Now, let’s get this out of the way immediately. True, is the response. Yes, in elegant threads, The Callisto Protocol is Dead Space.
Yes, The Callisto Protocol is set hundreds of years from now in the deepest, darkest space, much like Dead Space. Yes, The Callisto Protocol has terrifying zombies that scream and charge at you rather than shuffle and groan as they do in Dead Space. Yes, The Callisto Protocol examines humanity’s callous, mindless ambition in addition to the tragedy of an infectious sickness that resurrects the dead, much like Dead Space does. It does these tasks more effectively than Dead Space in some areas, but not always. In any case, I thoroughly enjoyed myself.
Is it any wonder that the games have so much in common when you consider that the same man invented (or co-authored, in the case of Dead Space) both of them? Most likely not. Isaac Clark’s experience is still fresh in my mind from recently replaying Dead Space, so both consciously and unintentionally, I made comparisons between the two almost the entire time. I think it will be difficult for anybody who has played Dead Space to avoid drawing comparisons between the two games given how many things are similar: the inventory interface, the dismemberment system, the iconic stomp, the gondola scene, and Jacob’s Core health bar. It’s unfortunate that Callisto will always be in the intense shadow of Dead Space because what it offers in the way of solid combat, eerie settings, expertly done lighting and sound design, and strong voice acting is entirely worth it.
Dead Space is clearly a major inspiration for Callisto, but it also innovates on it, changing the environment and the gunplay to keep the player from growing bored or repetitive. While there are some confusing decisions and a noticeable lack of player agency (Jacob’s adventure is tourniquet tight and exploring off the beaten path won’t always pay off), if the goal was to create a Dead Space clone, then developer Striking Distance has succeeded admirably.
In Callisto, you take on the role of an ordinary delivery driver named Jacob Lee, who is imprisoned without charge or trial in Black Iron, a terrifying detention facility that houses the most dangerous offenders in the galaxy on the moon, for reasons that are not related to the engineer who is trapped on an abandoned mining ship. While it’s hardly the most inventive plot device ever, it serves its purpose, and once Lee gets over his traumatic introduction and discovers the jail has been infected, he starts to plan his escape.
Even though Clark was silent, I didn’t feel the same way about him as I did about Lee, and although I found his wrongful imprisonment to be fascinating, I wasn’t as interested in Lee’s narrative. It’s not that Josh Duhamel and his co-stars don’t do a great job; Lee’s dialogue and delivery were just fine. It’s just another game about a man who is locked up for a different crime that he didn’t do, and although it serves as a plot device, it’s unfortunate that the idea wasn’t a little more creative.
But the previously described action? Oh Lord, it’s quite good. Every scene seems powerful and real as the residents of Callisto are chopped apart with sickening precision. Similar to its spiritual forerunner, Callisto aims on destruction over just killing, so you’ll discover – primarily the hard way – how to cripple, maim, and dismember your enemies instead of automatically opting for the headshot. It’s interesting to note that there is a melee system as well, which means Lee must be as cautious with his dodges and ducks as he is with his shootings if he hopes to survive the animals’ propensity to charge at you.
That’s not all, though. Along with learning how to stealth kill—a useful ability considering the limited supply of ammunition that somehow finds the ideal balance between being overly generous and cruel—you’ll also learn how to take use of environmental dangers like bursting pods to increase your chances. Occasionally, you will come across intimidating security robots and have to choose between avoiding them or going straight for them. You may also use your reliable baton in place of ammunition if everything goes completely wrong and you run out of ammo (pro tip: improve it as soon as possible). Thank you very much.
Battles might feel incredibly difficult at times—even unreasonably so—but that’s good since you’ll get to see more of Lee’s delightfully graphic death animations the more deaths you cause. Furthermore, apart from one really irritating elevator trip, repeating parts seldom feels frustrating because to the great checkpoint system and the possibility to make manual saves.
About halfway through, you’ll find yourself below, trekking through tunnels, and facing dozens of a brand-new, terrible species of dwellers. However, if you want to have any hope of escaping unharmed, you’ll need to move cautiously here. Indeed, this unexpected part does, at first, significantly heighten the suspense. The terror eventually wanes, though, when you realize they have the AI of a shopping cart and that the several daubings that forebodingly advise “don’t make a sound” should instead mean “don’t run”. Even when you’re pulling off noisy stealth kills and crushing bodies for ammunition, it’s impossible to be afraid of something that may run into you and appear to be unaware of your presence.
By the way, it’s not just the adversaries who have beautiful looks. While at times it might be a bit too “helpful” in illuminating routes ahead, the lighting direction is mind-blowingly amazing and effectively highlights Callisto’s horrifyingly beautiful surroundings. This also applies to the audio design, however I must confess that after an hour or two, I realized that most of the cries and moans weren’t related to a specific goon that was hiding around a corner. The blood, the gore, the stickiness of moist random flesh that rots in corners—it’s all wonderful. No, The Callisto Protocol does not have the rich environmental storytelling that I adore from Dead Space; sure, the backgrounds are more varied, but they still feel like props rather than fully realized people like Ishimura from Dead Space. It’s unfortunate, in fact, that such intricate settings were unable to reveal more information about Black Iron’s mysteries and the lives of those who came before us.
But intellectual is not what this is. Move-this-crate-here and endless inventory management are the only riddles there are, actually. One monster in particular, Sackboy (it’s a head in a squishy sack thing), always appears to attack before you ever bloody see it. Furthermore, branching pathways are nearly often blocked off, whether by boxes, debris, or an oddly placed dead end. This means that even when you believe the game is opening up and allowing you the ability to explore, I can unequivocally state that it is not.
It’s a ridiculous omission that eliminates all motivation to take your time and appreciate this type of context—you also can’t move around when listening to audio logs. It’s your responsibility to remember who left the log, even if you did wish to listen to it. The inventory doesn’t bother to tell you which logs are new and which ones you’ve previously listened to. Midway through the game, you don’t so much expand your inventory as go from one extreme to the other, and even then, you’ll constantly be dropping batteries for the GRP, your special gravity glove, to make room for more expensive items that will allow you to upgrade your weapons.
Moreover, I thought the GRP’s take on stasis was woefully inadequate. Too frequently, I would use it to pull foes toward me until my strength ran out, causing the zombie to fall in front of me and giving me a slap in the face. I should admit that I was more concerned with improving my weaponry than my GRP, so this could be my own fault, but at the halfway point, I was hardly using my telekinesis abilities at all.
The most noticeable thing it lacks is Dead Space’s gripping narrative and oppressive atmosphere. Though it feels a bit churlish to gripe about it, I suppose some people won’t care about it. Still, if you’re forced to pick between Dead Space’s impending remake and Callisto and value plot above combat, keep that in mind.
In the end, the Callisto Protocol’s hectic action and violent combat nevertheless made a lasting impression on me since it built upon the excellent architecture of Dead Space and incorporated all of its many amazing elements. No, it’s not as terrifying as I was expecting, and it hasn’t got everything down pat. However, what if, like me, you enter The Callisto Protocol believing it to be a trite copy of Dead Space? Alright, not exactly.