General Gaming The Callisto Protocol - Information Thread, update: Glen Schofield (CEO), CFO, and COO all "voluntarily" depart from Striking Distance Studios

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

9 minutes ago, Amazatron said:

Did they take the review down?

 

Yeah - they broke the review embargo so it was pulled, but here's the webcache:

 

The Callisto Protocol review: "An impressive game derailed by unforgiving combat" | GamesRadar+

WEBCACHE.GOOGLEUSERCONTENT.COM

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A fantastic looking game that builds a great sci-fi world only to trash it with an unenjoyable combat challenge.

 

 

[skillzdadirecta]

12 minutes ago, Amazatron said:

 

It’s not clear from the quote whether the problem is that it is too difficult or if the challenge comes from a bad combat system.

This... I would like to know this as well.

[Xbob42]

I'm very interested to see how that turns out in-game, as I love crushing difficulty (to an extent) and doubly so in survival horror. I thought the ultra-tanky zombies in Resident Evil 2 were fucking brilliant, really selling why the military and police stood no chance.

 

Anyway, these audio dramas are surprisingly good and as Wade said, ultra-high quality. Not subtle at all but that's not what we're here for is it?

[stepee]

hm from reading the text it does sound like it’s more like the combat is poorly designed in that it requires too little room for error with a character too clunky to maneuver and keep track of things coming from off screen that can instant kill you. Sounds kinda like what @Brianran into with Evil West but even worse.

 

What I couldn’t tell from that review though is like okay yeah that’s fine but if I turn it on easy then, is it just a good game then or is the combat not fun even then? If all I have to do is set one setting and I get a good game then it would be nice for the review to make that more clear.

[legend]

Ooph. Insta death by off-screen camera over and over does not sound fun. Hope some of the other reviewers have a different perspective.

[Brian]

Yea sounds like I will be playing on easy

 

[Xbob42]

12 minutes ago, legend said:

Ooph. Insta death by off-screen camera over and over does not sound fun. Hope some of the other reviewers have a different perspective.

It sounds wild enough that I'm kind of having trouble believing it. In Dead Space, the enemies became less aggressive when off-screen. And I think in many horror games, enemies do reduced damage if attacking your back. Kind of seems like it would be very blatantly bad (and easily fixed) design to have them be one-shotting like that. Which makes me slightly suspicious about the veracity of the review. I just can't see something like that even making it to playtesting, let alone past it.

It could be true, though. We've seen wilder shit lately! But this is also just one random review breaking embargo with what could just be a spicy take. I've seen and heard very little from people who got the game early that anything like this was happening. At best the thing I've heard most is that there can be too many enemies, which is much different than being one-shot.

[Bloodporne]

There are several people who have the street-broken game on Discord, one of them doing a review, that are all praising the combat system. I haven't played it myself so who knows but there's three people in here saying this. To quote "once you get the hang of the dodge and know how to use environmental traps, barrels and all the other elements to your advantage combat is really fun and intense".

 

Aka don't panic just yet because of that one review. I'll need to see what other reviews say first before I worry. Several reviews also claimed Sifu was full of combat issues that went away quickly once you learned you had to constantly be on the move and position yourself well. 

[legend]

33 minutes ago, Xbob42 said:

It sounds wild enough that I'm kind of having trouble believing it. In Dead Space, the enemies became less aggressive when off-screen. And I think in many horror games, enemies do reduced damage if attacking your back. Kind of seems like it would be very blatantly bad (and easily fixed) design to have them be one-shotting like that. Which makes me slightly suspicious about the veracity of the review. I just can't see something like that even making it to playtesting, let alone past it.

It could be true, though. We've seen wilder shit lately! But this is also just one random review breaking embargo with what could just be a spicy take. I've seen and heard very little from people who got the game early that anything like this was happening. At best the thing I've heard most is that there can be too many enemies, which is much different than being one-shot.

 

Fingers crossed the reviewer was off base! Everything else about this game looks really good.

[Xbob42]

27 minutes ago, Bloodporne said:

There are several people who have the street-broken game on Discord, one of them doing a review, that are all praising the combat system. I haven't played it myself so who knows but there's three people in here saying this. To quote "once you get the hang of the dodge and know how to use environmental traps, barrels and all the other elements to your advantage combat is really fun and intense".

 

Aka don't panic just yet because of that one review. I'll need to see what other reviews say first before I worry. Several reviews also claimed Sifu was full of combat issues that went away quickly once you learned you had to constantly be on the move and position yourself well. 

That's been by and large what I've been hearing as well. "lol we left a bunch of one-shot off-screen kills in the game to fuck with you" really doesn't strike me as Glen and co's style at all.

 

Thinking more on it, I'm wondering if there's sections absolutely flooded with enemies that you're supposed to run past that maybe this person took as a challenge? I dunno.

[Greatoneshere]

The reviews have begun to drop from IGN, Ars Technica, and more. Hard to get a sense since a lot of positive mixed with some negative from what I can tell so far. A lot of "more of an evolution retreading familiar ground than a revolution, but all done really well" seems to be the take away. 

[Keyser_Soze]

A [streamer] is going to play it very shortly if you want to check it out.

[Greatoneshere]

3 minutes ago, Keyser_Soze said:

A [streamer] is going to play it very shortly if you want to check it out.

 

This is actually one I already bought and downloaded, will play in just a few once the game unlocks. Hoping I can tell if it's good in 2 hours or not - my guess is I'll dig it. Even if it was just Dead Space again (which we're getting next month) I'd probably enjoy it but let's see. Hoping the money was worth it.

 

I've liked all of Schofield's games I've played that he's directed: Dead Space, LOTR: Return of the King, and Modern Warfare 3. He's great at horror and spectacle, so we'll see.

[Keyser_Soze]

So far looks like iffy performance on a 3090.

[Xbob42]

Seeing some Tweets with similar claims of frustrating combat, and others that's it really good. Looks like we're jumping into a mixed bag boys! (So far 0 corroboration of one-hit kills being a big problem though.)

[Xbob42]

Oh... it just... unlocked. Okay, guess it's time to play!

[Xbob42]

Few things right off the bat:

Ray tracing absolutely demolishes performance. Even with AMD's shitty FSR (No DLSS here sadly) it drops my FPS to like 40 at 3440 x 1440.

Turning it off and turning FSR completely off doubled my FPS back up into the high 80s.

That said, the game earns it, goddamn it looks nice. Not sure if related, but the opening scene definitely had some stutter, but not sure if it was because the ray tracing was tearing the game up. Seems okayish now that I'm in control.

Game requires you to return to the main menu to change advanced graphics options, but it loads you back into the game when hitting continue in like 2 seconds, crazy fast, faster than Dead Space 1 on an SSD.

 

Now let's see that damn combat I've been hearing so much about!

 

EDIT: So I remember someone saying you had to "stay in the menu" to listen to audio-logs. No... you activate the audio log in the menu, and yes you can't move with it open... but then you close the menu and it keeps playing. Still not as smooth as Dead Space but the idea of being locked in place for an entire audio log sounded horrific.

