Best Atomic Heart Powers and polymer abilities

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The greatest powers and abilities to choose for Charles the glove in Atomic Heart

Atomic Heart powers polymer glove upgrades
(Image credit: Focus Entertainment)

The best Atomic Heart powers, or Polymer upgrades, for Charles the Glove are easily Mass Telekinesis, Frostbite and Polymeric Jet, letting you easily dispatch bots. Aside from a large armory of weapons, these polymer powers in Atomic Heart are a big part of P-3's arsenal and are crucial to battling bots. With upgrades installed, Charles the Glove can unleash a variety of rechargeable attacks and abilities, including zaps of electricity, a freezing cold jet of goop, and a protective shield. Thankfully, you can refund upgrades to try out different ones, but there are some clear standouts that we recommend using frequently, so we've laid out the best polymer powers in Atomic Heart below.

Best Polymer Powers in Atomic Heart

All these can be purchased from Neuropolymer at any of the NORA upgrade stations, with the exception of Shok, which is given to you as a default early on in the game. Not only that, but further upgrades with Neuropolymer can increase their damage, boost their recharge rate, add additional effects and more besides. As outlined in our Atomic Heart tips, a big advantage of Polymer Powers is that they don't burn through any permanent ammo or energy, meaning that they can be used pretty freely.

It's also worth pointing out that you can "Return" a polymer power to a NORA station, which strips you of that power and all the upgrades, but refunds you the total cost of the power and Neuropolymer, allowing you to re-spend it however you want. Use this ability liberally - upgrades and powers you don't like can be paid back and reinvested in better superpowers - like the following.

Mass Telekinesis

Atomic Heart powers polymer glove upgrades

(Image credit: Focus Entertainment)

A massive upgrade additional to the standard Atomic Heart telekinesis power and one that can actually be used in combat, Mass Telekinesis lifts up all enemies in front of you, suspending them helplessly in the air and leaving them sitting ducks for any follow-up attacks. Admittedly, it doesn't damage them directly… unless you get one more upgrade that causes it to slam them on the floor when the power ends. It's great for crowd control, precision follow-up attacks, dealing damage and just trying to escape. If you're going to invest in any power, this is the best one.

Frostbite

Atomic Heart powers polymer glove upgrades

(Image credit: Focus Entertainment)

A stream of icy energy that freezes enemies in place, Frostbite basically serves a similar function to Mass Telekinesis, only a little weaker, and a little more versatile. It takes a moment to freeze foes, slowing them and then locking them in place, and does so-so damage (plus a little boost against organic enemies). We definitely suggest investing in abilities that speed up the process, but in combat it's very useful, locking an enemy in place so you can either score some easy headshots, or buying you time to deal with their allies.

Polymeric Jet

Atomic Heart powers polymer glove upgrades

(Image credit: Focus Entertainment)

A strange one, but very useful - Polymeric Jet basically acts as a magnifier for all elemental damage. Spraying it on an enemy or surface causes further effects to trigger much faster and more effectively, such as being set alight, frozen or electrified. Quickly spray an enemy with a blast of this stuff, then hit them with Frostbite, an Elemental Weapon, or our final choice…

Shok (honorable mention)

Atomic Heart powers polymer glove upgrades

(Image credit: Focus Entertainment)

You get Shok for free at the beginning of Atomic Heart, but that doesn't stop it from being a true staple of your arsenal, to the point that the game won't let you de-equip it. A rapid blast of electrical energy that's good against robotic enemies and can trigger certain environmental devices, you should absolutely be investing in further upgrades to this power. Chances are you'll be using it all the time, We suggest the left-hand upgrade path - chain lightning is a little too contextual over just generally improving its effectiveness - but they're both viable directions in combat.

One power that P-3 also lacks is to increase his field-of-view as some players might not be comfortable with the default view. Try this Atomic Heart FOV mod that should help you out if you want a wider view.

Joel Franey
Joel Franey
Guides Editor, GamesRadar+

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and Very Tired Man with a BA from Brunel University, a Masters from Sussex University and a decade working in games journalism, often focused on guides coverage but also in reviews, features and news. His love of games is strongest when it comes to groundbreaking narratives like Disco Elysium, UnderTale and Baldur's Gate 3, as well as innovative or refined gameplay experiences like XCOM, Sifu, Arkham Asylum or Slay the Spire. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at Eurogamer, Gfinity, USgamer, SFX Magazine, RPS, Dicebreaker, VG247, and more.