This The Callisto Protocol review contains minor spoilers.
I loved the original Dead Space. Being isolated on the USG Ishimura adrift in space with nothing but the painfully deformed Necromorphs for company made it one of the best survival horror games ever made. It was barbaric, brutal, and beautiful. The scene of the lone crew mate caving in his own head as he repeatedly slammed it into a wall still sticks in my mind like a gruesome recurring nightmare.
Dead Space 2 was a great successor that cemented Isaac Clarke’s horror story as one for the ages. Disappointingly, the ill-fated third instalment’s departure from what made the first two games so special resulted in the series’ untimely demise. Many fans, myself included, have been clamouring to cack themselves through the medium of space-based survival horror ever since.
The Callisto Protocol – coming from the mind of Dead Space‘s original creator, Glen Schofield – seemed poised to deliver just that. And it mostly succeeds in being a worthy successor to that series – even if it is overly derivative and undermined by uneven pacing and repetitive combat.
In the end, fans of Dead Space will be happy. But The Callisto Protocol could’ve done more to distance itself from its spiritual predecessor and move the genre forward into the current generation through more than just its stunning visuals.
The Callisto Protocol Review: Story and Setting
The Callisto Protocol follows interplanetary delivery man Jason Lee in the year 2320. He finds himself imprisoned at Black Iron, a prison colony on Jupiter’s moon Callisto, after his ship is boarded by terrorist group the Outer Way and it crash lands on the moon’s surface. Before long, Black Iron is overrun with murderous mutant alien-humans known as ‘Biophages’ and Jason must find a way out.
The Callisto Protocol is highly cinematic in its presentation. From the moment we meet Jason until the game’s twist-filled conclusion, it feels like a movie in video game form. The performances by Josh Duhamelm, Karen Fukuhara, and Sam Witwer are top notch. But that’s not all.
The photo-realistic graphics are stunning – there’s really no other word for it. Beads of beautifully rendered sweat dripping down a fearful Jason’s forehead create a sense of immersion matched only by the visual prowess of the recent Resident Evil games.
The gorgeous astral cinematography places you on Callisto as if you are there orbiting Jupiter yourself. It had me questioning whether a stint at Black Iron with its not-so-friendly inmates would be worth it just for the jaw-dropping landscapes.
For fans of single-player, story-driven, cinematic experiences, there’s not much more you could ask for. Except maybe a nuanced and well-developed story that matches its wondrous presentation.
The Callisto Protocol‘s story isn’t bad. It’s just uninventive and embryonic.
If you went in wanting more Dead Space and nothing else, you’ll leave with a smile. It features all the old staples. Disfigured and otherworldly undead? Check. Insane humans who believe it to be the next step in human evolution? Check. A mysterious cult pulling the strings? Check.
However, if you wanted something that takes the space-based thrills and terror in a new direction, you will be underwhelmed if not completely disappointed.
The Callisto Protocol is ultimately too heavy handed in its emulation of Dead Space. Not only does it plainly copy what made that game unique, it does so to the detriment of its own universe and characters.
While I was invested in what happened to Jason, the game never allowed me to truly know him. Similarly, the condemned souls who inhabit Black Iron don’t develop as characters. Outside of fellow inmate Elias and the Outer Way’s leader Dani, everyone else is relegated to some of the worst audio logs in recent gaming history.
If a sequel is ever made, I’m keen to see where the story goes. Because The Callisto Protocol‘s narrative had so much untapped potential.
The Callisto Protocol Review: Gameplay
Melee Combat
The Callisto Protocol starts out as a melee-focused affair. Initially, I was gripped by its simple yet impactful approach to combat. Every hit felt powerful and each successive dodge felt like the difference between life and death. It was truly nail-biting stuff. But that feeling didn’t last.
The game’s melee combat system is based around simple and repetitive dodging sequences. When an enemy goes to hit you, simply push the left stick to the right to dodge. On their next swing, push the stick over to the left – and so on until they stop. At the interval, swing your weapon with a counterattack.
At first, I enjoyed how each encounter played out like something from a movie. Every artful dodge allowed me a chance to continue on and every hit with the security baton landed with a gratifying “thunk”. It was simple but enjoyable.
But as I got further into my adventure at Black Iron, the once satisfying and filmic combat became tiresome. There are three main reasons for this.
Firstly, the dodge system doesn’t have timing windows. This removes any element of skill in avoiding enemy attacks. The only way you can truly be undone in these encounters is if you lose patience and swing before your alien enemy is done attacking.
