Update: There’s been a bit of a kerfuffle surrounding The Callisto Protocol’s upcoming Season Pass, as outlined in the article below. Specifically, some fans are aggrieved that developer Striking Distance Studios could be holding back content – in this case, bonus death animations – in order to rake in additional cash. That, according to bigwig Glen Schofield, is simply not the case.
“To be clear: we’re not holding anything back from the main game for the Season Pass,” he said. “We haven’t even started work on this content yet. It's all new stuff that we’ll be working on in the New Year. Fans have asked for even more deaths, so we’re making it a priority next year.” Responding to a fan, he added: “We put every freakin’ thing that was done in the shipping game.”
Original Article: Poor Jacob Lee. He's the player protagonist in The Callisto Protocol which, coming from some of the minds behind Dead Space, means he's in for a rough time. We've already seen several examples of grisly death sequences in the sci-fi survival horror, and for many, these violent scenes will be a highlight. Interestingly, some of these animations will cost you extra.
As reported by VGC, the details of the game's Season Pass have been revealed on its Steam page. The Season Pass will feature, among other DLC, two content packs, each adding more death animations to the game. The Contagion Bundle will add 13 more death sequences for Jacob, while the Riot Bundle introduces 12 death animations for enemies.
There's more to these bundles, of course, including new modes and skins. We imagine the new animations may be tied to those DLC modes, or new enemies, being introduced that aren't in the base game. If that's the case, it makes a bit more sense. Still, we don't know that for certain. It's unusual to highlight things like death animations as a way to sell extra content, but given the game's gory marketing so far, we suppose it tracks.
What do you make of this? Are death animations part of why you're excited for The Callisto Protocol? Does the idea of more of them attract you to the Season Pass? Discuss in the comments section below.
[source store.steampowered.com, via videogameschronicle.com]
Comments 80
I can't wait until we have to pay for bullets in games. The amount of no bullet speedrunners that will become millionaires will be crazy.
Talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel. If they can't come up with actual content for a season pass, then maybe it shouldn't have one.
Well if those animations are tied to enemies and environments in the dlc then that makes perfect sense and is a non story. Though of its for existing encounters then that's just plain stupid
Well that’s trashy.
I’m not one to complain about content being locked behind a season pass or DLC; however, this seems utterly ridiculous. Out of all of the things you put behind a paywall — mind you, it’s already an $60.00+ game — death animations should not be one of those features, especially if this will prevent players getting the platinum trophy because it’ll be mandatory to buy the DLC. I don’t know if that will be the case in this particular situation, but still - what a silly thing to not include in the base game.
I'll just comment this....🙄
why cant more devs do it like GoW release a full game.
secretly pushing games to 100+
i realy don't get whey they are so focused on the death animations. sure dead space had them aswell,but it was far from a selling point that this game thinks it is.
This game has had so much good will. Now it seems they are trying to self-sabotage with this.
Oppose this 100% else it may become the next Horse Armour. Further cutting up games for MTX and DLC is not acceptable.
Awful, awful decision.
I remember a time when buying a game meant you actually got the game, and the season pass actually offered good value.
I'll def be waiting for a good sale on this one, then.
Definitely believe this will be context related and tied to added content. Think we need to wait for more information on this before people reach for pitchforks
Money grabbing trash right there
This is a strange thing to be locked behind a season pass.
Sure way to "get your game trashed before even played" by the internet starter pack.
"Game has a season pass, but we don't know what to do with it yet"
> Adds death animations.
Glad I decided to skip this till its cheap. Screw that. That is ridiculous.
Single player games with season passes are already a bad sign. I'll wait until all the dlc is out and grab the game at a discount
Ouch...what the heck were they thinking with this one? Talk about a turn-off.
Well now I’m out. $70 for a game and then you start to nickel and dime with BS skins or codes, eff that. Go Fortnite off.
That's... really dumb. Like really really dumb.
In the end I can live with that as I preordered just the standard edition but this is a letdown. I mean they are just animations but it‘s weird to have these tucked behind a paywall
Never heard of that lol. Battle passes are the worst thing to happen to modern gaming and its a shame even a single player game has it
Im not really that bothered about extra death animations as long as there is plenty of variety already ingame.
I don't understand the logistics of this.
What happens if you fall victim to a certain hazard or enemy without the battle pass?
Does it just cut to black?
Does it not animate?