EDIT 2: Wait! They're right! And I'm right! It's even dumber than originally reported. You activate the audio log, but if you try to back out, it stops playing. (Even though it seems like it shouldn't since there's a "stop" and "back" button) But if you pause and then unpause it'll keep playing, with subtitles and everything.

 

Hoping that's a bug because that's fuckin' WEIRD.

[Xbob42]

Definitely seems like this one goes into the pile of #SHADERSTRUGGLE games.

[Xbob42]

The stutter is a massive bummer. When it's not stuttering I'm actually getting quite high FPS and the game looks absolutely gorgeous, but every time it stutters I just want to turn it off because it's so goddamn annoying. Just let the game precompile shaders you fucking idiots, holy shit this is NOT a new issue.

[Keyser_Soze]

Seems like Dragon's Lair type combat. You can only dodge in one direction once, if you dodge in the same direction twice you get hit and seems like you can only dodge against one enemy.

[Xbob42]

So raytracing drops performance to nothing.

 

FSR doesn't compensate, like, at all. Even if you turn RT off, turning FSR on gains you like maybe 5 FPS and makes the game look worse.

No DLSS option, and nvidia drivers that just dropped don't even mention this game. nvidia is always happy to mention ANY game in their damn driver updates.
So we're stuck with gimped ass RT (well, it's good RT, it looks incredible) because AMD got their hands on this game? Gross.

 

Game needs a precompiled shader patch (where it just does it on the main menu) and a DLSS patch, and it needs them both yesterday.

 

Once you get into exploring an area, there's less new shaders so it actually runs real nice as long as RT is off (again, 80+ FPPS at 3440x1440 max non-RT) -- but that's not good enough. Need DLSS and need precompiled shaders stat. A mixed bag game can't also be filled with shader stutters.

 

EDIT: LOL, dunno if true, but apparently FSR is non-functional as it's missing core files. At least if that gets fixed quick you could sacrifice some image quality to get good performance (stutter excluded) with RT on.

[Keyser_Soze]

He gave up on the game switched to Evil West!

[Xbob42]

I don't blame him. What a shame. Still not far enough to give a real opinion on the game (I've had no issues taking out multiple enemies and I'm on the hardest difficulty... so far, who knows about later.) but man the setting and the visuals and acting are all so good, top-notch stuff. I even love the stomp spamming you can do now, and I love that there's melee combat even if it's not the best, because it's a lot better than it was in Dead Space. I love that you have to kneel down and inject yourself to heal so you can't just spam heals like in Dead Space, too.

 

But this performance, the stutters, why? Why the weird audiolog choice? Why the big tutorials and forced camera control loss so much early on? Why no Dual Sense support on PC? Why the switch to a little neck health piece instead of a RIG-style one? I get that they didn't want to make it THAT Dead Space, but I feel like this one loses clarity sometimes, especially when you've got red or yellow health on a red or yellow background. If it was always super visible it'd be fine, but still a little worse than Dead Space. One of those videos even shows them talking about how it has to always be super visible and readable.

Also, the motion blur is some of the worst I've ever seen, so make sure to turn that off first thing if you do play it. I believe even the consoles get the option. I mean, it seems high quality, I just mean it's too strong and too frequent.

 

It seems like the game would've benefitted massively from even just a couple more months in the oven. For some reason it appears they wanted to beat Dead Space remake to the market, when in reality letting that hit (and it hopefully being good) would've likely massively increased interest on this, which would've been more complete! Now if anything if this mess doesn't turn around quick (which it likely won't) then at best this game'll drag down Dead Space remake interest for at least some folks.

 

Now, all this is still very premature and very in-the-moment, so take it all with a grain of salt, but man. Just getting rid of the stutters alone would have me hugely enjoying the game, at least comparatively. I wouldn't have even minded refunding it and getting the PS5 version, but that chugs along in the low to mid 50s on performance mode. A rock solid, ultra stable, stutter-free 60 and I would've considered it a no-brainer. But nope. Can't hit that either. And while I'll accept some bullshit from Nintendo, I ain't playing an action-horror game at 30 FPS.

[Keyser_Soze]

23 minutes ago, Xbob42 said:

Now, all this is still very premature and very in-the-moment, so take it all with a grain of salt, but man. Just getting rid of the stutters alone would have me hugely enjoying the game, at least comparatively. I wouldn't have even minded refunding it and getting the PS5 version, but that chugs along in the low to mid 50s on performance mode. A rock solid, ultra stable, stutter-free 60 and I would've considered it a no-brainer. But nope. Can't hit that either. And while I'll accept some bullshit from Nintendo, I ain't playing an action-horror game at 30 FPS.

 

He actually started on Steam, refunded because it ran so bad. Got it on the PS5 which ran better (although dynamic resolution drops the game down very low in some places to keep the frame rate up) but ended up not liking it after 2 hours.

 

Seems like @skillzdadirecta had the right idea about this game. It had just enough stink on it to warrant waiting for a price drop.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Game Information

Game Title: The Callisto Protocol

 

Platforms:

• Xbox Series X/S (Dec 2, 2022)
• PlayStation 5 (Dec 2, 2022)
• PlayStation 4 (Dec 2, 2022)
• Xbox One (Dec 2, 2022)
• PC (Dec 2, 2022)
  

Developer: Striking Distance Studios

Publisher: Krafton

 

Review Aggregator:

OpenCritic - 69 average - 42% recommended

 

Critic Reviews

Dexerto - 5 / 5

A wonderfully exhausting exercise in futility is probably the best way of describing The Callisto Protocol as no matter the strength of my own resolve, I was constantly on edge and reveling in those fleeting moments where the game allowed me to breathe following yet another life-threatening fight.

The constant fear and dread incited by the phenomenal visual and sound design are only complemented by the compelling story. The Callisto Protocol is, hopefully, the start of an exciting new franchise, and is another sign that survival horror is anything but dead.

GamesCreed - 4.8 / 5

The Callisto Protocol is simply another brilliant project. A thrilling and cohesive story that will have you constantly wondering what happens next. Additionally, the variation of unique and original mechanics and many heart-attacking moments resulted in an enjoyable, yet spine-chilling experience, and would have no problem replaying this.

EIP Gaming - 9.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol might be treading familiar ground, but it does so with such mastery that it turns it to sacred ground. It perfects the goals that Dead Space first set out to achieve, reaching the peak of the survival horror genre when it comes to gameplay, art direction, storytelling, and — of course — horror.

Generación Xbox - Spanish - 92 / 100

The Callisto Protocol is the true successor to Dead Space. All the good things about the first title can be found in it, but enhanced with state-of-the-art graphics and a cinematic sense that makes it spectacular from beginning to end.

The Games Machine - Italian - 9.1 / 10

Glen Schofield and Striking Distance Studios deliver exactly what their audience want: a new horror sci-fi epic with intense combat and cinematic elements that will make you sit on the edge of your couch from the first to the last minute. Worst or better than Dead Space? You decide!

Areajugones - Spanish - 9 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a game that loves fear from tradition; From strictly following the expression: "If something is not broken, do not fix it". The future of the space horror genre is more than assured with the first forceful step of a work that does not hide when looking at the past; of a game that is fully sincere about showing openly from the sources from which it is inspired. Something horrible lurks deep in the cosmos, but with games like this it's nice to come face to face with its darkest horrors.

