Key Highlights
- Atomfall features six distinct endings, each tied to a specific character and their agenda within the quarantine zone.
- Player choices significantly impact the narrative, determining which of the multiple endings you can achieve.
- Key quest items like the protocol radio part for Captain Sims are essential for unlocking specific escape routes.
- Acquiring a sample of Oberon is a critical step for multiple escape paths, including those with Dr. Garrow and Joyce Tanner.
- The game demands multiple playthroughs or strategic saves to experience the full scope of its branching narrative.
- Escaping the zone involves complex tasks, from powering the Interchange to deciding Oberon’s ultimate fate.
Introduction
Welcome to the quarantined world of Atomfall, a game where every choice carves a new path through its irradiated British landscape. Your primary goal is escape, but how you achieve it is entirely up to you. This guide is your ultimate resource for navigating the complex web of decisions and unlocking all possible endings. From aligning with military protocol to siding with mysterious cultists, we’ll break down every step required to see the full extent of Operation Atomfall and its dramatic conclusions. Are you ready to decide the fate of the zone?
Understanding Atomfall: Game Overview
Atomfall drops you into the grim reality of the Windscale quarantine zone, a sealed-off region of post-apocalyptic Britain. Your journey will take you through desolate locations like the eerie Wyndham Village and the sprawling Slatten Dale, each filled with competing factions and dark secrets surrounding the catastrophic Operation Atomfall. The game’s core is a survival action-adventure, but its true genius lies in its narrative design.
What truly sets Atomfall apart is how it hands narrative control over to you. Unlike linear games, its story is a branching tree of consequences. Your actions and allegiances directly influence not just dialogue, but the availability of entire questlines and, ultimately, which of the six drastically different endings you experience. This player-centric approach ensures that no two playthroughs feel the same.
What Makes Atomfall’s Endings Unique?
The endings in Atomfall are more than just slightly different cutscenes; they represent fundamentally different resolutions for the entire quarantine zone. Each one is a unique culmination of a specific character’s storyline, with its own tone, requirements, and moral implications. Be warned, this guide will contain major spoilers as we break down these paths.
A key distinction in Atomfall’s approach is the level of commitment required for each ending. You aren’t just making a last-minute choice in the final control room. Instead, your path is forged through a series of quests and interactions that can lock you out of other possibilities. For instance, siding with one character might make another permanently hostile, altering your available escape routes.
This design makes each ending feel earned and significant. Whether you’re destroying Oberon, extracting a sample, or even helping it grow, the final outcome is a direct reflection of your journey through the game’s world. This depth makes discovering each conclusion a compelling reason to dive back into the quarantine zone.
Core Gameplay Mechanics and Story Structure
At its core, Atomfall’s gameplay loop revolves around exploration, resource gathering, and completing tasks for the zone’s key players. To access any of the endings, you must first complete a series of foundational steps. This includes powering up the Interchange’s central processor, which acts as a hub connecting the different regions of the map.
Your choices directly influence the story by opening or closing specific questlines. For example, retrieving the Protocol Radio Part for Captain Sims sets you on his path, while activating the three radio towers for Joyce Tanner progresses her narrative. These aren’t just side quests; they are critical decision points that shape your potential endgame.
Ultimately, many paths converge on the Oberon dig site, where you’ll be pulling critical levers in the control room. However, what you do there—destroy, sample, or enhance Oberon—is determined by the allegiances you’ve formed. Gameplay choices are not just about combat or survival; they are the very mechanism that drives the branching story forward.
Atomfall Endings Explained
Atomfall offers a rich variety of conclusions, with a total of six possible endings for you to unlock. These aren’t just minor variations; each one presents a completely different fate for you, the quarantine zone, and the mysterious Oberon entity. The endings range from “good” to “bad” and “neutral,” depending on your perspective and the consequences of your actions.
To access these different outcomes, you will often need to complete specific tasks, such as extracting a sample of Oberon or accessing a secret data store for a particular faction. The path you choose will determine who you can trust and how you’ll make your final escape. The following sections will detail how many endings exist and what it takes to achieve them.
How Many Endings Can You Unlock?
There are a total of six distinct endings you can unlock in Atomfall. Each ending is directly associated with a key character or entity within the quarantine zone. Your main escape options involve siding with Captain Sims, Dr. Garrow, Joyce Tanner, Mother Jago, Dr. Holder, or the enigmatic Voice on the Phone.