Or are these animations limited to the new modes (Grounded and Horde) so it doesn't matter? If that's the case, most people save Grounded and Horde until after the Story, meaning they'll be more competent players meaning their odds of seeing death animations go down anyway.
I am confused.
A death is a death regardless of how cool it looks!
@BlackMayge death animations have nothing to do with getting the platinum trophy.
@Milktastrophe That’s my bad then. I thought I saw the trophy list and one of the trophies was to see all death animations. I could be wrong - and I probably am. Lol.
Was looking forward to this game but hearing it has dlc it might get played in 2-4 years then if I dont forget about.
I usually try to skip most games that has dlc.
Just make the game and start with next one.
Feels chintzy. More nickle and diming of gamers.
Well this news just reinforces my decision to wait on this, not pre-order or purchase 'near' launch - maybe wait until they offer a 'complete' edition at a price I'm willing to pay.
I am more excited to see Dead Space return and whilst it isn't entirely 'new' like the Callisto Protocol, it still appeals more to me.
In space, no one can hear you scream.
Unless you buy the Season Pass, then your screams can be uploaded to the cloud for just $20 extra cost.
Capitalism!
Paying extra for additional animations just sounds crazy! Loool
@BlackMayge there's no longer a trophy for viewing all death animations, maybe this is why
The question is if this is released on day one or when the story DLC is out. If it comes later as an additional DLC, I don’t see it as a problem as it is the same as cosmetics that come in later in a DLC.
In season pass year 2 we can expect the gamma slider behind a paywall.
Yeah, if this is part of a new areas/enemies and the idea is that they are not just recycling old animations then that's cool, if these are just animations as their own pack I will cancel my pre-order.
Edit: I just looked at the actual release, and to be honest, the season pass sounds interesting, but I'm not sure whether some of it is good DLC or exploitave and should have been in the game already.
People acting like animations are whipped up in 5 minutes or that they aren't tied to anything like new enemies or environments.
It's funny reading through the comments and seeing how season pass suddenly turned into battle pass which is something completely different. It just shows how people don't bother to read and jump straight to outrage.
I'm not canceling my pre-order either way. I know what I'm in for and I can't wait.
This went from a day 1 pick-up to wait for a sale.
Looks like Crisis Core will be my big December game to play. At least Dead Space Remake and Resident Evil 4 Remake are right around the corner.
If its tied to new enemies then ok fine makes sense but if its tied to base game stuff then its just cut content in a really bad way.
Hope it's good but this looks trash.
Cancelling preorder,WTF ? Can i buy platinum maybe? Jesus
It's not unusual at all for DLC to include new animations - in fact it's really, really common.
It's a bit weird them highlighting it, but people do like a grizzly death animation and they probably put quite a bit of effort into them, so why not highlight it I guess. I can see how a cynical eye might view it, though.
Having said that, it all sounds like cut content to me which is a bit of a bummer.
@JohntheRaptor
I don't know the difference, mainly becuase I buy the basic games and never support said additions.
I'm fine with you supporting the full package, and I'm fine with buying the game cheap in a few months down the road.
They can animate the game's own death animation while they're at it.
Well now I don't want to buy Callisto....
I feel like the devs just picked a very misinterpreted way of saying that the season pass will include new ways for you to die.
...And next paywall will be "creatures will move legs while walking"...
Sorry, completely lost interest in this game, while basic animations are behind paywall, unless it is free-to-play game...
Want an fov option, larger text sizes, npc's that don't say the same line or two over and over? Of course you do, and for the low cost of a season pass you can have it all.
My knee-jerk response of the day to something I read on the internet.
Still excited for the game but man alot of this season pass stuff is ridiculous something I'd expect of a company like EA , Activision & square enix etc but a new publisher & their first game ? Wow way to show consumers where your priorities are
Was planning on picking this up but now it's a hard pass. I need the full game for full price.
Well, I'll be sailing the high seas for this one.
@JohntheRaptor love seeing people stick up for this garbage.
That’s cool, that it’s not cut content.
So many clarifications tonight, I don’t think our egos can handle it.
Updated the article with clarification from Glen Schofield.
I’m old enough to badly miss the culture of unlockable content. I HATE the current attitude that games shouldn’t encourage you to play to earn content. Hate it. For that reason alone I object to constant milking of paid dlc culture.
Where have you guys been for the past 20 years? Cosmetic DLC is nothing knew, but suddenly this game is garbage because it had some? It's not for the vast majority of gamers, it's just for absolute diehards of the game that also have disposable cash.
Is anyone else bothered that death animations are even DLC?
