Atomfall's new DLC just dropped, and it lets you recruit robotic companions

I was intrigued when I saw the first trailer for The Red Strain, Atomfall's second piece of DLC. There was a new brand of robot (which looked quite a lot like the old robots), a new fungus (which looked quite a lot like the old fungus), and little else. That's enough for me to jump into the post-apocalyptic Lake District all over again, because I really enjoy the survival elements of Rebellion's game, but the launch trailer has me as giddy as a schoolgirl to get this download started. It really should have led with the robot companions.

Robot companions are a staple of good sci-fi. From C3PO and R2D2, to the Iron Giant, all the way through K-9 and Marvin, all great sci-fi work has a friendly, annoyed, or depressed robot sidekick. If your favorite sci-fi show doesn't have one, I've got bad news…

I didn't realize I needed one in Atomfall, however. I was perfectly happy pottering around the Lake District testing my skills against foes living or electronic. A core part of all the best survival games is, well, surviving. I never thought of recruiting a companion to do my dirty work.

But the new trailer for the Red Strain DLC shows that you can hack Atomfall's hulking robots now, using some kind of remote control to force them to do your bidding. I imagine this is a temporary, as it would be a little overpowered to have a flamethrower-toting robot on your side for the whole DLC. Unless the enemies have been scaled up appropriately…

Elsewhere, it seems like there's an infested rocket launch that we'll either have to stop or ensure goes smoothly, and plenty of balance updates and fixes for players with and without the DLC.

The most notable of these is the fact that the game has been made gorier, with added blood effects when you mollywhop someone with a cricket bat or police truncheon.

Atomfall The Red Strain DLC is out now on Steam for $19.99 / £14.99. You can buy it here and find the full patch notes here.

If you like Atomfall, you'll love our list of the best open-world games. Or, you'll love the games on the list. You know what I mean. The same sentiment goes for our picks of the best RPGs, although none have a quest system quite as good as Rebellion's.

Are you playing The Red Strain? What do you think of it so far? Let us know in our community Discord server, where readers and staff discuss all the latest gaming news.