Invincible Presents: Atom Eve Preview

Invincible Presents: Atom Eve is an upcoming title developed by Terrible Posture Games and published by Skybound Games; in it, we follow the story of Atom Eve, one of the most beloved characters from the comic book by Robert Kirkman, Cory Walker, and Ryan Ottley. For those who don't know about Invincible, it's a universe chock-full of superheroes, and Atom Eve is a girl whose powers allow her to transmute things to a molecular level, giving her the ability to create anything from thin air and even rewrite reality.

This particular title follows the visual novel style, and throughout it, we get to choose how Atom Eve reacts to situations and people; in addition to watching the story unfold, there's also combat, which plays out in the turn-based style, but I'll talk more about that later.

Unfortunately, the preview I had access to began in the second chapter, so I don't know how the story begins or what happened in the first section. I surmised the parents had figured out she has powers due to the mother's concerns, but that's just my assumption. Thankfully, this wasn't as disruptive as I thought it might be, but it still felt like I was dropped in the middle of the story without context, especially because this was the first time I had heard of Invincible; that being said, I chose to play the game blindly to know if newcomers could pick it up without knowing anything about the comic or TV show. Although you can technically play it by piecing things together through logic — such as Dupli-Kate having the ability to multiply herself — there's a lot of context missing that the game doesn't clarify, and it feels like it loses a lot of its charm due to that. 

A good example of the lack of context as both a newcomer to the comic and starting off from the second chapter is the fact that there's a green woman referenced a lot throughout the game. Atom Eve constantly has the option to think about her, and Rex mentions her at one point. I don't know if this is due to the lack of context from the beginning of the game or because I don't know the comics, but I felt very much out of place because of it. 

Throughout the nearly two hours of playtime, I met a few characters and dabbled in some teenage superhero romance drama. Unfortunately, from the get-go, I felt that the game's dialogue feels rushed and disconnected; the characters speak in odd ways that feel incomplete as if everyone is in a hurry, and the transitions from one scene to the next feel just as sudden and out of place. A good example of this was when I chose to prioritise going to school instead of having a morning date with Rex (Atom Eve's boyfriend), which caused a short spat between the two of them. After the bickering scene, I got the opportunity to go to the diner, and when I did, the characters acted like they hadn't just fought; his first words to her were, "Babe, I thought you'd never show!" which I felt came across awkwardly. This is just what I experienced throughout the short while I got to play, so I don't know if it gets better once the characters are past the introduction phase. 

This odd pacing and uncomfortable dialogue were present throughout the entire preview, with Rex, Atom Eve, and her mother being some of the worst offenders. Once Pajama Boy (or Invincible, as he goes by later) joined the cast, things got a bit better because his jokes didn't fall as flat as the others did, creating a bit more of a normal fluidity to conversations. Unfortunately, pacing and immersion aren't the only issues I found with the writing, as the dialogue options feel very bland — Atom Eve can, for the most part, either be really sarcastic, stoic, or overly optimistic; the reactions she has available usually feel either out of place because they're over-the-top or muted and oddly mature for a teen.

The cast of characters, in general, feel like they're boxed into cliches. Rex is aggravating, overly sexual, and kind of a jerk overall, and it feels like it's that way because we're supposed to dislike him; this felt especially true after Invincible joins the cast, as he's played as the commonplace nice and approachable second love interest. The same thing happens with the rest of the characters: Dupli-Kate is the typical tough-on-the-outside girl who rudely pushes people away but is actually really sweet and misunderstood; the mother, who is overly protective and shields Atom Eve from her explosive father; and William, who is Invincible's gay friend and has a soft spot for the homophobic bully. 

As for the combat, although I do appreciate being able to have a fighting sequence as a superhero, it felt a bit anticlimactic thanks to the repeating dialogue, oddly cheesy lines (such as "I'm just letting you win"), and slow-paced change of turn. Although the joke lines mid-battle might have fit better with a more comedy-focused title, it felt a bit out of place because the tone of the story shifts into a much darker one later on.

As you play through the game, Atom Eve gains experience points that she can use in the skill tree. There are three branches: Empath, Creator, and Firebrand; all of them give perks for both the combat sequences and the visual novel aspect. Empath gives her the ability to influence people more easily, Creator makes her more imaginative and problem-solving, and Firebrand makes her more unpredictable and tough. Unfortunately, during the preview, there aren't enough perks or time to explore how much effect this has on the game outside of combat. 

Overall, Invincible Presents: Atom Eve has a lot of potential. If you don't mind tropes and cheesy dialogue or you know the comic books, you might enjoy the game.