I am not a prude. I have no problem with violence in video games; but to offer even more violence as an added bonus seems...extreme.
I mean, I have no intention of buying it (DLC) nor will I chastise anyone who does (you do you, it's your wallet), it just kind of...bothers me that this is what's going for DLC in video game culture today.
@GamingFan4Lyf I mean of course if it’s a new area and different foes then the animations would be new?
for a new studio trying to make a name for itself with its first game, this is a misguided and gross decision — up there with something ea or activision would do. not off to a good start i'm afraid. cosmetics i couldn't care less, but to ask for payment for animations (which are integral to the horror vibe of the game)? why even go there? and anyone who actually believes the animations aren't already complete and weren't cut from the main game to sell them later is out to lunch.
The fact that people would assume that a company that isnt even on the map yet would hold content for a season pass shows were we r at. AT LEAST give them the benefit of the doubt man. So much complaining, all the time.
Like, i dont think “death animations” should be paid DLC, but assuming the company is hating on you immediately, like, just relax mann.
In the update to this article, it doesn't seem like they are denying anything.
Makes me realize that it blows my mind that Supergiant just kinda didn't do anything with Hades after release. I bought the game on two different platforms just to support them.
@Sqush-Pare
The PS3/360 and early PS4/XBONE eras.
I still blame all of this on Candy Crush. That game blew the hell up on Mobile and shattered gaming revenue records. AAA developers realized something horrible when those reports came out.
Update makes sense, but they're just death animations so whatever.
Shocking fact: Gamers are among the most entitled consumers.
@Arnna indeed,
However this is a case of people not reading and understanding the original post by developers and then the entitled community wakes 🙄
Here's a thought, how about in future studios just focus on getting the game out and then after that start talking about future dlc plans?
So basically WAIT with playing the game. When the season pass is out, that’s when we have the finale and best product? Damn iiiit, I was really looking forward to this game …..
One great thing about this DLC its something I wont feel bad about completely skipping.
@stvevan I rather pay that tenner extra then this nonsense.
@JohntheRaptor It's just a weird to make this the highlight of your DLC I rather have this then the story being cut up as DLC.
Shi**y practice but its ok for a company to charge what they want for what they call DLC. You either buy it or you dont 🤷♂️. For me, the problem comes when the previously mentiond trophy, requiring you to expierience all death animations is tied to owning said paid DLC.
That's what a DLC is: content the developer couldn't finish along the game and bring later. I supose in this case that the marketing wanted to be a little tongue-in-cheek with the character death stykle focus of the game, meaning really that these new animations are tied to the new story content.
@freddquadros the confusion surrounding this is justified, though. Usually with Season Passes, the falls into 2 categories: new content (additional campaigns, new modes) or new features to enhance what's already there (New Game+, new skins etc.). "Death animations" don't fit into either criteria, they scream "omitted for time" more than "omitted for bonus content". They're the type of feature that would typically be included as a free update afterwards (akin to Dead Cells updates, for example) as an actual paid feature.
You might claim that it's contradictory to the developer's claims that they weren't even started before going gold, but I believe that the comment is contradicted by the Trophy List, which listed them as a requirement for one trophy, and as such would indicate they were intended to be there for launch. "Not holding back anything for the Season Pass" is a confusing comment with that in mind.
@DarkTron That's what I meant, they tried to crack a joke and ended confusing the consumers.
In fairness, anything developed after the game has released (other than patches) should not be considered as part of the main game. Therefore, to include it as part of DLC or a Season Pass is absolutely fine. The alternative is for the game to be delayed whilst this extra content is to be developed and either included in the base game or offered as free content. There is perhaps an argument for it to be offered as free content after the game is released, but it needs to be remembered that the development of content after a game has released, is not free to the developer, They still have to pay (staff and costs) to develop that content, so to charge the consumer is absolutely fair, if that is what they choose to do...
FAUX OUTRAGE TASTIC!!!
Doesn't sound as bad as the headline, but that aside, why do any single player games need season passes at all?
I was looking forward to this game. I am not looking forward to it now due to the big red flag
and i trough the House Armor DLC in Elder Scroll Skyrim countdt been the worst of the game industry, now pay $19.99 for aditional death animations in our game, ridiculous selling adtional animation, this is worse then the Horse armor
@gipsojo It is the full game you're playing; they're not holding anything back. This is obviously dlc content. Don't get taken in by fake news.
How to tank your new studio's reputation in less than 24 hours: a primer.
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