10 Reasons AAA Video Games Keep Bombing
6. Unoriginal "Spiritual Successors"
The term "spiritual successor" has been thrown around in the games industry for some years now. The term is used to inform players about a game's influences while giving them an idea about what they can expect from the title when it launches.
Though the term itself isn't an indicator of failure, with plenty of incredible games like BioShock and Outer Worlds being dubbed spiritual successors (System Shock and Fallout: New Vegas respectively), the problem arises when said game is unable to bring any of its own ideas to the table.
The Callisto Protocol is the perfect example of this happening.
Marketed as the next Dead Space game, there were a lot of striking similarities between The Callisto Protocol and the survival horror classic. Both saw protagonists fighting grotesque alien creatures in confined environments, they had similar HUD designs, and each had a strong focus on establishing atmosphere. However, while Callisto Protocol excelled in creating sickening gore and an eerie setting, it, unfortunately, fell short when it came to its combat and storytelling.
With nothing unique to distinguish it from its inspirations, TCP (alongside other soulless successors) fell into the realm of uninspired mediocrity and consequently flopped hard.