Hobby Consolas - Spanish - 90 / 100

The Callisto Protocol is the game fans of space "survival horror" have been waiting for years. It´s not a revolution in the genre, but a solid addition, full of scary moments and with a deep (and brutal) combat system.

PCGamesN - 9 / 10

A spiritual successor to Dead Space that blends and riffs on ideas from the best horror games of recent years, with plenty of blood and guts to go around, though a lacklustre plot is its one minor flaw.

Windows Central - 4.5 / 5

Striking Distance Studios' debut title is a horror game that delivers a high-quality experience all the way through. It won't sway anyone new to scares and frights, but fans of the genre should make this a priority.

Atomix - Spanish - 88 / 100

The Callisto Protocol is just the new survival horror AAA game that we've been expecting. Despite not being the revolution that Dead Space brought almost 15 years ago, it's new ideas, atmosphere and general concept, are a win.

GAMES.CH - German - 88%

What The Callisto Protocol lacks in truly original ideas it more makes up for in presentation and atmosphere. A game this polished and confident from a newly formed studio that had to work through a pandemic is nothing short of impressive. While it won’t change anyone‘s mind who didn’t like the spiritual predecessor Dead Space, this brings back unsettling space horror at its peak.

AusGamers - 8.7 / 10

From the initial prison sequences through to deep underground spaces where you'll be navigating an old, abandoned colony to the surface of Callisto itself, the game serves up a terrifying feast for the eyes.

Tom's Hardware Italia - Italian - 8.6 / 10

Considering that it is the first work by Striking Distance Studios, the level reached by The Callisto Protocol is certainly very high. We are looking at one of the best audio-visual experiences of this generation, surrounded by gameplay that is anything but trivial and a truly noteworthy atmosphere.

Digital Chumps - 8.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol aims its sights at being an uncompromising vision of terror, frequently succeeding through oscillating tension and stellar sound and lighting that toy with players' fears and expectations.

GRYOnline.pl - Polish - 8.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol continues Dead Space’s legacy in a very competent manner. It might very well be the beginning of a new series, because the most important thing – scaring the player – works very well here.

GameBlast - Portuguese - 8.5 / 10

With a proposal focused on terror, The Callisto Protocol succeeds in offering a solid, scary and addictive adventure. The battles are challenging and the setting is great, leaving that constant apprehension in each new corridor and room explored. It's not an absolute masterpiece, but it's certainly one of the best recent releases in the genre and deserves a place in your library.

Geeks & Com - French - 8.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a nice surprise that certainly honors the series it was inspired from. Close quarter combat adds a unique gameplay element that really nurtures the horror and survival side. Striking Distance Studios offers us a balanced experience with the right level of action and horror that replicates the 2nd Dead Space perfectly. At last, the game is wrapped in a visual presentation that can't shy away from any AAA games. Apart from small problems with a few misplace saves, the experience is excellent. I'm already looking forward to the sequel.

God is a Geek - 8.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is violent and brutal, with stunning visuals, but it's intimacy causes a few problems that are hard to be overlooked.

INVEN - Korean - 8.5 / 10

AAA-class SF horror game that appeared after a long time. The lingering story created among people who have turned into bizarre monsters is the attractive element of the game. The battle balance and level design are somewhat disappointing, but it is still a fun enough game.

MondoXbox - Italian - 8.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a raw and brutal sci-fi survival horror with extremely physical, challenging, and visceral combat and a first-rate graphical compartment. Even if it feels inadequate from a narrative point of view and its linear structure smacks of somewhat dated game design, the overall result is still convincing and it manages to keep interest high until the end. Definitely recommended if you love survival horror and claustrophobic sci-fi settings.

PSX Brasil - Portuguese - 85 / 100

Superb in setting, visuals, sound and other technical parts, The Callisto Protocol is impressive from start to finish and a brutal experience that is lacking these days. Although it is not perfect and some problems can be noticed, as well as the lack of content beyond the main campaign, there is a lot of quality showing that the game delivers what was promised.

Spaziogames - Italian - 8.3 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is the best start for a new survival horror series to date. Schofield, Papoutsis and the other veterans at Striking Distance Studios have managed to create a new nightmare with a very bright future ahead.

GameSpew - 8 / 10

Aside from one or two overly frustrating encounters, we’ve truly enjoyed our time with The Callisto Protocol. And over time, we’re sure it’s going to get better. This is a mighty debut for Striking Distance Studios, and we can’t wait to get our hands on an improved sequel or something entirely new from the studio in the future. We wholeheartedly recommended The Callisto Protocol to horror fans open to brutal close-combat encounters, but some might want to wait until features such as New Game Plus have been added and certain issues have perhaps been ironed out. With a solid update or two, it will be essential.

Gameblog - French - 8 / 10

The Creator of Dead Space is back to horror and it hits hard. The Callisto Protocol is an intense, violent and old-school survival-horror. A game with a sense of horrific aesthetics that hits the nail on the head, a delightful atmosphere carried by a devastating sound design and a solid, brutal and gore combat system. Very Good.

Gaming Nexus - 8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a gorgeous and gory science fiction horror experience that lives up to its big brother Dead Space in many ways, but fails to do so in others. The high production value, stellar cast of characters, top notch audio and visual design, and an excellent mix of adrenaline pumping action and terrifying horror are all overshadowed by a frustratingly designed dodge mechanic.

NextGen Player - 8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is an impressive first release from Striking Distance Studios with sublime visuals and immersive 3D audio, all set in a captivating new game world I just have to see more of. The performance on PS5 is exceptional: buttery-smooth frame rates, crisp 4K resolution and one of best implementations of ray tracing and DualSense features I've seen yet. If only the combat was better this would be a near-perfect outing, but alas that aspect needs some major reworking.

Press Start - 8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a modest starting point for what I hope will flourish into another heavy-hitting horror franchise. It's gory and gratuitous, with an endlessly satisfying combat system. But the lack of enemy variety scares, and surprises, even if engaging, stop it from being the horror game masterpiece it's trying to be. Despite all of its shortcomings, it's an immensely enjoyable romp that's left me desperate for more.

SECTOR.sk - Slovak - 8 / 10

The long-awaited horror action is very contradictory and you can either love it or hate it. Anyway, probably no other game deserves the 18+ label as much as this one. It decides whether you just want an adrenaline-fuelled brutal action ride, or if you expect something more from the game than an interesting, but by the end, just a primitive massacre.

Shacknews - 8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a deeply immersive sci-fi horror experience that firmly grabs you at the start and doesn’t let go. While this immersion shows its cracks during the transition into new areas, it’s not enough to ruin the overall experience.

Twisted Voxel - 8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a perfect example of a game that is well-polished yet suffers from several design faults that highlight its weaknesses. In this case, the melee and dodge system can be a thorn in the game's side, but don't let that stop you from enjoying this otherwise fantastic experience.

WhatIfGaming - 8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is definitely not going to be for everyone. It’s a game with a more rigid combat system that requires mastery to play the game, but it has a good story with a good redemption arc toward the end. I do have my fair share of complaints with the game, particularly with how healing is handled, the lack of an objective marker, and learning the near unforgiving combat mechanics of the game, but overall, the game is worth the journey if you are willing to put up with these minor gripes. With a strong visual and auditory presentation, the title is one that I won’t forget anytime soon.