Unfortunately, you cannot unlock all endings in a single playthrough. Your choices throughout the game will lock you into certain paths while making others inaccessible. For example, helping one character might turn another hostile, preventing you from completing their questline. To see everything, you’ll need to commit to multiple playthroughs or use strategic save files before major decision points.
The endings can be broadly categorized by their impact on the world, as shown in the table below. This classification helps you understand the moral and narrative weight of each potential outcome.
Ending Category |
Associated Character(s) |
Outcome Summary |
---|---|---|
Bad |
Mother Jago |
You sacrifice yourself, allowing Oberon to grow stronger. |
Neutral |
Captain Sims, The Voice on the Phone, Joyce Tanner |
Oberon is destroyed or sampled, but with grim costs. |
Good |
Dr. Garrow, Dr. Holder |
You escape with scientific knowledge or truly destroy Oberon. |
The Impact of Player Choices on Outcomes
In Atomfall, every significant choice you make has tangible consequences that ripple through the narrative. These decisions are not merely cosmetic; they fundamentally alter the story’s direction and determine which endings are available to you. For instance, choosing to use the fire safety system to help a character might be mutually exclusive with another’s plan to use explosives.
A prime example of a critical decision point is at the Casterfell Dam Data Store. Here, you might be asked by Joyce Tanner to input the GEN MOVE command, which will permanently lock you out of Dr. Garrow’s questline. This single action forces you to commit to one path over another, highlighting how your choices directly prune the branching narrative.
This system effectively ties player morality to game outcomes. Do you snitch on a villager to gain favor with Captain Sims? Do you free a controversial scientist from prison? These actions are not just quest steps; they are moral choices that define your character and your ultimate fate in the quarantine zone. Your decisions matter, and the game ensures you feel their weight.
Getting Started: What You’ll Need to Explore Every Ending
Before you set out to uncover every ending in Atomfall, it’s crucial to be prepared. This isn’t just about having the right in-game gear; it’s also about understanding the technical and gameplay requirements for a smooth and comprehensive experience. You’ll need to be ready for multiple playthroughs and strategic planning.
Your journey will take you to the deepest parts of the Windscale Plant, and gaining access often requires specific items. For some paths, like Mother Jago’s, you will need the Castle Key to find her book and progress to the lower level of certain facilities. Being methodical in your exploration is key. The following sections will cover the recommended setup and essential items.
System Requirements and Recommended Setup
While specific system requirements are a baseline, for a game as atmospheric and detailed as Atomfall, you’ll want a solid recommended setup to truly appreciate the desolate beauty of its world without performance hiccups. A smooth framerate is critical during intense combat sequences and for navigating the game’s complex environments without stutter.
For an optimal experience, consider the following hardware recommendations:
- A modern mid-to-high-range GPU to handle the game’s detailed textures and lighting effects.
- An SSD for faster loading times, which is a lifesaver when reloading saves to explore different choices.
- At least 16GB of RAM to ensure smooth gameplay, especially in larger, more populated areas of the quarantine zone.
Beyond hardware, your setup should include a readiness for meticulous gameplay. This means being prepared to hunt down every crucial item, from a specific keycard to hidden research notes. A powerful rig ensures that the only challenges you face are the ones the game’s developers intended, not your hardware.
Essential In-Game Resources and Tools
To navigate the treacherous paths to Atomfall’s multiple endings, you’ll need to collect a variety of essential items. These are not just optional collectibles; they are key components required to progress specific character questlines. Missing one of these could lock you out of an entire ending path.
A foundational requirement for any ending is collecting five Atomic Batteries. These are needed to restore full power to the Interchange, granting you access to the endgame area at the Windscale Plant. Beyond that, many endings have their own unique item checklists. For example, Dr. Garrow’s path requires you to find her research notes, while Mother Jago’s demands you locate her book and the Strange Tonic Recipe.
Here are some of the most critical in-game items you’ll need to find:
- Church Cellar Key: Unlocks Dr. Holder’s secret lab, initiating his questline.
- Signal Redirector: A device needed to solve power puzzles and free Dr. Garrow.
- Protocol Radio Part: Essential for earning Captain Sims’ trust and his ending.
- Growth Stimulant: A key item for completing Mother Jago’s ending.
- Sample One: Required for Dr. Holder’s plan to poison Oberon.
Step-by-Step Guide to Unlocking All Atomfall Endings
Unlocking every ending in Atomfall is a rewarding challenge that requires careful planning and a good understanding of the game’s structure. It is impossible to see all outcomes in a single save file, so you must commit to multiple playthroughs or master the save system to explore alternate paths without restarting from scratch.