Secondly, there’s a critical lack of enemy variety. Not including the Bloodworms and Parasites, there are six different forms of Biophage that you encounter in The Callisto Protocol. However, killing each one feels basically identical. And before long enemy encounters become an incredibly tiresome exercise of “dodge, counter, dodge, counter”.
Last but not least, there are just two melee weapons in the entire game. And that keeps the combat frustratingly one-dimensional throughout the approximate ten hour playtime. With a wider selection of weapons, the regular scuffles with Biophages would’ve felt continually fresh and different. At the start, the melee combat was what I enjoyed most about The Callisto Protocol – and more could’ve been done to nurture that enjoyment as the game progressed.
Gunplay and GRP
Thankfully, firearms open up the combat.
There’s the standard selection of guns: a pistol, a shotgun, an assault rifle etc. And they add some much needed depth to enemy encounters.
When ammo is initially scarce, guns are a precious saving grace. But as you press on, ammo becomes more abundant and the guns become a crutch. Consequently, they undermine a lot of the tension and horror that permeates the game’s earlier scenes.
It’s a problematic dichotomy. Thanks to the basic melee offering, The Callisto Protocol needs the variety created by the inclusion of guns. But their implementation detracts from the sense of true horror.
What’s more, the chosen method and resulting animation by which Jason switches guns hampers time-critical enemy encounters. For some reason, most of the weapons are based on a single frame. When switching, Jason swaps out the barrel to change the weapon type.
This is a cool idea that compliments The Callisto Protocol‘s futuristic 3D printing buy and upgrade system. But in practice, changing weapons takes too long in the heat of combat. And all it does is create opportunities for the game to screw you into an untimely death.
In the end, guns were a necessary inclusion. However, their execution doesn’t match the clever repurposed mining tools that filled out Isaac Clarke’s arsenal in Dead Space. And I’d have preferred a wider selection of melee options instead.
GRP
The third and final combat option is GRP, a kind of telekinetic device, that allows you to pull, push, levitate, and throw enemies. Although it requires power to use, it’s undoubtedly the most powerful tool in Jason’s arsenal.
Launching enemies into spiked walls or rotating gears is hilariously gruesome and never gets old. However, it does make you feel incredibly overpowered.
While fun, the combination of plentiful ammo and the powerful GRP makes The Callisto Protocol‘s latter stages more action-shooter than survival-horror. And that’s regretful.
The Callisto Protocol Review: Graphics and Performance
I touched on it earlier but it really is worth repeating: The Callisto Protocol‘s visuals are awesome.
Character models, environments, and effects all look phenomenal. There were many moments where I found myself awe-struck by the game. It’s quintessential space age stuff that rivals Hollywood blockbusters like Interstellar and Ad Astra.
Unfortunately, all this was undercut by the game’s early performance woes. Playing on PC, I encountered constant stuttering and uneven frame-rates – and it wasn’t just me. Hundreds of players have taken to Twitter to complain about the same problems since launch. Even those with top-end hardware encountered issues.
Thankfully, post-launch patches did a good job of mitigating the issues. And I’m happy to report that The Callisto Protocol ran well by the end of my time with it.
The Callisto Protocol Review: Verdict
The Callisto Protocol is about as close to Dead Space as it could possibly be without bearing the same name. And for many players that will be more than enough to leave them satisfied. It certainly was for me for about 80% of the game. Nevertheless, the more you play of The Callisto Protocol the more its flaws stand out.
Endless repetition and uneven design are its principal issues. And nowhere is this more apparent than in the last few hours of the game. After no boss fights for the majority of its run-time, there’s one mini-boss you battle four (yes, FOUR!) times on the run up to the game’s conclusion. And by the fourth go, I was legitimately p*ssed off about having to beat it again.
This problem is widespread, too. Almost every element of The Callisto Protocol becomes monotonous by the end. Mercifully, the game doesn’t overstay its welcome and credits roll right as I was reaching the point of giving up.
Before this stage, though, The Callisto Protocol provides a pretty good survival horror experience. Its story does just enough to grip you. And the awe-inspiring graphics and cinematography alone make the game worth playing.
I really hope The Callisto Protocol gets a sequel. Its universe has so much potential. However, its lack of innovation and the wonky implementation of ideas means this one fails to reach the lofty heights of its forebears.
Overall Rating: 6.5/10
Version played: PC
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