Xbox Achievements - 80%

An unflinchingly violent and gruesome survival horror that ratchets up the tension from the get-go and doesn't let up, The Callisto Protocol is superlative stuff, and a must for anyone with even a passing fancy for Dead Space and its ilk.

COGconnected - 79 / 100

As a spiritual successor, the game adopts many traits that are similar to Dead Space. The HUD is implemented within the design, the limbs of your opponent can be blown away and the tight camera obscures your view. While comparisons are expected, The Callisto Protocol does differ. The melee-focused combat cranks up the intensity of encounters but ultimately stumbles when facing numerous enemies. Some may not like the linearity but I felt that this helped with the pacing of the game and the effectiveness of scares. Although it never reaches the heights of its predecessor’s first two outings, it still offers a trembling trek through a terrifying detention center.

PC Gamer - 79 / 100

Gory and moody, The Callisto Protocol doesn't mess with the survival horror formula, instead embracing all its beats and clichés to tell a grim sci-fi tale that drips with menace.

Cerealkillerz - German - 7.8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol fails despite a solid overall performance on its high ambitions. You have to give the studio some credit for the creative approaches, especially for the gameplay and atmosphere but there is a constant lack of a final touch through the whole game, which often lets the gameplay end in frustration and boring/repetitive sections. Horror Fans with lots of endurance should still get it for the PlayStation 5.

Everyeye.it - Italian - 7.8 / 10

Certainly a "good first" for Striking Distance Studios

Gamefa - Persian - 7.8 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is what happens when Developers don't fully utilize thier game's potentiality. poor story, disappointing character development, ample Level Design issues like the excessive Encounters and enemies has held the game back considerably. That being said, I enjoyed my experience in Callisto nonetheless. if you're a die hard fan of linear Survival Horror games, you will have a blast playing The Callisto Protocol.

Gamersky - Chinese - 7.6 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a very delicate Dead Space-like game: excellent horror atmosphere, outstanding graphics, and a fairly good combat experience, but the actual content is difficult to meet the high expectations of players. I was very disappointed after playing it, because it's hard to imagine such a highly anticipated work being so mediocre, it could have been a better game.

33bits - Spanish - 75 / 100

The Callisto Protocol has failed to live up to all the promises made during its development and those expecting survival horror will be disappointed. However, despite its limitations and numerous implementation problems, it manages to be quite fun thanks to an interesting combat system and excellent art design.

Checkpoint Gaming - 7.5 / 10

An intense atmospheric adventure with an intriguing premise, The Callisto Protocol delivers a solid horror game that focuses largely on its satisfying combat. It doesn't have much variety and is lacking a bit of creativity, but it makes up for that with impressive visuals and disgusting, intimidating monsters. It might not meet the expectations of its obvious inspirations, but The Callisto Protocol lays a strong foundation of terrifying atmosphere and crunchy combat that makes it satisfying and spooky nonetheless.

DASHGAMER.com - 7.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a prime love letter which I know is cliché, but it will have Dead Space fans satisfied but leaving with more questions than gratification. A great example of a video game that layers itself with a defining cinematic experience but leaves more to be desired in its interactivity.

Easy Allies - 7.5 / 10

Beneath the blemishes, The Callisto Protocol is a satisfying survival horror game with gorgeous atmosphere and brutal combat.

ElderPlayers - Arabic - 7.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol, provided a survival experience worth waiting for and a good horror experience with a beautiful world, sounds and designs,marred by a few disadvantages such as the camera and some negatives in animation. If you are a fan of these types of games, the game will not disappoint you.

Geek Culture - 7.5 / 10

In the end, The Callisto Protocol ramps up the atmospheric horror with plenty of visceral action, with the linear design helping to keep the focus on the main objective from start to finish. Although it can have trouble when it comes to empowering the player and losing its horror edge, the main issue remains the fact that we have all seen and done this before. Depending on your preference, that might just be exactly what you want, but the nightmare fades a little, especially with the Dead Space remake on the horizon.

LevelUp - Spanish - 7.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is brutal, violent and will send chills down your spine.

What Striking Distance Studios did is far from perfection, but don't let that discourage you. The Callisto Protocol is a horror experience that is well worth getting to know. Just don't expect it to be a legendary game that changes the industry.

MKAU Gaming - 7.5 / 10

From its character models to the futuristic sci-fi scenery I was pleasantly surprised throughout, even though I played on performance mode for that extra smooth gameplay I didn’t experience too many dips in frames and it still looked amazing. However, for the people who love that crisp image and don’t mind a lower framerate which appears to sit at a solid 30fps. There is a quality mode, giving you that extra fidelity, especially if you have a nice 4k monitor or TV with HDR.

PlayStation Universe - 7.5 / 10

First out of the gate in what will be a bevy of survival titles in the coming months, The Callisto Protocol is a solid maiden effort from developer Striking Distance Studios and one that has laid the groundwork what is hopefully to come.

WayTooManyGames - 7.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol has all the right ingredients for what could have been a phenomenal action-horror experience. Sure, it was still a great time, but repetitive combat and enemy designs mixed with a lacklustre story leave for a somewhat underwhelming experience but one that was dripping in atmosphere and phenomenal visuals. It’s not a disappointment per se, but maybe wait for a discount before tackling this one.

XGN.nl - Dutch - 7.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol clearly gets its inspiration from the older Dead Space games, thanks to co-creator Glenn Schofield being the director on the game. The survival-horror action is being presented very convincing here, with nice visuals and thrilling audio design. Sadly the gameplay is more of mixed bag, with a lot of ups and downs. Whilst not being perfect, Callisto Protocol nonetheless is a fun ride that every survival-horror fan should at least put on their radar.

Wccftech - 7.2 / 10

The Callisto Protocol, throughout all of the tension and suspense, can't mask the terrors within might only be surface deep.

Arabhardware - Arabic - 7 / 10

The Callisto Protocol ingredients could have made a delicious recipe we'd enjoy for years to come, but the chef who made the dish forgot to include some essential spices, which resulted in a disappointing final product.

Bazimag - Persian - 7 / 10

The latest game from the creator of Dead Space called The Calisto Protocol is an experience full of ups and downs. When the game tries to take the Dead Space route, it offers a heartwarming and entertaining experience. But when it tries to act differently, many problems appear. The repetitive combat system and the fight with the bosses are among the main problems of the game, which have severely damaged the game experience in the final sequences. The Callisto Protocol definitely has a lot of potential that the creators could not use well and with their wrong choices during the development, they have caused a lot of damage to this title. With all these interpretations, this title can still be offered to those interested in the Dead Space series and the horror and survival genre and hoped that if a sequel is made, its problems will be resolved. Things like voice acting and game graphics are among the commendable parts of this work.

Digital Trends - 3.5 / 5

Despite some cumbersome combat systems and performance issues, The Callisto Protocol successfully builds on Dead Space's legacy

Enternity.gr - Greek - 7 / 10

It's a fun experience that manages to stay interesting from start to finish, even if at one point its jumpscares are telegraphed.

