[Atlas Still Needs Love.]

I've played Warframe now for over three years on a series of different accounts. I have played nearly all the Warframes available and enjoyed most. Some Warframes of course were weaker or stronger than others but at the end of the day they were all fun to play and fit the game play of "space ninja" that I had hoped for, that is apart from Atlas. Each character has a theme; if you're playing zephyr you want to feel like a master of aerial combat, floating through the sky while dropping down to bomb everyone below. If you are playing Rhino you want to feel like an unstoppable force able to plow through enemies while shrugging off blows. Both of these Warframes achieve this fantasy well, despite being older frames. Atlas on the other hand doesn't feel right. When I play as Atlas I wish to be this towering force of brute strength, enemies that get in my way should be crushed like stones beneath my feet. When I play atlas I might not have the strongest abilities but I expect my abilities to have impact. Hydroid can summon the Kraken, Nezha can teleport to his ring and impale enemies on spears, Banshee rips apart enemies from across the map through deadly sound waves, Atlas...well he can make a small wall...or maybe summon two little rocks to punch stuff...or maybe punch stuff himself. What I'm trying to say is that his abilities feel a little lacking for his theme, they detract from my enjoyment of him because they don't live up to his legacy, as such I will be providing some changes that I think could be made to his abilities to fit that theme a bit better.

 

Passive: His passive is honestly perfect, the ability to negate knockdowns makes me feel like an unbreakable titan and fits really well, in fact it might be my favorite ability right now out of his entire kit.

1: Atlas' one is his signature punching ability and honestly I feel as though it fits really well, the only change I might propose is possibly adding a smoother flow between enemies. The combo seems to work really well on a single target but lunging between a group of enemies that aren't all directly on top of you is a little awkward. Over all though this ability really sends home his hard hitting take nothing vibe.

2. Atlas has a unique ability within his two, he creates a wall slightly in front of his current location that can take a hundred instances of damage and can be activated a second time at anytime from anywhere to send the boulder rolling towards his enemies. Overall it sounds on paper like an extremely cool ability and it should be, however in game you press two and you get a measly formation of pebbles that feels less like the immovable mountain and more like the semi difficult to move pebble. For this ability I propose a few things: First, make the wall larger in dimensions, a wider wall would provide much more utility, allowing for the player to block off larger choke points as well as provide a decent amount of cover on the Plains of Eidolon, additionally it needs to be taller, I need to feel as though I am creating a wall of stone to prevent my enemies movement, yet I and even some of them are taller than it, it just looks awkward. Second, Allow for multiple walls but take away the ability to roll the wall from across the map. I don't care if he has a limit on walls like two before the first collapses or something like that but right now having one wall is meh, on defensive missions your still going to be less useful then a frost but at least with two walls you can funnel enemies into easier choke points to pick off, not to the extent of a mage, but we are just making him better not OP. Additionally people wont be able to stack walls to completely block of defensive points or just make it impassible because when within a small circle of the wall the activation of the ability will send the wall tumbling forward. It breaks immersion for me being able to create a rolling ball of rock and limb from across the map, I want to feel as though I punched the wall and sent it cascading forward. Lastly, I would also recommend a visual update. As previously stated the wall looks like its constructed of pebbles and thus extremely weak. I would ask for a visual update just to make the wall out of less but larger rocks as well as patching any holes you can currently see through. This would help the ability feel a bit more sturdy and solid.

3. Atlas' third ability is my favorite active ability and in my opinion is in need of no changes, it feels powerful and true to his character, and the visual effects are perfect too.

4. In my opinion Atlas' four is his most disappointing ability not because it's not strong but only due to visuals. I think that this ability is fine on its own but when I think of summoning rock golems I'm not expecting little three foot tall Timothy and Albert to stroll on up. Despite the golems actually being quite strong and useful they look pathetically weak. I would recommend a simple visual overhaul. Make the golems larger, both taller and bulkier to make them feel more impactful (especially around their legs). Overall the ability is fine, it just doesn't feel fine. I want to feel like the stone titan atlas is, not a pebble flinging tall man.

 

So there you have it. That would be my rework of the current Atlas, of course this is all my opinion and I am open to hearing others so let me know what you think and lets see if we can get the devs attention at all to give our boy some love. I understand that many of the older frames are starting to get outdated a little and maybe aren't as great as they once were but in my opinion Atlas is in the roughest place right now and is in need of a bit of love.