This review contains spoilers
The Callisto Protocol is a successor to Dead Space, yet it has nothing in common with Dead Space at all when you actually play the game aside from visual cues like the HUD being minimal.
In short, I enjoyed the game. I went into the game with as low expectations as possible given the game's awful launch on PC and with how people don't like the game, yet I came out of the game liking it. It's not perfect though and I'll tell you that.
The story is very generic and painfully average. At least in Dead Space, the Unitologists weren't the main villains of the game since they were both undeniably stupid and the worst part of the franchise lore. That's not the case here in Callisto. Sure, you beat the hell out of the Biophage in the game, but the UJC is very much the villain of the game with motivations that would make every sci-fy fan facepalm in disappointment due to seeing all of this stuff hundreds of times before. The character writing is good enough, but you barely spend any time with these guys to care about them all that much before you're thrown into the horrendous "character gets separated from group" cliché multiple times to the point where you seriously wonder if the writing team were out of ideas. It's quite hilarious how The Callisto Protocol: Helix Station, an audio drama that released six weeks before the game did, has an infinitely better story than the game it's advertising.
The game's ending is also an absolute joke of a conclusion. In Dead Space, everything was wrapped up except for Isaac's connection to the Marker. In Callisto, the game ends with so many loose ends where you are wondering where the fuck is the rest of the game once the credits begin. Pretty scummy to lock off the rest of the game to that story DLC coming later this year.
Gameplay. It's fun. It's actually pretty fun. Gets repetitive though and you can increasingly feel that for the entire game. The Melee combat is not fleshed out at all and feels very basic, and this is what you're going to be doing for the entire game if you want to save ammo. Ranged combat is meaty and full of weight so there's that. The GRP, I like this thing, but it breaks the game with letting you be able to throw the enemies off of ledges and into spikes. Turning the game into a cakewalk and I'm a guy who hates hard games so that should say something. At least there's a timer system so you don't abuse it at the start, but I'm sure some experts can already do that when you upgrade it halfway. Even with my complaints here, I ended up enjoying the combat loop due to the animations for the Melee combat to be visceral and packing a punch. Trust me, if they didn't, the game would've gotten very stale.
Overall I liked Callisto. It's a flawed game, but you can a good time with it if you set your expectations low unlike most people. The game can be fun, the voice cast is nice despite Sam Witwer barely being in the game to the point of contention, the animations are Medium Well Done, and levels are fun to run around in.
Is it worth $70 though despite it not having New Game+, Hardcore Mode, and the game's final act being cut for DLC? Fuck no.
In short, I enjoyed the game. I went into the game with as low expectations as possible given the game's awful launch on PC and with how people don't like the game, yet I came out of the game liking it. It's not perfect though and I'll tell you that.
The story is very generic and painfully average. At least in Dead Space, the Unitologists weren't the main villains of the game since they were both undeniably stupid and the worst part of the franchise lore. That's not the case here in Callisto. Sure, you beat the hell out of the Biophage in the game, but the UJC is very much the villain of the game with motivations that would make every sci-fy fan facepalm in disappointment due to seeing all of this stuff hundreds of times before. The character writing is good enough, but you barely spend any time with these guys to care about them all that much before you're thrown into the horrendous "character gets separated from group" cliché multiple times to the point where you seriously wonder if the writing team were out of ideas. It's quite hilarious how The Callisto Protocol: Helix Station, an audio drama that released six weeks before the game did, has an infinitely better story than the game it's advertising.
The game's ending is also an absolute joke of a conclusion. In Dead Space, everything was wrapped up except for Isaac's connection to the Marker. In Callisto, the game ends with so many loose ends where you are wondering where the fuck is the rest of the game once the credits begin. Pretty scummy to lock off the rest of the game to that story DLC coming later this year.
Gameplay. It's fun. It's actually pretty fun. Gets repetitive though and you can increasingly feel that for the entire game. The Melee combat is not fleshed out at all and feels very basic, and this is what you're going to be doing for the entire game if you want to save ammo. Ranged combat is meaty and full of weight so there's that. The GRP, I like this thing, but it breaks the game with letting you be able to throw the enemies off of ledges and into spikes. Turning the game into a cakewalk and I'm a guy who hates hard games so that should say something. At least there's a timer system so you don't abuse it at the start, but I'm sure some experts can already do that when you upgrade it halfway. Even with my complaints here, I ended up enjoying the combat loop due to the animations for the Melee combat to be visceral and packing a punch. Trust me, if they didn't, the game would've gotten very stale.
Overall I liked Callisto. It's a flawed game, but you can a good time with it if you set your expectations low unlike most people. The game can be fun, the voice cast is nice despite Sam Witwer barely being in the game to the point of contention, the animations are Medium Well Done, and levels are fun to run around in.
Is it worth $70 though despite it not having New Game+, Hardcore Mode, and the game's final act being cut for DLC? Fuck no.