Game Rant - 3.5 / 5

The Callisto Protocol is an excellent game while it lasts, but it's missing important features that would have propelled it to the next level.

GamingTrend - 70 / 100

The Callisto Protocol is a unique and often good game which is hindered by its own ambition. The fighting system is sure to be hit and miss with audiences, and the difficulty coupled with the slow movement and weapon swapping will surely turn a few people off. Despite this, Protocol builds a unique world that would benefit from further entries diving more into its backstory and is brought to life with incredibly detailed graphics, fantastic sound design, and gorgeous lighting. The Callisto Protocol may not be the survival horror game many had hoped for, but it does successfully carve out its own niche.

IGN - 7 / 10

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.

Multiplayer First - 7 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a good first shot at terrifying you in space. While not as scary as Dead Space, and lacking the same kind of satisfying combat, there is still fun to be had amidst the sometimes enragingly-unfair fights and odd story pacing. After just eight chapters, the adventure is over, as it doesn’t overstay its welcome. Things are also setup nicely for a sequel, should sales meet or exceed expectations, so with any luck Striking Distance will have another chance to deliver a more refined adventure that truly terrifies us.

New Game Network - 70 / 100

As a visual treat and atmospheric marvel, The Callisto Protocol has the presentation to be Dead Space's modern-day superior, but shoddy lore, gameplay quirks, and blandness mean it does not quite make the cut.

Niche Gamer - 7 / 10

The Callisto Protocol has a lot of care to make it a more unique experience than just being another third-person shooter.

Push Square - 7 / 10

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 its own.

The Beta Network - 7 / 10

The Callisto Protocol isn’t the greatest horror title ever, but it still has some wicked cool moments to witness. There are stutter issues with the frame rate on PC, the combat does get repetitive and the story is largely forgettable, but the general atmosphere and hand-crafted set pieces are worth experiencing.

Twinfinite - 3.5 / 5

All in all, it may sound like I’m really down on The Callisto Protocol, and in some ways, I am. For those who were expecting the next Dead Space, I’m sad to report that The Callisto Protocol just isn’t quite it. Instead, Striking Distance Studios has crafted a largely by-the-numbers horror-action title with terrific presentation that could’ve been something truly special. Unfortunately, while your journey across the titular dead moon is a sporadically fun and entertaining ride, it fails to authentically push the genre forward in any meaningful way. Still, despite all that… at least you get to stomp on stuff, right? Phew!

We Got This Covered - 3.5 / 5

The Callisto Protocol shines best in its visceral, moment-to-moment combat, which strikes a good balance between feeling tense, and intuitive. What lets it down is a story that feels a little too unfinished and a few design choices that stick out like a sore thumb in this day and age.

Worth Playing - 7 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is frustrating as a game because it's so easy to see how it could have been great. There's no single thing that drags down the game, but it's an endless stream of annoyances that are exacerbated by the constant reminders of better titles.  The Callisto Protocol can be fun, but it's constantly getting in the way of its own fun. It's possible that patches might smooth out some of the combat issues and improve the game a fair bit. At launch, though, it's more frustrating than fun. There's a lot of potential for a sequel that takes the lessons to heart, but for the moment, you're better off waiting for a sale.

ZTGD - 7 / 10

This game wants to be Dead Space really, REALLY, bad, but what’s interesting about that is I haven’t even finished the first Dead Space game and I can see it. Is this a bad thing? No, it’s really not as Callisto Protocol isn’t a trash game at all, they tried some new things with the controls and stuff some of it worked but for me a lot more of it didn’t. The game’s depiction of excessive violence is fun but even it wears on to the point of feeling overboard, especially when you think why they have giant grinding machines in the open like this in the middle of a prison. The story, while predictable, was an enjoyable adventure, but as far as graphics this game looks incredible. But as most of us know by now, looks aren’t everything and so it is with Callisto Protocol.

GamePro - German - 66 / 100

The Callisto Protocol is an atmospheric graphics blender that can only compete with Dead Space in a playful way.

AltChar - 65 / 100

The Callisto Protocol simply isn't scary, doesn't play well and has nothing to hook you into its world. It's a poor excuse for a horror game and you're better off waiting for Dead Space Remake than spending $70 on this one.

CGMagazine - 6.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a competent survival horror game but a poor man's Dead Space, making it only worth it for those diehard fans of the genre.

IGN Italy - Italian - 6.5 / 10

A horror that does not bring new elements to the genre and suffers from several conceptual problems, although not so serious as to reject the experience as a whole.

VGChartz - 6.5 / 10

The combat, when it’s clicking, is genuinely fantastic for a more action-driven horror title. But much of what is built around that combat lets it down: the pacing and atmosphere are largely non-existent; the level design, UI, and checkpoint system are very player-unfriendly; and there just aren’t enough set pieces and gameplay diversions to prevent the combat from getting somewhat repetitive by the game’s end.

But Why Tho? - 6 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is my biggest disappointment this year. While it nails the aesthetic and is one of the most beautiful games I’ve played this year, it misses the mark in almost every other department. I think it can be refined to at least be more fun, but in its current state, the story and gameplay weigh down this new entry to the survival horror genre from the potential it so obviously has.

Capsule Computers - 6 / 10

The Callisto Protocol offers some meaty melee combat and is one of the best looking games around but its poor story, lack of scares, and other issues will leave fans wanting.

Destructoid - 6 / 10

Slightly above average or simply inoffensive. Fans of the genre should enjoy them a bit, but a fair few will be left unfulfilled.

EGM - 3 / 5

The Callisto Protocol feels like a throwback title, for better and worse. While the Dead Space comparisons are unavoidable, director Glen Schofield's return to survival horror does bring with it several new concepts, but many, like the melee combat system, suffer from poor execution. Still, if you're looking for a fun, B-movie disaster story with some famous Hollywood faces and a more straightforward, linear single-player experience, you could do worse-at least until the Dead Space remake launches next year.

FingerGuns - 6 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a good game that falls short in almost every department of being a great one. Predictable story, gratifying-yet clunky combat mechanics and a lack of variety hold back what is an otherwise visual and audible spectacle. Dead Space has cast a long shadow since its release in 2008 and The Callisto Protocol can’t emerge from the depth of its superb darkness.

Game Informer - 6 / 10

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.

GameMAG - Russian - 6 / 10

If you still really want to play The Callisto Protocol it would be wise to wait for any upcoming updates and significant price drop.

GameSkinny - 6 / 10

A technically impressive action horror game, The Callisto Protocol gets stuck in orbit.

GamesHub - 3 / 5

There’s a solid game at the heart of Black Iron Prison, but every opportunity the game gets to subvert expectations or do something new is instead a moment of deferral to one of Callisto’s many inspirations. It’s nice to see Callisto try to be a new brew, synthesised from many parts, but an entirely new vision would have stuck around in the bloodstream a little longer.

GamesRadar+ - 3 / 5

A fantastic looking game that builds a great sci-fi world only to trash it with an unenjoyable combat challenge.

GamingBolt - 6 / 10

The Callisto Protocol looks stunning and can offer small doses of fun, but from misguided gameplay choices and hyper-linear design to ineffectual attempts at horror and a bland story, it stumbles and disappoints in too many ways to be labelled as anything but a disappointment.

