The new sci-fi survival horror title The Callisto Protocol has recently launched, with the new IP giving players a chance to explore a new nightmarish game from Glen Schofield and Striking Distance Studios, heavily inspired by Dead Space, which the game’s director co-created. While there are a bevy of hints, tutorials, accessibility options, and useful information found throughout The Callisto Protocol, there are a few features and some important information that the game doesn’t elucidate. So without further ado, here are some pro tips for surviving the Dead Moon, Callisto, and its many horrors in Striking Distance’s debut title.
The Callisto Protocol – You can Dodge while Healing
One major complaint surrounding the gameplay of The Callisto Protocol is the game’s healing mechanic, as the protagonist, Jacob Lee, will take his sweet time restoring his health with an injector, all while horrifying biophages descend upon him, preparing to rip the hero to shreds. However, you might not know that you can actually dodge while healing. Although it might seem highly counterintuitive, once you have started the healing animation, if an enemy is bearing down on you, simply hold dodge in either direction, and the healing process will be interrupted with a quick sidestep. This can be incredibly important during the final boss fight or in one-on-one combat.
You Can’t Run Away!
For seasoned survival horror gamers, a tried and true strategy for escaping overwhelming combat encounters is to run away and regroup as a last resort. While this strategy might work for many genre standard-bearers, it’s a one-way ticket to a brutal death animation in The Callisto Protocol. You cannot outrun enemies in close combat situations, and turning tail will result in Jacob being killed from behind nearly every time. Even if you do somehow manage to escape into another room, enemies can easily follow you through vents, only prolonging the inevitable. The way to consistently survive combat encounters is aggressiveness and counterpunching by striking during open opportunities and buying time through dodging.
You Shouldn’t Always Counterattack with Guns When Prompted
Early in its campaign, The Callisto Protocol introduces a counterattacking mechanic that allows Jacob to follow up a flurry of stun baton swipes with a well-placed shot from a firearm, allowing for the severance of biophage limbs and even some head-exploding. However, while this combat gameplay loop can be satisfying, you should not always counterattack with guns, especially on the higher difficulties. Specifically in one-on-one encounters, it is best to alternate between dodging and pummeling opponents with melee, as you will preserve precious ammo that you will definitely need later on. Simply, save gun counterattacks for dire situations against multiple enemies, or when you need to take out enemy tentacles to prevent mutation.
You can’t melee The Two Head or Alpha’s Final Form
You’ll probably figure this out quickly, but dealing damage to the Two-Head miniboss or the last stage of the final boss, Alpha, will result in instant brutal death animation. You can only melee The Two-Head when you have staggered it with significant damage.
You Can Manipulate Enemy Spawns
Dealing with multiple biophages in combat is undeniably the hardest part of The Callisto Protocol, particularly in the early-game. However, in some cases (but not all), enemy spawns can be manipulated, making encounters much easier, allowing Jacob to pick off his foes one by one instead of having to fight multiple biophages at once. This is better shown than explained.
For example, in Chapter 4, you will encounter a narrow, misty hallway, with a biophage closing in rapidly.
If you rush forward into the middle of the hallway, another one will spawn from a nearby vent, seriously complicating matters. This highlights a larger point in that biophages (in many cases) only start spawning when you reach a certain point in a room. So, rather than sprinting into every room and corridor which triggers biophages to burst out of the floor and vents, leading to challenging fights and gruesome deaths, you must instead take a patient, calculated approach to each combat encounter. Whenever a single enemy starts charging you, you need to stop moving, wait for the biophage to attack you first, dodge, and counterpunch. Once the biophage is dead, press forward, rinse and repeat, taking each enemy out one by one, instead of fighting multiple at once. While this may not work in every encounter, it is a strategy that will certainly lead to fewer deaths.
You have to Craft Most of the Guns in The Callisto Protocol
Throughout the story of The Callisto Protocol, you find merely two guns through natural story progression, including the Hand Cannon and the Riot Gun. The other three firearms, the Skunk Gun, Tactical Pistol, and Assault Rifle require finding schematics hidden in Black Iron Prison, that must be then printed at a Reforge Station, costing precious Callisto Credits. This means that thoroughly exploring and looting rooms is a must if you wish to obtain Jacob’s full arsenal.
Related: All Weapon Locations in The Callisto Protocol
Collectibles are Extremely Easy to Miss
Much of the lore and backstory for The Callisto Protocol is told through implant bios and audio logs that are strewn throughout Black Iron Prison and its surrounding locations. If you manage to find all of these gory collectibles embedded in the necks of dead security officers and inmates, you will be awarded the “Grim Reaper” trophy/achievement. However, each of these bios and logs are highly missable, and with no new game plus or chapter select in The Callisto Protocol, failing to find all of them in a single run will require an additional full playthrough in order to obtain the achievement.
Related: The Callisto Protocol Trophies and Achievements Listed
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