Atomic Heart's Wild New Trailer Roasts Hogwarts Legacy (And That's Not All)

"Atomic Heart" is just a week away from release and the hype machine is in full effect. Mundfish's RPG shooter puts players in the role of a hardened soldier as he attempts to quell an AI rebellion in an alternate version of 1950s Russia. The game's previous trailers have shown off not only the title's over the top level of violence, but also its wicked sense of humor. Even so, gamers were totally unprepared for the wacky new trailer released on February 14. Dubbed the "The Atomic Way," this latest clip features live-action footage of "The Boys" and "The Winchesters" star Jensen Ackles playing the game's main protagonist, Major Sergei Nechaev, as he wreaks havoc on a series of gnarly practice dummies. Along the way, the trailer also seems to cast a bit of shade on the recently-released "Hogwarts Legacy."

The clip begins with a young girl in a wizard costume attempting to cast a spell on a silver dummy at the end of a large room, all while whimsical, John Williams-esque music plays in the background. After a few tries, she gets discouraged — until Jensen Ackles walks up and places his hand on her shoulder. She asks him, "How are we going to survive the robot apocalypse?" In response, he shows her how the protagonist of "Atomic Heart" deals with his enemies: By smashing them with bladed weapons and frying them with his electric abilities, a method he refers to as "the Atomic Way." 

Clearly, the developers want to get across the idea that their protagonist is way cooler and more capable than the one at the center of the divisive "Hogwarts Legacy." However, this trailer may have inadvertently created a small new problem for "Atomic Heart."

Naturally, this trailer was immediately a big hit in the cross-section of gamers who both love Jensen Ackles and are already looking forward to playing "Atomic Heart." However, judging from the comments on the trailer's official YouTube listing, it seems like a good number of those fans now wish the "Supernatural" actor was really in the actual game. Some fans wish the main character in the game looked more like Ackles, while others are already hankering for more live-action adaptations starring their favorite Winchester boy. Some fans on Twitter have even misunderstood the trailer to mean that Ackles is starring in the game.

Luckily for Mundfish and Focus Entertainment, however, the majority of the responses to this trailer were full of love. Folks who were already planning to buy the game got a kick out of seeing it in live-action, while Ackles' appearance in the trailer has now put "Atomic Heart" on some fans' radars for the first time. As some fans have pointed out, this bonkers new trailer might have been the smartest move out of this game's entire marketing campaign:

How do you get thousands of people to play a video game? Add Jensen Ackles to the trailer. pic.twitter.com/zlk00ufVeO

— Jess 🌻 (@allmystars_i) February 14, 2023

"Atomic Heart" arrives on PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on February 21.