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Callisto Protocol is a third-person survival horror title released on the 2nd December of 2022 by Striking Distance Studios and published by Krafton. The game is seen as a spiritual successor to Dead Space and now the embargo has lifted, critics have had their say.
So we've pulled together a review roundup for The Callisto Protocol from all noteworthy outets and reviewers to help you decide if The Callisto Protocol is for you and whether you should spend your hard-earned cash to pick it up from shops.
Is The Callisto Protocol Worth Playing?
To sum up the game roughly, it's the year 2320, and players must escape a maximum security prison on Jupiter's moon Callisto after a mysterious outbreak begins transforming its inmates into monstrous creatures. This sounds like a horrifying concept, and it bears striking similarities to the journey we faced in a particular survival horror title in the past.
As mentioned before, this game is a spiritual successor to the terrifying and horrific experience of 2008's Dead Space, the game itself was directed by Glen Schofield, the creator of the Dead space franchise, so needless the say, expectations were high. Unfortunately, many reviews do highlight that the game does fall short in a few areas, especially on the performance front with reviewers on Steam heavily criticizing the game for its technical issues.
The game features occasional control annoyances, unbalanced combat, and a general lack of innovation resulting in an eight-hour slaughter that's satisfyingly gruesome but never quite as good as the series that inspired it.
Is that to say the game isn't worth playing? According to the reviews, not at all. Sure, there's a lot of bloodshed during the game, but underneath it, all is an intriguing story carried by compelling performances that humanize the characters as you learn more about our survivors Jacob and Dani, as well as the terrifying Black Iron Prison.
It's not for the faint of heart, but if you can get past some of the performance issues and slightly shallow gameplay, there's a lot to like. This is reflected in the critic ratings from IGN, Gamespot, Gamingbible, and more, which rate the game based on its strengths and glaring flaws.
Below are some of the reviews you can check out for more on the game.
"The Callisto Protocol is a satisfyingly gory spiritual successor to the Dead Space series, but it’s ultimately more of a striking modern mimic than a scary new mutation. "
"The Callisto Protocol delivers the violence, intensity, and horror that lives up to its Dead Space predecessor, but with deeper strategic combat. However, a clichéd story and lack of original ideas mean that it has one tentacle stuck in the past. "
"The Callisto Protocol is a lucid dream of a game. You want to escape the terrors flickering before you but once the game gets hold with both tentacles, you’re trapped in the hostile environment of the best horror game of the year."
"Despite the vocal talent and mocap skill on display, The Callisto Protocol's story isn't all that interesting, save for an intriguing final twist. Some genuine horror might have improved the experience of this survival-action game, but The Callisto Protocol instead leans too far into the absurd high-octane spectacle, dampening the tension and adulterating the narrative core of the experience."
"I’m okay with The Callisto Protocol being another version of its spiritual predecessor, but it struggles to nail even the basics. As a result, I’m underwhelmed, annoyed, and disappointed. If you wanted anything more out of this second crack at making a new sci-fi IP in survival horror, or something markedly different that acknowledges just how far gaming has come since 2008, The Callisto Protocol is not your answer."
"The Callisto Protocol is a consistently good game that, when it's at its best, gives many of the survival horror greats a run for their money. However, there's no getting around the fact the game has very little to truly call it's own. In borrowing so heavily from Dead Space, there's always a sense of having been there, done that. With frame rate issues and an unimaginative story with poor characters, The Callisto Protocol is good. But it's not great."
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All featured images are courtesy of Krafton.