Guardian - 3 / 5

This intense, gory horror game is steadfastly old-fashioned and lacking in internal logic – but it's fun anyway

Inverse - 6 / 10

The Callisto Protocol succeeds as a desolate and brutal survival horror experience in its opening hours. But the second half is hindered by massive difficulty spikes and clunky melee combat.

Metro GameCentral - 6 / 10

Dead Space 4 in all but name, except with no puzzles and surprisingly little suspense. The Callisto Protocol has plenty of gritty action but that's not quite enough to sustain interest for its entire duration.

MonsterVine - 3 / 5

The Callisto Protocol has potential, but its strange melee combat, average story, and average gunplay keep it from standing out in any way. It looks great and has fun moments, but the majority of my time with The Callisto Protocol wasn’t especially memorable.

Saving Content - 3 / 5

The Callisto Protocol is a ride worth taking, but I’m flummoxed at some of the decisions made here. The melee combat is on autopilot, the weapon selection is limited, and there’s no New Game+ to return for another orbit. The brutal, gory, visceral kills that you perform on monsters is returned in equal measure to you, always bringing a smile and recoil to my face. Compromises had to be made to enjoy parts of this game, but when you can turn your brain off, it’s good fun. The Callisto Protocol doesn’t quite live up to expectations of its spiritual predecessor, but I can’t say I didn’t find it to be mostly satisfying, pustules and all.

Tom's Guide - 3 / 5

The Callisto Protocol has intriguing ideas but its unsatisfying combat and linear level design prevent it from being the Dead Space spiritual successor we hoped for.

Try Hard Guides - 6 / 10

So many good ideas went into making this game, and it leads with such a strong opening. Unfortunately, The Callisto Protocol can’t help but fumble in the second half. As disappointing as it may be, the game will definitely appeal to some players, and the flaws shouldn’t be glaring enough to stop those who loved the game’s opening to see it through to the end, though they might be disappointed.

VG247 - 3 / 5

This isn’t to say there isn’t a good game oozing within the sticky flesh of this Frankenstein, though; it just feels like it’s not what Striking Distance wanted it to be. It’s not the next step in horror gaming, the evolution of Dead Space, or a proposition unlike anything you’ve seen before – it’s the opposite. An amalgam, less than the sum of its parts, whose main focus becomes overwrought and frustrating by the time you’re halfway through its short run-time. The scariest thing about The Callisto Protocol, sadly, is all the potential that’s been wasted on a small moon in Jupiter’s orbit.

VGC - 3 / 5

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 means that it has one tentacle stuck in the past.

XboxEra - 5.9 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is a gorgeous mess. I cannot recommend it at the full launch price. The combat is miserable, and the story is simply not interesting. If you are a massive fan of survival horror it lets you down by not being scary either, instead relying on jump scares the entire time.  It is highly competent technically though, and I hope the team at Striking Distance gets more time for their next title, which very well could be a sequel to this one.

PowerUp! - 5.5 / 10

If you were hoping this would be the second coming of Dead Space, you’ll need to wait for next year’s remake.

3DNews - Russian - 5 / 10

A pretty but uninspired platformer. Even though one of its developers made Limbo and Inside, don't expect the same level of quality here.

BaziCenter - Persian - 5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol is mediocre at best with nothing to brag about as every aspect of the game like story, ending, boss fights, visuals and pretty much everything else is below the standards of 2022.

Digitally Downloaded - 2.5 / 5

As good as it looks, though, The Callisto Protocol is bad horror that has nothing meaningful to say and struggles to have a single original moment within it. I know that there are people out there saying that the game was “rushed out” to meet a deadline of “releasing before the Dead Space remake”… and perhaps it was! That might explain the performance issues on other platforms. However, that’s not really the problem with it. What lets this game down is that the core theme is broken to its foundations, and even if it ran perfectly at all times, in a best-case scenario, all polish would have ever done is ensure that it was entertaining enough to play. It was never going to be a horror experience that anyone remembers, even five years from now.

GameSpot - 5 / 10

Though it starts off on a strong note, The Callisto Protocol's focus on action-heavy spectacles fails to adequately explore its horror and overcrowds its weak combat mechanics.

Hardcore Gamer - 2.5 / 5

Confused, contradictory and all too reliant on what came before, fantastic visuals that may stand as one of the current-gen's best can't save what's a terribly underwhelming release with The Callisto Protocol. A game that tries so desperately to be acknowledged for its own identity, all while relying on its most blatant and obvious of call-backs.

Kakuchopurei - 50 / 100

Rather like a beat 'em up, you're just going through a bunch of linear corridors, fighting and dodging your way out of prison hell. That in itself is more frustrating than fun because of the overall poor design. So why pay triple-A price for a watered-down sci-fi horror game experience?

PC Invasion - 5 / 10

Amazing visuals and stellar atmosphere notwithstanding, The Callisto Protocol is held back by a cumbersome combat system, technical woes, and other issues.

Screen Rant - 2.5 / 5

The Callisto Protocol brings high-def sci-fi horror to current-gen consoles, but it suffers from a lack of dynamic gameplay ideas outside of its gore.

TheGamer - 2.5 / 5

It's a shame that The Callisto Protocol is so uninteresting at its core. Though it looks gorgeous on the surface, a dozen hours of nothing special can have a clarifying effect.

TheReviewGeek - 5 / 10

Good graphics and lighting can only go so far and unfortunately, there is absolutely nothing else here worth getting excited about. The Callisto Protocol is this generation’s The Order: 1886. It could have been great. There are flickers of greatness here. But in the end, this turns into a great big disappointment.

ComingSoon.net - 4.5 / 10

With such a rushed story and sloppy mechanics, The Callisto Protocol betrays the legacy it was built upon.

TechRaptor - 4.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol has occasional bouts of fun melee combat and fantastic graphics, but too much of the game is simply not fun to play to be worth it.

Impulsegamer - 2.2 / 5

Gloriously gory visuals let down by an unoriginal and scarce story, by-the-books gameplay and minimal replayability.

DualShockers - 4 / 10

A bland sad protagonist with all the charisma of a rock with a frowny face, a mystery box-style narrative that only ends with more mystery boxes, a combat system that wants to be multiple entirely different games. The Callisto Protocol might function, and it’ll certainly have its launch issues patched out in due time, but in no way can I recommend it to anyone but the most morbidly curious. Everything was stacked in this game’s favor, and it still wasn’t enough. We didn’t need Dead Space 2.0 - we just needed a cohesive, focused game. Instead, it's an oddly soulless concoction of unfocused ambitions, poor planning, and inconceivably amateurish design. Whether you're winning or losing, Callisto Protocol never feels right.

GamesBeat - 2 / 5

I hope there’s a horror game or Dead Space fan out there who gets more out of this game than I did. As it stands, I can’t really recommend it. I feel it would probably disappoint both the horror game aficionado and the Dead Space fan. I know I walked away from it feeling unfulfilled.

