Owlcat Games hasn’t shied away from the fact that The Expanse: Osiris Reborn looks and feels a lot like BioWare’s Mass Effect series, and after going through the upcoming action RPG’s closed beta, we can confirm it really feels like an evolution of those games in a more grounded setting. During the recent Q&A preview session we were able to attend, game design director Leonid Rastorguev didn’t ignore such comparisons and instead fully embraced them:
“Obviously, we’ve played Mass Effect, we love it, most of the team does, and it was an inspiration for the game, but still the game is an Owlcat game in terms of narrative, the choices, the mechanical systems, the combat systems…” After a 50-minute run with the agile closed-beta demo, it’s easy to see what he means.
What we played was basically the second main story mission of the game, which kicks off right after an explosive start on Eros. For our protagonist, an officer and a hacker preset were available, but no control over the playable character’s (and their sibling’s) appearance was given. Still, picking the Belter background made them taller and more slender due to growth in a low-gravity environment — a nice bit of world-building that the TV show couldn’t capture.
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Disclaimer
(Some quotes in this interview have been editorialized and lightly trimmed for better flow)
It’s touches like that which make The Expanse: Osiris Reborn a distinct take on space RPGs. It has the advantage of working with a really fleshed-out setting that’s been fully explored through novels and an outstanding TV show, yet it takes some of those unique elements to make its visuals and gameplay systems stand out. It feels familiar, yet very forward-thinking.
While it’s too early to tell how the entire thing comes together, Owlcat’s focus on deeper RPG intricacies and non-narrative decisions that pack a punch were felt during our time with the demo. The skill trees are more complex than anything in the Mass Effect games, and weapon customization feels denser than anything BioWare ever implemented. It remains a breezy action RPG experience, but the studio’s cRPG bones are noticeable.
On top of combat and ability-oriented skill trees, there are also social skill trees that unlock “certain rooms or chests”, along with extra dialogue choices to open up entire narrative branches.
“Working on the action combat system was, of course, challenging, and keeping the right balance between the action and the RPG parts was really important, and I think we managed to do it right. It took us several iterations to get to that point,” Rastorguev admitted. If you look at Owlcat’s output so far, it’s clear that The Expanse: Osiris Reborn represents a major shift for the developer, yet we came away impressed by its notable set pieces.
After some chit-chat aboard a space station, all hell breaks loose when a bunch of mercenaries come in guns blazing. Only one companion is with the player during this mission, but Rastorguev underlined “most of the missions will include two… and others supporting from the ship.”
While we were promised quieter sections back at our ship and narrative threads that let us explore the relationships between the different team members, this demo was all about showing off the visuals and combat system. It’s frenetic and punchy stuff, giving us both cinematic highs and more relaxed exploration between gunfights. There’s also a bit of decision-making involved, but the full ramifications are impossible to evaluate in a short preview like this.
Like in Mass Effect and similar action-oriented RPGs, tactical pause is a thing, but here, it doesn’t actually “pause” time; it only slows it down. During those moments, you can bring up the menu and tell your companion to use specific skills or focus their fire on targets that are especially annoying and/or dangerous. This loop became especially important during the final shootout, when some fully armored-up mercs came in walking directly at us, packing some serious firepower.
A lot of tweaking and tinkering can (and will) happen between now and the tentative spring 2027 release window, but The Expanse: Osiris Reborn already feels more brutal and punishing than its biggest influences. Regular enemies go down easily, but so do you, and reckless character builds that might be rewarded elsewhere seem way riskier in this game.
Again, further progression and the right combination of equipment will surely help us achieve “tanky” status if we want to, but Osiris Reborn’s beta pulls no punches. “We really advise you to stay in cover and play from cover,” Rastorguev suggested during the Q&A session. He wasn’t exaggerating.
As bullets fly, gas pipes are blown up, and mercs are dispatched, we eventually make our way to the station’s exterior, which means it’s time for a spacewalk with magnetic boots. The sights are pretty, but we’re in danger, and more merc goons soon come in with snipers to boot. Lines of sight (and breaking them) become even more important here, as cover is sparser while walking outside a space station, and much of it is ripped apart by the projectiles. Thankfully, we can also tell our sibling to cause some chaos of our own. As one pipe blows up under their feet, two mercs go motionless and begin to drift away into the void. Nice.
It’s at this point that Owlcat’s work on the visual presentation truly shines, with particle effects making most of the combat actions feel weighty, even in a weightless place. In many other video games, zero-G action can feel <em>too floaty and “fake”, but the encounters that are included in this preview build feel adequately dangerous. You’re not in full control of your body; the speed changes, and explosives behave differently. It’s a surprisingly dizzying experience, and one that culminates with the two leads dodging debris and gunshots as they try to re-enter the station.
After a spot of light puzzling, we break into the final area of the demo and are greeted by the aforementioned “heavy” mercs, along with plenty of the weaker soldiers. Thankfully, our ally is helping… by shooting our ship’s guns directly into the war-torn hangar. Those unlucky enough to be targeted first are turned to red mist, and entire sections of the level don’t resist the barrages much better. It’s a visual spectacle that doesn’t disrupt the central mechanics, but makes it all more exciting without taking control away from the player.
By the time the closed beta ended, I was dying to play more of the game, which is a good sign, especially with so much of the final stages of development still ahead. The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is already in a good place, and while it’s too early to judge its narrative or the fairly traditional approach to RPG systems and mechanics that may or may not elevate it, we’re now certain it’s fun as hell to play and a visual stunner.
The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is releasing on PC (Steam, GOG, and Epic Games Store), PS5, and Xbox Series X|S at some point in spring 2027. A day-one Game Pass Ultimate launch has been revealed, too. The closed beta dropped on April 22, limited to those with Miller’s Pack and Collector’s Edition pre-orders.