Your journey will involve making pivotal choices, from your first interactions with key characters to the moment you meet Mother Jago. This guide will walk you through a four-step process to efficiently navigate the game’s branching narrative and experience every possible conclusion the quarantine zone has to offer.
Step 1: Completing the Main Storyline
Before you can pursue any specific ending, you must complete the foundational steps of the main storyline. This progression is mandatory regardless of which faction you ultimately side with, as it unlocks access to the final area of the game. Your primary objective is to restore power to the Interchange.
This involves several key tasks that serve as a universal prerequisite. You must explore the different regions of the quarantine zone to locate the necessary resources and access points. Powering up Data Store Alpha and Data Store Bravo is particularly important, as these grant access to new areas like the Medical wing and Robotics, which contain items and characters crucial for various endings.
Here is the required progression for main story completion before branching off:
- Unlock all major doors to the Interchange from the four main regions.
- Find and use five Atomic Batteries to power up Data Stores Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, and Delta.
- Turn on the central processor of the Interchange.
- Redirect power to the central processor to gain access to the lower control rooms and the path to the Windscale Plant.
Step 2: Identifying Key Decision Points
Once you’ve completed the main progression, the game opens up, and your key decisions begin to carry immense weight. These are the narrative forks in the road that will define your playthrough and determine which endings remain available. Recognizing these moments is crucial for anyone attempting to see all that Atomfall has to offer.
The largest impacts on the endings come from choices that align you with one faction at the expense of another. For instance, freeing Dr. Garrow will make Protocol forces hostile, complicating any dealings with Captain Sims. Similarly, your actions in the Speaking Cave for Mother Jago set you on a path that is fundamentally at odds with almost everyone else in the Quarantine Zone.
Here are some of the most impactful choices you will face:
- Reporting a villager to Captain Sims to gain his trust.
- Deciding whether to free Dr. Garrow from Skethermoor Prison.
- Choosing between the “GEN ERA” and “GEN MOVE” commands at the Casterfell Dam.
- Agreeing to help Mother Jago and making an offering at the Speaking Cave.
- Telling Dr. Holder where to find Dr. Garrow, which leads to her demise.
Step 3: Tracking Your Progress and Alternate Paths
With so many alternate paths and branching choices, effective progress tracking is essential for any completionist. The most efficient way to manage this is by strategically using multiple save files. Creating a primary save before a major decision point allows you to explore one outcome, then reload to see the others without replaying large sections of the game.
A critical juncture for this tactic is at the Casterfell Dam Data Store. Here, you are forced to choose between helping Dr. Garrow or Joyce Tanner. Making a dedicated save before entering the command allows you to pursue both of their endings on separate save branches, saving you hours of repeated gameplay.
To efficiently track your unlocked endings, consider this simple system:
- Maintain a “master save” file just before the first major character allegiance choice.
- Create separate, clearly named save files for each major ending path you pursue (e.g., “Sims_Ending,” “Jago_Ending”).
- Keep a simple checklist outside of the game to note which endings you have completed and which key decisions led to them.
Step 4: Saving and Replaying for Multiple Outcomes
Atomfall’s save system is your most powerful tool for experiencing the game’s full narrative breadth without needing to replay the entire story six times. By making manual saves at critical moments, you can easily revisit key choices to explore multiple outcomes. This is the key to efficiently seeing how different decisions play out.
It is absolutely possible to replay key choices without restarting the game. For example, before deciding the fate of Oberon in the Windscale Plant, create a save. You can then play out one ending, reload, and choose a different path. This technique is especially useful for the final act, where several endings diverge from the same location.
Here are the best practices for using the save system effectively:
- Create a hard save before entering a new region or starting a major questline, such as exploring the Castle Ruins for Mother Jago.
- Always save before making a dialogue choice that seems like it will commit you to a faction or character.
- Use the multiple save slots to your advantage, naming them in a way that helps you remember the decision point.
Deep Dive Into Major Atomfall Endings
Now we get into the specifics of Atomfall’s major endings. Each path is a unique experience, defined by the character you align with. Whether you choose the militaristic order of Captain Sims, the scientific curiosity of Dr. Garrow, the mysterious agenda of Joyce Tanner, or the fanatical devotion of Mother Jago, your final moments in the zone will be drastically different.
These endings are unlocked through dedicated questlines that will take you all over the map, from a secret protocol bunker to the ritualistic sites of the druids. The following sections will break down the requirements for each of these distinct and memorable conclusions.