Saudi Gamer - Arabic - 4 / 10

Beauty can be skin deep as the game squanders its strong points as it progresses with baffling design choices that are annoying and frustrating far more than scary and challenging

Video Chums - 4 / 10

Playing The Callisto Protocol made me feel like I'm wasting my time and I rarely feel that way when I play video games. With simple and repetitive combat and a world that's completely void of tension yet still filled with absurd amounts of violence, it can go suck an egg.

Gamerheadquarters - 3.5 / 10

The Callisto Protocol had some performance issues, but at its core just wasn’t a great game lacking exciting moments or well anything even remotely scary. I was never entertained while playing this game; finding it boring, cumbersome and honestly rather traumatic but not in a terrified sense which is a shame.

Slant Magazine - 1.5 / 5

The game’s dedication to graphical fidelity feels like a blinder to thinking outside the box in every other regard. It can’t help but feel like intensive overcompensation for inconsistent, tension-less stealth, one-note combat, level design that doesn’t reward exploration, generically fleshy enemies, upgrades that don’t reward experimentation, and ineffective jump scares, from enemies that get cheap hits in on Jacob every single time, regardless of how well-prepared the player is. Much has been made of the fact that this was meant as the heir apparent to beloved survival horror series Dead Space, a game that, 12 years later, can still induce goosebumps just from its terrifying attract sequence. By contrast, if not for its graphics, The Callisto Protocol feels like a relic from 1998, undone creatively even by the decaying likes of Shadow Man.

The Jimquisition - 3 / 10

The Callisto Protocol isn’t scary. It isn’t fun. It isn’t entertaining, fascinating, or mildly enriching. It lays a self-entitled claim to Dead Space’s stylistic and mechanical elements yet wields not a single one with grace, instead performing a crude pantomime.

Ars Technica - Unscored

This breakout horror game stumbles occasionally, but it still stands tall as a thrilling survival-horror experience.

Entertainium - Maybe

I wanted so much to bask in the intended horror that The Calisto Protocol promised in the months leading up to release, but that wasn’t the case when the time came to play it. While it’s surely not an awful game by any means, with flawed but in the end very crunchy feeling combat, it’s simply not in the same league as its inspiration when it comes to providing a scary or even tense experience. It’s still a very graphically impressive and positively disgusting game for sure, and for some that might be enough as it is.

Eurogamer - Recommended

Dead Space comparisons are impossible to avoid - but while The Callisto Protocol's missing some of the depth and tension, it makes up for it with production value and bloody-minded fun.

Eurogamer.pt - Portuguese - No Recommendation

I can't recommend it, and despite some good times, these are not enough to make you forget your obvious shortcomings. Linear by the negative, without extra challenges (puzzles), is to go get a certain thing to open something else with some monsters along the way. There is a lack of exciting content and moments of apotheosis. Because of the lack of time or because there was no more budget, I know that The Callisto Protocol is a job with a huge burden on its back, Dead Space. Sometimes it feels like a finished job in a hurry to get into the upcoming Christmas-season sales window. I'm really sorry.

Kotaku - Unscored

I consider The Callisto Protocol one of the most ambitious games I played this year, maybe even the most next to Elden Ring (though I think Elden Ring is in a league of its own—I don’t know if anything will be able to approach its depth and sophistication for a long time). Its thoughtful attention to environment, sound, and touch is what, I think, next-gen gaming should be like: an experiment with the senses and with story. The game has its issues, too, which can’t be ignored. But at least it feels human.

One More Game - Wait

The Callisto Protocol excels as an atmospheric survival horror title, at least in its early parts of the game. However, because so many of its inconsistent combat mechanics could’ve used more balancing, the aspects that made the title stand out ultimately worked against it.

Moreso, the unsatisfying conclusion squanders the mystery that’s been set up at the start of the title with its impressive cinematic cut-scenes. I commend Glen Schofield and his team for sticking to the overall concept and experimenting with new mechanics, however, many of these creative choices snowballed into a frustrating time for random horror fans looking for a good scare.

Polygon - Unscored

The Callisto Protocol could have borrowed a few more lessons from its spiritual inspiration, and further refined its mechanics to make a game that plays as good as it looks.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun - Unscored

The Callisto Protocol isn't that scary and has potentially annoying combat, but it would still be pretty fun if it didn't run like your three day old reheated takeaway.

Skill Up - Unscored

Video Review - Quote not available

Unboxholics - Greek - Maybe

The Callisto Protocol is a game that can be divisive. I think that fans of the genre, like myself, will accept and enjoy it, since overall it gives an decent sci-fi survival horror adventure, which does not reinvent the wheel, but knows how to win over space horror fans. The rest of you who aren't crazy about the theme and setting would do well to stay away as there are better games out there to invest your time and money into.

Washington Post - Unscored

Striking Distance’s debut is a swing and a miss, but “Callisto Protocol” ends on a cliffhanger. If the studio decides to revisit the series with a sequel, I’m hoping the second outing will be better than the first.

gameranx - Unscored

Video Review - Quote not available

[Xbob42]

Alright, starting to get to what I was after to begin with. Despite having the game open for several hours, I've only been able to actually play for like 2 and a half or so.

 

Anyway, got the pistol, which by itself was... fine, but it doesn't seem like it's a weapon you just use to shoot enemies in the face with, though you can do that.

 

You continue to dodge and do your combo melee, and at the end of it, you can quickly fire your weapon to get an additional hit off, but more importantly, stagger the enemy again, allowing for you to continue your assault unimpeded, spending ammo to melee more without having to dodge, basically. This is a nice little extension to melee combat, but on its own it's just not enough. But I finally got the kinesis equivalent and man do I love this thing. Obviously I knew from the start since you could pick up enemies, it'd have some sort of limit. After all if you could just pick everything up like you can in Dead Space, but also enemies, that'd be way too easy.

 

So you have a certain amount of battery that recharges on its own, at a pretty good pace, much faster than Isaac's stasis recharge (the only comparable metric I have, since of course, kinesis didn't have any charge) but not so fast that it's infinite. Small objects being picked up and fired barely seem to touch it, while live enemies can drain it rapidly.

You can of course use it to pluck enemies and jam them into hazards such as spike walls or fans, which I immediately did and they die on impact 100% of the time, which is quite satisfying. You can also melee combo them into these and that does the trick as well... but it's a little trickier for fans since while spike walls (at least with you in control, dunno about being hit towards them) are harmless to you, fans will instagib you if you foolishly step too close.

 

But that's not where it ends, there's already myriad ways to strategically use this thing in combination with my melee and pistol, and honestly I kind of love it. For example, no spike wall? Well you can use it after a combo to just lift and launch the enemy a short distance to stagger them. Or use it as you're about to get hit to stop the attack, at which point you can just drop them or launch them into a wall or another enemy. Or, as I was riding a gondola over a bottomless chasm, a Dead Space tradition one might say, the building I was going towards had its doors open. 3 enemies sat inside. So I could wait until I got there and fight them as best I could, I could shoot them from a distance to hopefully kill some or at least damage them all, or I could do what I actually did and just pick each one up and lovingly drop it into the void, at zero risk to myself while using zero resources. That felt fucking cool, not gonna lie, just thinking of it on the fly and it actually working. (My first instinct was to shoot, because you know... Dead Space.) Enemies use more charge the longer you hold them, and moreso if you launch them, so super quick "pick up and drop" strats mean you can maximize battery efficiency for more uses before needing a recharge. You of course also get battery drops to refill it.

