Highlighted as one of last December’s showcase releases, The Callisto Protocol is failing to garner the appreciation it hoped for globally, as also reflected in its performance on the market.
As highlighted by the independent analyst Benji-Sales and by M.K Odyssey, in fact, the publisher Krafton would not be at all satisfied with the progress of the game, to the point of having lowered its expectations compared to those initially calculated.
The game, we read, would have cost around $160 million over the three years needed to make it, but while the publisher expected to sell 5 million copies peacefully, he now believes that even reaching 2 million will not be easy, if not throughout this year. Because of this, its initial estimate has been lowered to 2.1 million copies sold.
If these cold numbers leave you indifferent, however, what makes you think are those that have been identified by publishers and investors as the reasons for these inadequate performances, who also cite the limited length of the game as a defect that penalized it. Once again, regardless of what you think of The Callisto Protocol (which you can also find on Amazon at a discount), the theme of longevity returns as a synonym for quality – despite how this is achieved, if perhaps the gameplay or the story do not have the legs to support a greater length.
According to the article, which references Krafton’s concerns:
“Even the player reviews are negative. Although the graphics and audio technologies are excellent, the length of the game is too short and takes about six to seven hours to complete. Also, the level design is too simple.
The Callisto Protocol is receiving “average” reviews (61% are positive) from users on the global Steam platform. It is an improvement compared to last month and to the launch, when due to insufficient optimization problems of the PC version only 20% of the reviews were positive”.
The Callisto Protocol is available on PC and older consoles and new generation since last December. Born out of Striking Distance, a new studio by Glen Schofield (Dead Space), the game positively impressed our horror expert Domenico Musicò, as you can learn more in his video review.
In discussions born out of Krafton’s analysis, on forums such as ResetEra, players pointed out that the reference to longevity as an “against” is worrying, because “there is room for experiences eight or nine hours, especially if they are done well. I’d hate it if the underperforming The Callisto Protocol led to another thirty or forty hour game that could last ten or fifteen“.
And you know that, when it comes to diluting the games in order to be able to exult in the face of longevity at all costs, we countersign these statements with extreme conviction.
