Horror fans have had a lot to enjoy lately, ranging from Capcom’s smash hitResident Evil: Villageto Housemarque’s unsettling shooterReturnal,and yet the genre still has a lot to offer in the near future. For instance,The Callisto Protocolseems like it could be a particularly strong addition to the horror field this year. In this new title from Striking Distance Studios, players take the role of a prisoner trying to survive an alien invasion in the far future. Notably,The Callisto Protocolbelongs to the same universe as classic battle royalePUBG: Battlegrounds,since Striking Distance is part ofPUBG’s publisher. The connection between the two games remains to be seen.
Ever since it was revealed,The Callisto Protocoldrew comparisons toDead Spacefor its horrific alien threats and the implied sense of being trapped with these creatures.Dead Spaceis a great franchise to get compared to, but it seemed like it could act againstThe Callisto Protocolsincea remake of the originalDead Spaceis on the way. Luckily, it appears that these two games will dodge each others' releases, meaning they both have more breathing room. It’s possible that release dates will changes, but for the moment, these games have given each other some necessary space.
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Striking Distance Studios and Krafton currently plan onreleasingThe Callisto Protocolsometime in 2022, whereas Motive Studios and EA won’t release theDead Spaceremake until 2023. That’s great news forThe Callisto Protocol,which desperately needs to stand on its own two feet. It may not technically be the first game in its franchise, butThe Callisto Protocolstill has a lot of world building to do. Krafton clearly hopes to launch a universe ofPUBG: Battlegroundsgames with the help ofThe Callisto Protocol.In order to do that,The Callisto Protocolneeds to succeed, which may have proven difficult ifDead Space’s resurgence happened at the same time.
Dead Space’s strong reputation means that it’s capable of pulling a lot of attention away from the seemingly similarCallisto Protocol,but it would have faced some risks if it launched nearThe Callisto Protocoltoo. As famous asDead Spaceis, fans may have proven more interested in a new but similar game than a remake of an old title. The remake needs a strong launch, or else EA might feel discouraged frommaking moreDeadSpaceproducts. If the two games release in different years, they’ll likely premiere at least a few months apart, meaning they both have plenty of room to stretch their legs and make some sales.
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Of course, the possibility of delays can’t be ignored. Since Krafton hasn’t nailed downThe Callisto Protocol’s release date, it’s entirely possible thatCallisto Protocolwill get pushed back into 2023, meaning it’s at risk ofbutting heads withDead Space.In that case, Krafton may find itself hoping thatDead Spacewill get a similar delay. If any release window changes are needed, hopefully Krafton and EA mind one another’s projects and make an effort to release their games far apart from each other so that they can both perform better.
For the moment,The Callisto Protocoldoesn’t seem like it’ll need a delay. A recent tweet from Striking Distance Studios CEO andDead Spacecreator Glen Schofield implied thatThe Callisto Protocolis doing well, and that more information about the game is on the way. Horror game fans should keep an eye out for the next big announcement from Striking Distance, since any upcoming reveals are bound to include release date information. With any luck,The Callisto Protocolwill commit to its planned release year, meaning it andDead Spaceget to keep their mutual breathing room.
The Callisto Protocolreleases in 2022 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
