Spread: Osiris reborns take clues from Mass Effect, Souls Games and more

For fans of some kind of science fiction, video game It is set in one of the most beloved TV and book series. spreadcollide like a freight train of hype. The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is an action RPG under development from Owlcat Games, which has yet to have a release date, but it has not stopped studio creative director Alexander Mishulin from providing early details about the game.

There are many reasons why the spread is so successful, but the biggest reason is the clever combination of well-written characters woven together with political intrigues that influence the epic theatre. Unlike Star Wars and other popular space fiction, The Expanse is “hard” science fiction with realistic physics and scenarios, both in James Sa Corey and in the books of Syfy/Amazon Prime Show. From a chat with Mischlin, Cyprus-based Owlcat Games confirms that this is all in the game.

The Osiris Reborn announcement trailer was released during Summer Game Fest Earlier this month, we present many features of the TV show: Zero-G ship combat, enclosed flight suits, tactical guns, and protomolecules. But the end showed even more promising. The early gameplay footage is not representative of what the final game will look like, but rather represents the third party exploration that Owlcat Games aims to use.

Well, it has a very mass effect. Many of Michelin’s teammates have been fans of Bioware’s legendary sci-fi action RPG series and have admitted that they have somehow influenced Osiris Reborn. However, he also emphasized that the team portrayed RPGs. Gate 3 of Baldur Due to the film’s story focused on companions, Japanese RPGs served as a model for the fantastic traiting that continues to be attached to characters throughout the game’s long storyline.

“We’re not saying we’re taking something from Persona 5, for example, but the idea is that the approach, the characters are the forefront and center of the story, and the way they evolve through the story to the end is a bit similar,” Michelin said.

Osiris Reborn is set in the same close earth area as its source material, especially during the events of the first and second seasons of the show (or the first two books). There are all new characters for players to meet and add to the party. This was done to give Oura Cat Games a more creative room to tell the story, rather than strictly adapting the book or show.

“You will see with your own eyes the impact of Holden’s actions, all circumstances like Canterbury, and how it affects the people in the belt, Michelin said. “You will be taking your own adventures with your own goals, choices, and outcomes () with all the major events that unfold in this universe with your story.”

What players will recognize more are the planets, moons and places they visit in Osiris’ Reborn. In fact, the game begins at Eros Station. Fans of the show and books recall what was going on there at this point in the timeline. Yes, humans-changing external diabetes protomolecules appear in the game, evoking similar horrors like the show. Relatedly, corporate-subsidized protogens studying alien molecules also appear, suggesting that its most ominous project, the human protomolecule hybrid caliban, will also appear.

From the trailer and Michelin’s description, Osiris Reborn sounds very different from other adaptations in the franchise, such as Telltale’s story-driven Expanse game. And for Mass Effect fans, the Owlcat game sounds like it has an RPG system and combat with elements similar to Bioware’s classics, but it also enhances the ability to build characters and play that desire. Mixing powerful characters compared to other popular RPGs, Osiris’ reincarnation sounds like a lot of what fans want in games that fans adapt their franchise.

Modern Third Person Space RPG Combat

Osiris Reborn’s combat allows for different approaches, Mischlin said, relying on gunplay and different abilities to mix and match. In the trailer for the announcement, the trio’s heroes featured three different approaches: traditional guns, drone-based support from afar, and defensive ballistic shields (along with weapons attached to the shoulders).

“The RPG system is very open and you can now build your favorite characters. It’s part of the vision of the game, and you can experiment and find what you like,” Michelin said.

The characters are not class-based, allowing players to try out weapons and devices they find along the way. The weapon you pick up comes in a variety of parameters, such as damage, accuracy, and recoil. So you can find out which gun is best for your build. In that way, Michelin vaguely compared Osiris’s Reborn to the Souls game – not that difficult, but discovered weapons during the game and strengthened the playstyle around it. Teams hope that players will find the best one for them, such as fidgeting around with their abilities and weapons to find unique synergies.

Mischlin gave an example. Visors that emphasize the enemy through smoke and cover (“you can start to feel like a character from many films of the 80s and 90s,” Michelin helps players shoot enemies through walls. He pointed out that slow, intense weapons work better than fast-fire submachine guns, so it only serves certain playstyles.

In Osiris Reborn, players also have two companions who take part in the battle, but the remaining Ragtag crews say not only will they stay on the ship, but will kill time. It will help you achieve your goals as your mission progresses – you may even form a second team to handle situations elsewhere.

As seen in the trailer, players have their own small ship (similar to the Rocinante of the Spread Book and the show) and the hero calls the house to use it to launch into the mission. And while ship-to-ship combat is not a reincarnation of Osiris, it doesn’t control it at least like other dogfighting simulator games, players roam around and lightly customize the ship.

And while it’s not necessarily related to combat, players create their main characters and establish a backstory from Earth, Mars, or Belt (the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter). The player’s characters face hostility due to their origins and other choices and consequences, but later in the game, they can change their loyalty when they choose – perhaps they are born to Belter, but either shift slowly to Mars’ ideology, or Minschlin chooses to propose or become a double agent. Ultimately, there are many passes and choices for players to choose their own experience. It is defined by choice.

Adapting spread after working on Warhammer 40K and other franchises

Owlcat Games is most famous for titles taking place in the universe of popular nerd properties such as Warhammer 40k and Pathfinder (a tabletop game similar to Dungeons & Dragons). Games like Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader demonstrated how Owlcat developers can realize certain scenarios and stories in the world of intellectual property through close involvement with those who hold the rights.

“Our previous games taught us how to communicate this approach, how to communicate our vision and our passion for this particular universe to IP holders,” Michelin said.

Fans of spread among Owlcat Games developers approached Alcon Entertainment by putting together the pitch for adaptation. According to Michelin, the vast universe was perfect for studio-type storytelling. More importantly, for Owlcat, the universe has many opportunities to showcase player agencies with choices, consequences and big decisions. This is pretty obvious in books and shows.

Owlcat began developing Osiris Reborn in 2021, spending almost a year of prototypes in the game. This is a visionary fit, switching from Unity Engine used in previous games to Unreal Engine 5. Previous games were isometric tactical games where you control multiple characters from above, but Osiris has a more intense experience that fits the gameplay and film approach of the shooter.

Owlcat’s game aims to maintain a realistic approach to sci-fi fiction, Minshulin said, including how it deals with deadly spaces.

“One of the big parts of our vast experience is (to tell) that space is a very dangerous and unwelcome place,” Minschlin said.

From decompression to navigating Zero-G environments to “clicking” on boots on the surface, players need to see the real visual and audio touch from shows and books. One exception they are making is that gunshots make sounds in space, but in the game you need to respect “the sense of physics and how it should be,” Minshulin said. The studio has a similar approach to the physics phenomena of traveling through space and being on a space station, especially when it looks cool and immerses players.

Unfortunately, Minshulin was unable to give me one example of these physical phenomena. Because it ruins content, a demo, a game handoff. Owlcat hasn’t set a game’s release date yet, but fans of Expanse can soon see more of what Owlcat has for what appears to be the biggest adaptation of the sci-fi franchise to date.