The Callisto Protocol's Enemies Will Terrify You, Even If They're Alone

Dead Space creator Glen Schofield revealed new information on The Callisto Protocol, a sci-fi horror game set in the PUBG universe. Schofield provided more details on the game's combat, its connection to PUBG Battlegrounds, and even the Dead Space influences that have crept into its design, to create an unsettling and gruesome combination of outer space terror.

The Callisto Protocol is set 300 years in the future, and players will take on the role of Lee, a cargo pilot stuck on the monster-infested moon of Jupiter, Callisto. Lee will have to gather weapons as he fights to survive, and during the demo shown to Game Informer, he was seen wielding a pistol, shotgun, baton, and a device that allows for gravitational push and pull attacks called the GRP.

The enemies that Lee will face are called Biophages, former humans who have been transformed into monsters that are designed to terrify you and make you feel outgunned. Previous concept art showed how disturbing these designs are, and the new screenshots maintain that level of dread.

"We want you to be afraid of single enemies," design director Ben Walker explained. "All these tools we built up for Jacob are to deal with the difficulty as opposed to coming at it from the end of, 'Hey, you can kill all these cool things, now let's make some enemies.' We did it in reverse for that very reason. You feel scared, and you have to make the right calls at the right time."

For the Dead Space influences, Schofield didn't shy away from mentioning how he plucked a few ideas from the 2008 classic and used them for The Callisto Protocol. "I'm not going to shy away from a good idea because it was in one of my games," Schofield said. "All game makers look at ideas from other games. Picasso said, 'Good artists borrow, great artists steal'. Well, why not steal from myself?'"

When it comes to the PUBG connection, Schofield mentioned that "some touchpoints" and Easter eggs had been built into the game to create links to the battle royale, and The Callisto Protocol's place in the PUBG timeline has been worked on by developers from both game studios. Because of The Callisto Protocol's far-future setting, the game isn't too beholden to the past and has been left mostly free to craft its own narrative.

The Callisto Protocol--which Schofield previously said was being designed to be "the single scariest game on PC and consoles"--is still scheduled for release this year, while a remake of Dead Space will be out in January 2023.