With the next Mass Effect a ways off, maybe The Expanse can fill the void. The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, developed by Owlcat Games, debuted at Summer Game Fest with a trailer showcasing a third-person action-RPG set in a rugged, realistic version of the distant future. Shortly after the trailer aired, viewers began comparing the upcoming sci-fi cover shooter to BioWare’s famous Mass Effect franchise.
“I’m Commander Shepard, and THIS is my favorite studio on the Citadel,” reads one of the top comments on the game’s announcement trailer.
“The Expanse is literally one of the best Sci-fi shows out there,” reads another comment. “Even though they might have borrowed a ‘few’ things from Mass Effect, I absolutely love it. Just like the show, I had no idea a game was in the works. Instantly in my top 3 ‘cant wait to play’ list! We gonya light em up koyo!”
“Mass Effect-like game in Expanse Universe? I’m sold,” another fan added.
The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, which is currently planned for PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X, does not yet have an official launch date, though the game’s Steam page lists it as “coming soon.” Indeed, all trailers and images released so far draw undeniable Mass Effect comparisons. But while Osiris Reborn creative director Alexander Mishulin knows Owlcat has some seriously big shoes to fill, he welcomes those comparisons.
“First of all, [we feel] humbled [by the comparisons],” Mishulin told Polygon in a recent interview. “Mass Effect is a great inspiration for us because it’s an iconic game for [the] Xbox 360 generation, and a lot of [Owlcat] team members played it in their youth. We’re inspired by it. Some [people] get into the industry of making games because they saw [Mass Effect] and were inspired and decided for themselves they want to do something similar, or just make games, as a living. So it would be impossible to deny that Mass Effect has [had] a lot of impact on us as game developers.”
Still, Osiris Reborn is far from a Mass Effect clone with an Expanse coat of paint. Mishulin says that he and the Owlcat Games team are taking a different approach, especially when it comes to the game’s storyline.
“On the other hand, it’s an Owlcat Games game and it’s different [from Mass Effect] in many ways,” Mishulin explained. “First of all, we make our story a little bit differently. We’re making more choices and consequences, and we want to make sure that this game still has a lot of them provided with a lot of agency.”
Mishulin indicated that players won’t simply be stuck with binary choices that force them to play either a goody two-shoes or a total sociopath. Nuance is important to the Owlcat team, and the choices players make in Osiris Reborn will have varying effects, especially with regard to companion characters. For instance, the background players choose for their character (Belter, Earther, or Martian) will affect the way they’re treated by both companion characters and other NPCs.
“If you happen to be playing a character of Mars origin or Earth origin — and you will be able to select your origin from the start — you will not be very welcomed on Ceres because of those events,” Mishulin said, referencing the destruction of the Canterbury ship, a major plot point in both the TV show and the books. “But if you will be playing [a character of] Belter origin, you will be much more welcomed, and you will have more opportunities, more places to visit, probably some new side quests and everything. But on the other hand, if you [are] of another origin, there will be other opportunities and other places for you [to explore].”
Osiris Reborn — which takes place during the first two and a half seasons of The Expanse TV show — allows players to create their own character who will serve as their ship’s captain. The player-character’s twin sibling will also be on board, and they may or may not agree with the choices made by the player (not unlike Ryder’s twin sibling in Mass Effect: Andromeda, you might note). And in case you were worried, yes, there are multiple romanceable companion characters among the ships’ crew.
But despite the emphasis on narrative choices, companion relationships, and third-person combat, Owlcat isn’t trying to replicate Mass Effect. Osiris Reborn‘s developers say they’re hoping to learn from and improve upon it.
“Mass Effect is a game that was released quite a long [time] ago, and the games industry now is a little bit different,” Mishulin told Polygon. “Other systems were introduced, players [are] now accustomed to a lot more convenient user interfaces, convenient approaches to the gameplay, and we are doing that and not, like, modernizing Mass Effect, but just making a game in the same genre but with all the modern trappings.”
The post The Expanse: Osiris Reborn devs welcome all the Mass Effect comparisons appeared first on Polygon.
