Legendary CRPG studio Owlcat Games is taking a bold new direction with its upcoming title set within the iconic sci-fi universe of The Expanse. Rather than being an isometric, turn-based RPG like the studio's greatest hits, The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is a third-person shooter with RPG elements reminiscent of Mass Effect. Although it's quite a shift from the studio's usual forte, the team appears up to the task: the studio's experience with RPG decision-making, promoting build variety, and delivering compelling narratives makes it ideal for a game within the lore-heavy Expanse universe.
Of course, stepping into such a vastly different genre inspires some questions regarding Owlcat's approach to third-person shooter gameplay. In an interview with The Best War Games, Owlcat Games' Creative Director Alexander Mishulin revealed how players will devise their character builds based on an arsenal of weapons and abilities, comparing Owlcat's philosophy toward weaponry and builds in Osiris Reborn with that of Soulslike games.
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The Expanse: Osiris Reborn Doesn't Use a Class System
As always with an Owlcat game, character builds in Osiris Reborn are all about discovering powerful synergies between abilities, weapons, and equipment. Rather than a rigid class system, players are free to choose any combination of these to achieve their ideal playstyle, and this is where Mishulin's Soulslike comparison comes into play. Typically, Soulslike games don't feature a set-in-stone class system; instead, they allow players to allocate skill points and equip weapons freely, and most importantly, nearly every combination is viable. Mishulin says:
"You will like some of them, you will not like some of them—and that’s okay. We are building a whole roster for you to find the abilities you like, and synergies you like, and build your own playstyle. And all the RPG systems beneath it allow you to build upon the choices you have made. So it’s more open. There are no classes—there are playstyles you're building for yourself.
In a little sense, it could be compared a bit with Soulslike games—but not in the way of the harsh experience, like running from bonfire to bonfire and everything—but in the sense of finding the weapon that feels right for you. For example, you’re not feeling great with great, huge katana swords because they’re slow, but you're feeling great with light, very fast weapons—go for it. It’s the same here: find the weapon you like and build upon that."
Osiris Reborn's approach to character builds is where the Soulslike comparison ends, however. Mishulin was quick to point out that the game is not a mad dash from "bonfire to bonfire" or particularly brutal Soulslike challenge, though with Owlcat's track record, the game will more than likely include a suitably tough difficulty mode for keen players.
The Expanse: Osiris Reborn Has Plenty of Build Variety
As for what playstyles may be available, The Best War Games inquired about how two very different playstyles can take shape in Osiris Reborn. Careful not to reveal details about specific abilities or weapons at the time, Mishulin described two broad playstyles, with one focused on weaponry and another on ability use:
"The two more obvious examples would be a playstyle that is focused on gunplay and shooting—focused more on weapons, and picking up abilities that just support shooting better. For example, there’s a tactical resource that allows you to see enemies better in dim vision or behind cover—something like that.
On the other hand, it could be a player who is focusing on a lot of abilities, and building up around the use of different abilities and the synergies between them. And this player probably doesn’t want to aim a lot, or is maybe not really great at gunplay—but they’re building themselves in such a way that they are compensating for a lack of aiming skills with a particularly good set of abilities that work well together."
It truly sounds akin to a Mass Effect game in The Expanse's universe, with the weapon-focused build resembling Shepard's Soldier class, and the ability-focused one may be analogous to the Adept class. However, with a more open-ended approach and with Owlcat's undeniable pedigree in RPG character customization, The Expanse: Osiris Reborn will almost certainly offer players numerous, vastly distinct playstyles as they explore the solar system.
The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is in development for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.