All reviews are my personal opinion and do not reflect the views of any person or organization.

Here be Spoilers. Enter at your own risk.

Since the subatomic superhero Atom was added to the Injustice 2 roster, I decided to give him a try.

First, I like to say how I enjoy it when game developers, or movie/show developers, take an underdog/unappreciated character, such as Atom, and make them interesting. It shows a lot of creativity. Instead of just saying “Oh he’s too lame” or “He’s abilities wouldn’t work in this situation,” they came up with ways of making the character fit, and did so without forcing it.

The developers were able to make it so Atom could stand his own with the others in the roster but also not make him ridiculous or seem like they were stretching his powers. I liked the addition of him being able to lift heavy environmental objects by growing the size of his arms enough to give him “super strength.”

I enjoyed the visual appearance of Atom’s attacks, making him look like a glowing dot. Also, his character move (shrinking and attacking) recharged fairly quickly. When the timer run out, Atom was vulnerable to attack as he tries to fix his short-circuiting bio-belt. This added some humor and believability as this version of Atom is a newbie.

I enjoyed such attacks as when he buzzes around the opponent while the foe tries to swat at him (or is just staggered). I also enjoyed his grab attack where he shrinks down and goes in the opponent’s head. The game sound even becomes muffled like you are walking around in a head.

With Atom’s super-move, even if the opponent dodges, he comes back around for a second try. The series of attacks are visually enjoyable as it shifts from a scene of “dot” Atom knocking the foe around followed by a series of close-ups as Atom attacks. He then goes giant to finish the move. The move goes through various sizes and camera angles, making it almost movie-like.

My main problem with Atom was when I fought fast characters such as Flash or Sub-Zero. They moved so fast I had trouble landing a hit. I also had trouble with higher level fights because the gear drop for Atom was so small at first. I’d have no gear but had to fight a stronger foe. This caused some frustration until better gear finally did drop.

Atom’s Battle Simulator “ending scene” brought a nice touch of humanity to the game. It brought some “street-level” motivation. Atom didn’t use Brainiac’s technology to take over the world or fix things or travel the universe; Atom just wanted to find his friend, Ray Palmer (the original Atom).

And on a final note, Atom is one of the few characters I’ve taken the time to level him up to at least level 10.

All in all, Atom makes a good addition to the team and I’m looking forward to the other releases.