The Callisto Protocol Contagion DLC bundle complete with the all-new contagion mode will release on March 14, the developer has confirmed.

　　We already knew that the DLC would be arriving later this month, but we now know that it's coming next week. The release of the Contagion bundle was announced via the game's official Twitter account. Aside from the new ultra-hard contagion mode (which reduces ammo and health drops and restarts from the beginning upon death), the paid contagion mode introduces 14 new ways to die, and the Watchtower Skin collection.

　　Death is only the beginning when the #ContagionBundle arrives on March 14.

　　Are you prepared for the all-new Contagion Mode? Time is ticking ⏱️ pic.twitter.com/KWH8QJstk0

　　— The Callisto Protocol (@CallistoTheGame) March 9, 2023

　　The Callisto Protocol was released late last year and initially suffered from some apparent performance issues on PC. Since then, various updates have improved the game, and new features were added, including a New Game Plus mode. Although certainly not perfect, our very own Kai Powell expressed being quite happy with the game's visuals, weaponry, combat mechanics, and claustrophobic environments.

　　"The many ways Jacob can die a gruesome death, while numerous, run their course the first few times you see them", Kai wrote in his review. "During the many encounters with two-headed enemies, getting hit by their melee swing usually switches to a scripted scene of Jacob getting both of his arms stomped off before the same happens to his head like an overripe melon. Shocking the first few times you see it, then a bit of a chore to sit through after that. There are only so many ways to watch a man get his limbs or face mutilated before the screen fades to black."

　　He added, "One area that The Callisto Protocol absolutely excels in, however, is in the overall presentation and graphical design. There's nary a single square inch of Callisto and Black Iron Prison that doesn't capture that derelict, abandoned spaceship vibes, complete with ambient sounds of creaking pipes or rustling footsteps in the far distance. Of all the technological advancements in the late 2200s, it's a surprise that aluminum soda cans are still the go-to staple for prison guards. The facial and motion capture are both among the highest of the industry standard, with both Karl Urban-lookalike Josh Duhamel and Karen Fukuhara (Kimiko from Darick Robertson's The Boys) looking exceeding close to their real-life counterparts thanks to the modified Unreal Engine 4 bringing The Callisto Protocol to life. The Callisto Protocol also features a Performance Mode on PlayStation 5 that felt almost essential to the experience. The tradeoff for slightly increased graphical fidelity and ray tracing simply isn't worth the performance drop from 60FPS which honestly felt like the game had frame pacing issues and overall sluggishness at the reduced framerates."