The biggest reveal for me this Summer Game Fest was The Expanse: Osiris Reborn. I binged multiple seasons of the TV show one Christmas break to catch up with my housemate, and after its cancellation at Amazon, I resigned myself to never getting to see more of that brilliant sci-fi universe. But after that surprise trailer and its obvious Mass Effect feel I'm filled with excitement, especially because the creative director says Commander Shepard's adventures and other RPGs like Baldur's Gate 3 and Persona were inspirations.
"One big part of our Expanse experience is [conveying] that space is a very dangerous and unwelcoming place to be," Alexander Mishulin tells CNET.
There's a lot that can kill you in the show and books; a g-force-induced stroke while engaged in a space battle; the alien Protomolecule; running out of oxygen; other people; and a whole host of mishaps that could befall you.
Part of the game I'm most excited for is being a Belter. You can choose an origin between the exploited asteroid dwellers, the stuck-up Earthers, or the technologically-advanced and ideological Mars born. Apparently, your origin will affect how others react to you, but you'll also get a chance to choose which side of the political web you want to be on, so you could betray your people. I'd never betray the Belt, though.
Just like Mass Effect, you'll get to take two companions with you on each mission to assist. The trailer shows this off really well, with one piloting a combat drone and another wielding a ballistic shield, shoulder-mounted weapon, and some sort of jetpack that turns the shield into a battering ram. They're also clearly from different parts of the solar system, showing your crew won't all be denizens of the same planet.
"I'm not saying we are taking something from, say, Persona 5, but the approach, the idea that characters are front and center of the story and how they evolve all through the story up until the end is a little bit similar," Mishulin says. The Mass Effect 5 director has already given it his seal of approval.
The crewmates you don't take by your side won't just chill on your customizable ship, though. They'll help out and complete other mission objectives, maybe even going in as secondary support teams, Mishulin says.
As well as the character-driven story, the way you build and play your character is inspired by Soulslikes. "The RPG system is very open, allowing you to build whatever character you like," Mishulin explains. "It's part of our vision of the game to allow you to experiment and find things you like."
The aim is to make you consider which weapons work with your build and abilities so that you'll figure out what works best for how you've designed your character. The choices you make will also be impactful. The game is set after the first season of the TV show and the first book.
"You will be seeing with your own eyes the repercussions of Holden's actions, all the situations like The Canterbury, and how it affects people in the belt, people in the inner planets," Mishulin says. "You will be having your own adventure with your own goals, choices, consequences in the same universe [with] all the major events unfolding in this universe alongside your story."
Now, there's a whole solar system with lots of action in it, but I am concerned with just how impactful our choices will really feel given the game will assumedly have to eventually go in the same direction as the show and books. We'll have to wait for a future trailer or demo to find out more.
While we wait for this new game that I just know I'm going to make my entire personality, check out all the upcoming games of 2025.
