Visceral Games and EA’s Dead Space is an over-the-shoulder survival-horror game that puts a Plasma Cutter in the hands of the player. Lowly engineer Isaac Clarke must survive necrotic terrors within the USG Ishimura, which establishes the science-fiction setting for one of horror’s most inspired games. Fifteen years later, Dead Space will now be receiving an overhauled remake. Meanwhile, Dead Space co-creator Glen Schofield is developing a new IP, The Callisto Protocol, that bears significant resemblance to Dead Space and may also set a precedent for current-gen horror.
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The Dead Space Remake Takes Full Advantage of Next-Gen Capabilities
Most remakes come with an attached footnote of remastered graphics with not much else of a worthwhile change from their original games. Remakes are also lambasted when they concern games that fans believe are not already outdated or inferior, therefore making the idea of them being remade redundant or superfluous. The Dead Space remake, however, is making a laundry list of technologically advanced changes that seem to be overhauling the entire experience and modernizing it for next-gen platforms.
Besides detailed flesh degradation on necromorph limbs, the Dead Space remake is also monitoring adaptive limbic responses with the ALIVE system to create more authentic expressions for Isaac. This remake seems like it is being made with the utmost respect for the original’s claustrophobic and intimate corridors with impressive lighting, all while maintaining the original’s atmosphere and horror and accentuating it without altering it.
June’s Summer Game Fest proved that science-fiction horror is clearly having a resurgence in gaming recently, with Fort Solis, Routine, and The Callisto Protocol being featured. Even if the IP of Dead Space itself does not influence other horror games in the future, horror games should definitely take note on how the Dead Space remake is iterating upon the original to create an authentic next-gen experience.
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The Callisto Protocol May Inspire New Horror IPs in the Midst of Remakes
The Callisto Protocol earns its undeniable resemblances to Dead Space as Striking Distance Studios’ Glen Schofield is helming it. The game will also be iterating upon Dead Space in ways that distinguish it independently, such as The Callisto Protocol’s emphasis on melee combat.
Remakes for popular games such as Dead Space have become incredibly abundant as a recent trend where IPs can now be revived and hopefully improved upon to generate a wider and newer audience on current-gen platforms, while also implying that the remake will reinvigorate the franchise in some way and lead to more sequels. This is a clear agenda for Capcom and Resident Evil, and while there is presently no indication that Dead Space will receive a fifth installment or revival entry any time soon, it is certainly possible that the remake’s success will lead to that.
Rather, The Callisto Protocol depicts the potential for new IPs in the survival-horror and action-horror genres. Some fans are more excited to return to the Ishimura, while others may be excited to experience a new science-fiction horror world with its own surprises.
Now that the capabilities of next-gen gaming have arrived, it will be interesting to see how The Callisto Protocol and other new IPs iterate upon popular mechanics in horror. Remakes will likely always be lucrative for developers and publishers, but The Callisto Protocol will hopefully illustrate how new IPs can be just as beloved and seminal.
The Callisto Protocol is scheduled to release December 2, 2022, on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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