The Callisto Protocol: Everything you need to know

One of the big reveals during the Game Awards 2020 concerned a new horror game called The Callisto Protocol. Coming from a Dead Space co-creator, it instantly excited horror fans with the promise of a spiritual successor to the beloved franchise.

It's still early in development, but there's a ton to gleam from the reveal trailer, as well as the comments of developers working on the game. Here's everything you need to know about The Callisto Protocol.

What is The Callisto Protocol?

The Callisto Protocol is a third-person, single-player survival horror game. It's being developed by Striking Distance Studios, a subsidiary of Krafton, which also own PUBG Corp.

Glen Schofield, co-creator of Dead Space, co-founder of Sledgehammer Games, and CEO of Striking Distance Studios, stated that "We've built a world class studio of passionate developers that is ready to once again tackle one of our all-time favorite genres — survival horror. We're setting out to make one of the most terrifying games of all time, and we can't wait to share more about The Callisto Protocol next year."

The Callisto Protocol trailer

The first trailer for The Callisto Protocol debuted during the Game Awards 2020. You can watch it below.

The Callisto Protocol Story, gameplay and features

We don't know much about the story right now, but The Callisto Protocol is set 300 years after the events of the rest of the PUBG universe, or 2320. It takes place in the Black Iron prison, located on the Callisto moon of Jupiter.

The character in the trailer has a kind of diegetic health interface on his neck, which instantly recalls how the HUD in Dead Space was immersively designed around the character. Based on the trailer, the prison is in disarray, with something horrific stalking the inmates. The monster has a humanoid shape and on close examination, appears to be an infected human. Whether this thing is alien or human-made in origin is unknown but we'd seriously guess the former.

We also see a mysterious figure watching a control panel with cameras, possibly the prison warden. Meanwhile, an operator tells a ship called the Charon to begin landing, which we see as the trailer ends. There's also a glimpse of the domes that presumably make up the liveable section of the prison.

From an interview with Polygon, Schofield was drawn to using the moon of Callisto due to the setting, which is theorized to feature an entire ocean trapped under a massive amount of ice.

We know the game is third-person and will almost certainly use a HUD similar to that of Dead Space. Schofield told IGN that "the graphics are just freaking amazing now" while the 150+ developer team is working to make this game the scariest title on the latest generation of consoles.

Schofield also notes that the main focus of the game is immersion, stating "We're trying to make you really feel like you're in this world. Even though it's you escaping from this prison and you've got to survive these unthinkable horrors."

What platforms is The Callisto Protocol coming to?

The Callisto Protocol is coming to "PC and consoles" with no exact platforms mentioned. With that said, it's easy to surmise that it will release on Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and PS5.

Is The Callisto Protocol set in the world of PUBG?

Yes. Strange as it sounds, The Callisto Protocol is set in the same universe as any other narrative games for PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds. Striking Distance Studios, the company developing the game, was created to specifically craft narrative games in the PUBG universe. Don't get too concerned about that though, as it's a completely different kind of game.

When is The Callisto Protocol's release date?

The Callisto Protocol has a release window of 2022, so it'll be a while yet before it's ready. A red band trailer is coming on December 17, with more information to be shared throughout 2021.