I have a lot of complicated feelings aboutThe Callisto Protocol. It was often in direct conversation withDead Space, which makes sense, given that it’sa spiritual successor helmed by the same creative lead, but it struggled to reach the same heights from the very beginning.
It’s not an awful game by any stretch of the imagination, but after playing through it twice, I can’t help feeling underwhelmed. It had great potential at every turn but fumbled its execution in just as many awkward, cumbersome ways.
When looking atThe Callisto Protocol’s unrealized potential, it seems that if Striking Distance Studios were given another shot at making another Callisto Protocol game, it might have the chance to be just as good, if not better, than Dead Space.
The Callisto Protocol has so many great ideas packed into its relatively short campaign. The rhythmic directional-dodge-based melee combat was a unique take on tired button-mashing melee mechanics, and the way you used telekinesis to grab enemies and throw them into death traps brought a level of lethality to every environment, while the enemy mutation mechanic meant players needed to find ways to finish off enemies quickly or opponents would evolve into much stronger versions of themselves.
While solid in concept, these mechanics never shaped up to be anything particularly memorable.Enemies went down relatively quickly, which meant they didn’t evolve very often to pose a bigger threat, and even if they did, they usually just took a few more hits to kill.
Combat was an interesting departure from how melee typically worked in other triple-A titles, but it was easily mastered in the first few hours, which meant that most of the tough later enemies didn’t pose much of a threat.
I could go on and on about how different elements didn’t fully come together, but what stands out most about The Callisto Protocol is that, regardless of how well they were implemented, it had so many good ideas. Ideas that, if given the chance to be refined and reiterated in a sequel, could combine into something really special.
You Have To Let Them Cook
It’s still possible that Striking Distance Studios could create a follow-up to The Callisto Protocol, but given that“most” of the dev team have been laid off, it feels unlikely. The games industry is facing a problem where decent games like The Callisto Protocol never get the chance to become a great series because if a game isn’t an instant hit, it’s common for layoffs and studio closures to follow. Most of the biggest names in gaming had initial entries that were pretty good, only to be followed up by, as the kids say, “absolute bangers.”
The kids still say that, right?
In fact,all it takes is a look at Dead Space, the series that inspired The Callisto Protocol, to see that when a studio is given the chance to refine the ideas that work, the sequel can be superior in many ways. I’ve played a handful of games recently that I found to be flawed, but I’m hopeful that a follow-up might refine the elements that I found to be lackluster. Despite being let down by the original games, I’ve got my eyes on the potential sequels to games likeStellar Blade,Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, andWild Hearts, to name just a few.
Games like The Callisto Protocol aren’t made better if the studios that made them are never given the chance of refinement.. There is noElden Ringwithout Demon’s Souls.There is no Mass Effect 2 without Mass Effect. There is no Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League without Batman: Arkham Knight. Well, okay, maybe not that last one, but you get the idea.
