Chariton Radeonovich Zakharov (Russian: Харитон Радионович Захаров), better known as Charles, is the main antagonist of the 2023 first person shooter video game Atomic Heart. He is the polymer artificial intelligence embedded in an experimental polymer glove. He has an extensive stock of knowledge, which he uses to give Major Nechaev (aka P-3) tips during the battle.

He was voiced by Nikolai Kovbas and Leonid Belozorovich.

Atomic Heart[]

The opening scene in the Chelomey complex is presented by Charles. He is an ideal assistant, an artificial intelligence who tells interesting information about the secrets of the world known to him, including the work of the Enterprise from the inside, gives hints about new goals, tells about the origin and features of the characters encountered during the plot, and also talks a little about the mysterious story of Major Nechaev.

Sechenov calls P-3 and says that the glove with Charles is his personal invention, and that it is "more important than it might seem at first glance." After that, he directs P-3 to complete the integration of the glove in the laboratory of the Vavilov complex. However, a malfunction occurs in the combat program of the robots, and the P-3 finds itself in a maelstrom of events. Further, during the game, Charles suggests new goals and objectives for P-3, the main directions to which are given by other characters.

Throughout the game, Charles indirectly hints to P-3 that Sechenov is not as bright a person as it might seem at first glance.

In many dialogues about Sechenov's likely plans related to the "Collective", and later the alpha connector, Charles does not manifest itself as an artificial intelligence, but rather as a person who already has his own, fully formed, view of what is happening around him, unlike the same P-3, who for the most part, the motives of certain actions of other people are unclear. At the same time, Charles is subtly setting up P-3 to go against Sechenov's plans, and the circumstances that have successfully turned up and the situation of complete devastation caused by Sechenov, who created the Atomic Heart project and because of which robots began killing employees of the Enterprise and ordinary people, only help him in this. In the archive of the Academy of Consequences, he reveals his true identity at the moment when P-3 finds out only more new information about his hitherto hidden vague past by Sechenov.

P-3 is given a choice — to go against Sechenov or stay on his side.

Trivia[]

• In the Russian version of the game, Charles' name is HRAZ, that is a wordplay: first it's exaplained as a "keeper of knowledge" (Rus. "HRAnitel Znanyi) and in the later game as Hariton RAdeonovich Zakharov.
• When Chariton absorbs the Neuro-Polymer, he turns black, he is also shown to have complete control over the robots due to the Drofas not attacking him.
• When P-3 enters Limbo, there is a unknown cat-like creature (similar to the Pushistov) that is seen in every sequence, it is revealed later that this was Chariton's mutant cat named "Fluffy". Its presence is similar to the Cheshire Cat from the book, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.