Captain Sims & Protocol Ending: Path and Requirements
Achieving the ending with Captain Sims requires you to become an asset for the Protocol forces. This path is all about earning his trust and proving your loyalty by carrying out a series of tasks for him. Your first step is to report on the suspicious activities within Wyndham Village, effectively becoming his informant.
After gaining his trust, Sims will send you to interrogate Dr. Garrow in Skethermoor Prison. Following this, your most important task is to retrieve the stolen Protocol Radio Part from the Speaking Cave in Casterfell Woods. Returning this item to Sims solidifies your allegiance and sets you on the path to Operation Atomfall, his plan to nuke the entire zone.
Once you’ve done his bidding and powered up the Interchange, you’ll need to head to the Oberon dig site. There, you must rearm the four explosives and pull the self-destruct lever in the control room. After escaping the ensuing chaos, you will meet Sims for your extraction, completing his ending. You do not need to enter the central processor room for any special tasks for him, just use it to get to Windscale.
Dr. Garrow Ending: How to Escape
The escape with Dr. Garrow is one of the “good” escape options, as it prioritizes scientific discovery over destruction. To begin this path, you must first free her from her cell in Skethermoor Prison. This requires finding her Signal Redirector in the security room and using it to open the cells. Be prepared to fight your way out, as the guards will immediately become hostile.
After her escape, Dr. Garrow will relocate to the Interchange’s central processor room. She will task you with retrieving her research notes from the Robotics facility and running the “GEN ERA” command at the Casterfell Dam Data Store. It is critical that you do not tell Dr. Holder where she is, as he will kill her, ending this path. This contrasts with other endings where locations like the Castle Ruins are central.
For her final task, you must head to the Oberon dig site. Instead of destroying Oberon, you need to use two Atomic Batteries to power the sample extractor, collect the meteorite sample, and deliver it to her in her robotics office. Handing over the sample completes her ending, where you escape with her to continue her research.
Joyce Tanner, Mother Jago, and Dr. Holder Endings Compared
The endings for Joyce Tanner, Mother Jago, and Dr. Holder offer three vastly different philosophies on how to deal with Oberon. Joyce Tanner’s path is one of espionage; she wants a sample of Oberon to ensure it becomes a deterrent in the escalating Cold War, and her questline revolves around activating radio towers and extracting that sample from Windscale.
Conversely, Mother Jago’s ending is a complete surrender to the supernatural. She believes Oberon is a living entity that must be nurtured. Her quest involves retrieving a ritual book, making an offering, and ultimately using a Growth Stimulant to “feed” Oberon before sacrificing yourself to become one with it. This path is deeply tied to the druids and their beliefs.
Dr. Holder’s ending is arguably the “true good” ending. His goal is to destroy Oberon completely by poisoning it. This requires finding him in his secret lab (accessed via the medical wing of the Interchange), retrieving a unique sample, and using it to poison Oberon’s core. Character interactions are critical here; telling Dr. Holder about Dr. Garrow is a necessary step to get the poisoned sample, demonstrating how your choices directly enable or disable these unique endings.
Conclusion
In summary, “Atomfall Endings” offers a rich tapestry of choices and consequences that enhances replayability and player engagement. Each ending is meticulously crafted, ensuring that every decision you make has a significant impact on the storyline. Understanding the mechanics behind these endings not only elevates your gameplay experience but also allows for deeper emotional connections with the characters and story. Whether you’re aiming for a specific outcome or seeking to uncover all the secrets within the game, the journey is as rewarding as the destination. Dive back into the world of Atomfall, explore every choice, and unlock the full potential of your gaming adventure!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you unlock all endings in a single playthrough?
No, you cannot unlock all Atomfall endings in one go. The game requires multiple playthroughs because key choices will lock you into specific alternate paths. However, you can use multiple save files at critical decision points to explore different outcomes without starting over completely.
What are the most challenging Atomfall endings to achieve?
The most challenging of the possible endings are often considered to be the Mother Jago ending, due to its multi-step ritual, and the hidden ending with Dr. Holder. The Holder path requires finding a secret lab and making very specific choices regarding other characters to successfully poison Oberon at Windscale.
Does player morality affect the ending outcome?
Yes, player morality directly affects the outcome. Your choices—such as snitching on villagers, freeing prisoners, or siding with specific factions—have significant consequences. These decisions determine which characters will help you, thereby shaping which of the final endings are available to you.
Are there secret or hidden endings in Atomfall?
Yes, there is a secret ending. The path with Dr. Holder is widely considered the main hidden ending, as it requires discovering his secret lab. It provides one of the most unique escape options by truly destroying Oberon. Uncovering it requires careful exploration without spoilers.