Then, of course, there's the Reforge. It's basically a combination of Dead Space's BENCH and Store, where you can spend credits to have a 3D printer make you consumables or upgrade your gear. It's all consolidated under currency now, so no power nodes. Meaning each time you use it to buy ammo or health, you're pushing back your next permanent upgrade, which to me is PRIME resource management design in a survival horror title. Encouraging you to play a little more risky in terms of taking less consumables. Since you can't really "play it safe" (so far) in combat, it means regardless of your choice, you still have to get in there and mix it up. I really like this design.

 

The upgrades themselves seem standard but good. Kinesis can go from just launching enemies to launching actually damaging them and eventually nearly killing them, faster recharge, higher battery capacity, then there's lower recoil on your gun, more ammo capacity, damage and very interestingly, alt fires! Baton's got reach, counterattacks, heavy attack to focus on damage, and several more. I found a shotgun blueprint and I'm now saving up credits to buy that, hoping it opens up some non-combo related gunplay, and really hope we get a plasma cutter equivalent, though I'm not holding my breath. (Though I AM kinda holding my breath because the audio drama literally used the words plasma cutter...)

 

But there's also some obvious flaws. Sometimes the combos seem to glitch out a bit, especially in super cramped spaces or near doors, resulting in missed strikes as enemies slide out of place (this has only happened like twice but twice is too many), and dodging multiple enemies is a little weird, but so far seems to work. Instead of attacking you from behind, if you're already in combat a new enemy (again, so far) grabs you and throws you behind them. Basically putting themselves near whatever you're fighting so you can keep track of everything.

If you're NOT in a combo, they can definitely just swipe at your ass cheeks. That said, I've been able to deal with multiple enemies completely fine. Like I figured, they get less aggressive when not actively targeted or in view. That doesn't mean they can't hurt you, but generally you have to ignore them for several seconds before they try anything. So as long as you're not completely oblivious you'll be fine. Again, starter enemies early on, maybe shit changes.

 

Although the game does seem to like to put you into fun situations. Turning on the power? Well these giant turbines are spinning up. There's like 10+ enemies in the encounter... time for some hot kinesis action! Just chucked most of those fuckers into the turbines and if I ran outta juice I'd just combo them around a bit until I could get it going again. Actually died twice because I got too greedy with my hits (more on that in a second) but once I stopped being greedy it was easy street. Also, the game does a lot of tutorial stuff early on, some of it real hand holdy (like slowing down time, forcing your character to look at the center mass of an enemy, and popping up "RT+A TO GRAB ENEMIES") it also isn't afraid to just let you wander and get lost. I don't know if there's any sort of locator GPS like Dead Space, or even a map, as I haven't found either in any menu. So you just have to read signs and pay attention and map things in your head, which has been really satisfying. This isn't a Resident Evil mansion or anything, so it's not too demanding, but it's still fun just focusing on the world instead of an objective marker.

Oh! I brought the tutorial thing up because despite already teaching me how the kinesis works, it did a second pop-up (no slowdown or forced aim this time) when I started the turbine segment, they want to make sure you know to use it, and I respect that.

The stuttering is still there but seems to have massively reduced since the setpiece heavy intro. That or playing so much Pokemon Violet has broken both my spirit and my mind.

 

One thing I'll say I'm not sure I like is enemy combos. If they have a tell for when they're doing more than 1 attack, I'm clearly too stupid to notice. They'll swing, I'll dodge and try to swing back, but if they begin an attack of their own, they get priority, likely due to being monsters or something. Basically, you have to be at least a little patient and make sure there's no follow-up attack, because you can take a lot of damage swinging willy-nilly. My complaint is I just wish the tells were more obvious. As it stands, early on it feels like enemies control the flow of battle, and even in survival horror where that might seem to make intuitive sense, it is rarely enjoyable to a player to sit and wait, sit and wait, repeat, even if we're dodging and still actively playing. I think that's what makes the kinesis so satisfying -- now we can take control of the flow of combat when we choose. Rather than control being ammo you're spending, it's renewable battery energy, meaning you don't have to spend 90% of the game hoarding the "fun."

 

And I'll say it again, that's all "at least so far." Still VERY early, might hate this game, but I feel like it's finally picking up and taking on a room full of enemies, even here on the hardest difficulty, is fun early on rather than being brutally hard. I dunno if any of you played the Dead Space games on impossible difficulty, but I feel like 1 is the only one that felt remotely balanced. In 2 and 3, every necromorph could take some heavy punishment on impossible, which was fine, but the relentless waves of 30-40 enemies was sickeningly dull at times, especially since something like enemy-grabbing kinesis could've made it so much more fun. I feel like even if I end up hating this game, which seems unlikely, I'd still want "grab the enemies" to be a Dead Space-like staple going forward.

[BloodyHell]

Yeah, this is what I expected with it embargoed till this morning. Can’t decide if I should buy, or wait for sale/game pass.

[BloodyHell]

Krafton stock takes a dip as Callisto Protocol launches to mid-70s reviews | VGC

WWW.VIDEOGAMESCHRONICLE.COM

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The South Korean company is the owner of developer Striking Distance Studios…

 

[Bacon]

Not to shit on a game while it's down, but I have watched a bit of it on streams and all I can think is, "man, this would seem so much better if it was Dead Space."

[BloodyHell]

21 minutes ago, Bacon said:

Not to shit on a game while it's down, but I have watched a bit of it on streams and all I can think is, "man, this would seem so much better if it was Dead Space."

Im currently looking at a few, and honestly, yeah…

[Bloodporne]

Damn...haven't been this bummed at reactions and scores for a while. I was convinced this'd be a homerun Dead Space revival honestly. Was getting this Day 1 but eh.

 

Legit disappointed.

[Xbob42]

36 minutes ago, Bloodporne said:

Damn...haven't been this bummed at reactions and scores for a while. I was convinced this'd be a homerun Dead Space revival honestly. Was getting this Day 1 but eh.

 

Legit disappointed.

Yup. Even though I'm enjoying it (when it lets me) they just didn't hit the mark.

 

Worse, they have some sort of rogue level designer who has a fucking fetish for crawling through vents and shimmying into tight spaces. I swear to god I'm doing that like every 4-5 minutes. It adds nothing and in fact detracts from the game. It can't be masked load times because the entire game loads in like 2 seconds from the main menu, so it's just... there?

[Bacon]

3 minutes ago, Xbob42 said:

rogue level designer who has a fucking fetish for crawling through vents and shimmying into tight spaces

Didn't know Santa Monica Studio was involved in this game 

[Xbob42]

14 minutes ago, Bacon said:

Didn't know Santa Monica Studio was involved in this game 

It's WAY more than they do, and I already bitch about it with God of War.

[BloodyHell]

1 hour ago, Bloodporne said:

Damn...haven't been this bummed at reactions and scores for a while. I was convinced this'd be a homerun Dead Space revival honestly. Was getting this Day 1 but eh.

 

Legit disappointed.

Agreed, I was really hyped for this. I started to temper my expectations when sflufan mentioned that embargo was today, but damn, feels bad, man.