.
One such example of this is the beautifully crafted statue of The Worker and Kolhaz Woman. This statue can originally be found in the city of Moscow; however, in the world of Atomic Heart, players may see this statue from a distance on the left side of the map.
5 Scenic Sites Of The Kollektive Complex
Continuing on with the beauty of statues another great site to beheld early into the game is the ginormous statue that sits atop the Kollektive Complex. As the game discusses the release of Kollektive 2.0 which hopes to bring all minds into one, this statue is great symbolism of what that is supposed to mean.
A man and a woman hold up the device that connects everyone to a neural network. This would bring everyone's minds together to work in unison in the hope of allowing the people of Russia to work more in sync. However, as seen throughout the game, this begins to be questioned which turns this statue into an ominous reminder.
4 Ballet At The Maya Plisetskaya Theater
Even facilities like the one players explore must have their entertainment for the workers that are living within the compound. The Maya Plisetskaya Theater is a location that players will visit later in the game and be absolutely swept away by. Besides the top of the theater simply looking like a monument, under the ground is where the magic really begins.
The Theater itself is another experiment testing how humans react to the chance of robotic performers and as players find the Chirpers they will learn more about the theater and how it has changed over time. Even with all the violence and now mutant infestation, players can't deny the beauty that peaks through; it's a shame it couldn't be seen in its glory.
3 The Multiple Testing Grounds
The whole point of exploring the map of Atomic Heart is to locate these Testing Grounds that looked into possible natural disasters Russia may have faced or prepare them for their hopeful mission to eventually inhabit other planets.
Each one of these testing grounds comes with its own heaps of puzzles and sometimes even bosses for the player to defeat if they hope to unlock recipes to upgrade elements of their weaponry. Although some players may find this exploring quite a chore, there can be some interesting lore learned underground once they have found the elevators to get there.
2 Titan And The Bridge
In between story missions and scenic places, players may also wish to explore certain areas for the loot they might discover. The bridge leading over to the infirmary where Pavlov's Complex can also be found is a great place to harvest a lot of organic materials from the vast amount of Mutants and Plyush that can be found.
With the right weapon equipped or hitting them at speed with a car, players can quickly obtain a bunch of resources from these foes. Not to mention that there is still beauty in this location, especially with the statue known as Titan perfectly in the background.
1 Magnificence Of The Museum
Finally, the location which players will have no choice but to visit is the eye-opening Museum that sits behind the Arena. Players will be exploring this establishment early into the story, and it will set the bar high for every other location a player is expected to visit.
With so many floors and rooms that discuss the robots players will face as well as the scientific advancements, players are sure to be overwhelmed but amazed by what there is to learn. One of the coolest rooms there is the one with the ginormous whale whose organs float in Polymer, but there is so much more to be discovered from within Atomic Heart.
Atomic Heart is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.