PlayStation’s State of Play on June 2 was a great appetizer for Summer Game Fest next week. Horror fans were treated to an official announcement teaser for the long-rumored Resident Evil 4 remake, and an in-engine trailer revealed gameplay and a release date for The Callisto Protocol, which had only received a cinematic, pre-rendered teaser beforehand.
Set in Black Iron Prison on the moon Callisto, players follow an inmate's gruesome attempt to survive mutated creatures called biophages. The gameplay that was shown is heavily reminiscent of Dead Space, with an intimate third-person perspective and an eerie, science-fiction atmosphere. Biophages are unapologetically reminiscent of Dead Space’s necromorphs, and its lone protagonist is similarly reminiscent of Isaac Clarke. But these similarities are not unfounded, and it may serve The Callisto Protocol well to follow its Dead Space roots.
The Callisto Protocol is Unabashed in Its Dead Space Inspirations
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If anyone is going to make a good third-person action-shooter that is heavily reminiscent of Dead Space, it would be Dead Space co-creator Glen Schofield. If anyone other than Schofield and Striking Distance Studios was behind The Callisto Protocol, its similarities with Dead Space might be considered a blatant rip-off without its own identity. However, because Schofield is at the helm, fans may consider this to be a spiritual successor to the Dead Space franchise as its own IP with the same dread-filled survival-horror gameplay that made Dead Space a seminal experience.
Several things in The Callisto Protocol’s in-engine trailer harken back to disturbing imagery and iconic scares from Dead Space, such as protagonist Jacob Lee’s ammunition count being illustrated holographically on his firearm, the shadow of a mutated corpse that stretches along a poorly lit corridor, or its brutal execution animations. In many ways, The Callisto Protocol is both a love letter to Dead Space and a new iteration of that series' gameplay with a fresh coat of paint and a new narrative.
Some features are sure to be different, such as the fact that Lee is able to wield melee weapons like batons, whereas melee confrontations in Dead Space were a death sentence. Likewise, Isaac Clarke did not speak until Dead Space 2, and The Callisto Protocol has an opportunity to depict Lee as a more strong character in his first outing. If The Callisto Protocol can provide players with enough mechanics to give it its own identity apart from Dead Space, while reminding players that it is capable of the same blueprint for horror, it should garner a fair amount of respect.
December and January Mark an Incredible Time for Dead Space Fans
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Because the highly anticipated Dead Space remake arrives in January, only one month after The Callisto Protocol, it will be exciting to see fans’ reactions to both in such a short period. The Callisto Protocol will hopefully create a mold that feels fresh enough to warrant its own franchise as popular as Dead Space, meanwhile Dead Space’s remake reminds fans of what made the original so special in the first place.
The best-case scenario would be that both titles are hugely successful, meaning that The Callisto Protocol can pave its own path while Dead Space continues to receive new installments in the future. The Callisto Protocol may be evidence that a survival-horror science-fiction title does not need the Dead Space label to make itself popular, but Schofield's influence may be what helps the game maintain elements that fans adore about Dead Space.
The horrors of mutilated corpses overwhelming players who have only a few makeshift armaments is long overdue in games. The resurgence in this "genre" later this year and early next year may see a renewal for Dead Space, and if successful, The Callisto Protocol can further expand upon Dead Space in a meaningful and unique way.
The Callisto Protocol releases on December 2 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.