Owlcat Games has announced The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, a narrative-driven action role-playing game set in the universe of the sci-fi TV series of the same name.
The developer, best known for isometric role-playing games such as Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous and Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, is stepping firmly into Mass Effect territory with The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, which has an over-the-shoulder third-person perspective, cover-based gunplay and class-driven powers, party management, and companion romance.
Owlcat said fans of the TV show will encounter familiar faces, with some of the actors reprising their roles, but stopped short of naming any. The story sees players assume the role of a Pinkwater Security mercenary trapped on Eros Station during a deadly lockdown. You lead a crew, take command of a ship, and navigate the solar system.
“We’ve been dreaming about building a sci-fi action RPG of this scale for a long time, and The Expanse is the perfect universe to bring that vision to life,” said Owlcat’s Creative Director, Alexander Mishulin.
“It’s a world grounded in realism and complexity, perfect for telling a story how we like — mature and character-driven, where your choices truly matter. We are excited to bring this new experience to our players and look forward to sharing more soon, especially knowing how many questions our fans will have.”
Game Design Producer Yuliya Chernenko admitted the original Mass Effect trilogy “was absolutely an inspiration to the team.”
“It was iconic for the Xbox 360 generation of gamers,” Chernenko continued. “Many of us first played it in our teenage years, and it left a lasting impression. We are building on that legacy and expanding what players anticipate from this experience. Our story is deeply rooted in hard science fiction, one of the core reasons The Expanse universe resonates so well with its fans. The combat reflects the standards of modern action gameplay. The narrative emphasizes political tension and moral complexity. And yes — there’s romance too.”
Like in Mass Effect, in The Expanse: Osiris Reborn you get to create your own captain (play as an Earther, Martian, or Belter and take command of the system’s most advanced ship), lead a crew (your companions have “pasts, motives, and a voice in your story”), and experience tactical third-person combat, with real-time cover mechanics, various abilities, and squad coordination. And, just like in Mass Effect, you bring two companions into combat while others support from behind the scenes.
The Expanse fans will be pleased to know you get to visit familiar locations from the show and books, such as Ganymede, Ceres, Mars, and Luna. This is a story-driven RPG, with a narrative “grounded in tension, consequence, and the complexity of humanity’s future among the stars.” Yep, that sounds a lot like The Expanse, and, it turns out, Mass Effect.
Timeline wise, The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is set during the first two-and-a-half seasons of the show, or the first two books. The events of the game occur alongside the major events that transpire across the universe in The Expanse TV show / books during that time.
There’s no release date just yet, but Owlcat said The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is “coming soon” to Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG, Xbox Series X and S, and PlayStation 5.
It’s a busy time for Owlcat Games, which is working on the just-announced Warhammer 40,000: Dark Heresy as well as DLC for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader. But it described The Expanse: Osiris Reborn as its “flagship project.”
“Rest assured, the team behind The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is completely separate from Owlcat’s other projects and will not hinder excellence elsewhere,” Owlcat insisted.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
