The Callisto Protocol Reviews
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
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.
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.
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.
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.
Review in Italian | Read full review
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.
If you were hoping this would be the second coming of Dead Space, you’ll need to wait for next year’s remake.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
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.
Despite some cumbersome combat systems and performance issues, The Callisto Protocol successfully builds on Dead Space's legacy
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.
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.