With the fifth and final episode of The Expanse: A Telltale Series, the nearly two-month journey reaches its conclusion. Even though I did an impression-based and non-scored review for each episode prior, this final ??episode wi?ll go over my thoughts on the entire adventure.

_{(Previous reviews: Episode 1 | Episode 2 | Episode 3 | Episode 4)}

I was cautiously optimistic coming into The Expanse: A Telltale Series. I'm a huge fan of the show, and while Telltale titles—and more importantly, Deck Nine—have been pretty hit or miss for me in the past, they typically do storytelling right. And, when it comes to The Expanse universe, that's what interests me: the story. Overall the experience had a f?ew highs, and a few more lows, but there is certainly some enjoyment to be had.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series (PC [Reviewed], PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S)
Developer: Deck Nine
Publisher: Telltale
Released: September 21, 2023
MSRP: $39.99

Welcome aboard the Artemis, beltalowda

The first episode set the stage for the rest of the package. By the end of the first story, Camina Drummer is the captain of the Artemis, leading a crew of five others. Again, the narrative takes place before the events of the TV show and serves as a bit of a backstory for Drummer. The original voice actress, Cara Gee, reprises her role and nails it every step of the way. If you're a fan of the show like I am, Deck Nine nailed it in terms of fitting into what we know and love from the source. However, the decision to set The Expanse: A Telltale Series before t?he events of the show definitely hamstrung it a good bit.

The bigger-picture narrative simply doesn't feel important, which is one of its biggest stumbling blocks. One of the strengths of the show is its storytelling, including backstory. Upon completing The Expanse, despite having fun, I found myself wondering if this story really needed to be told. In the final episodes, you get a little more information about Drummer's time in the OPA organization: but in the end, the details weren't all that important. I'd love to see The Expanse which takes place after the events of the show. After all, there's a roughly three-decade time jump between where t?he show left off and the events in the next book, so there's plenty of possibilities for storytelling in between.

A short but beautiful journey

Telltale titles have never been long by any means, but The Expanse feels even shorter. I played each Episode as they were released, with two weeks in between them. In the end, my total playtime was just under six hours, and I explored and interacted with everything I possibly could. Don't get me wrong, a narrative-driven game can certainly be short and sweet. But I think my bigger issue here is price. At $40, six hours is a bit on the lower end. For comparison, The Wolf Among Us was 9-10 hours on average and was only $20. I understand there are potentially higher costs involved when it comes to licensing The Expanse, not to mention getting Cara Gee to voice Drummer. But at some po??int, you do ha??ve to consider whether there's enough there to justify the price. Of course, that's up to the individual player more than anything.

With that in mind, even though it's short, it's a beautiful journey. This is the most visually beautiful Telltale game yet. And with most of the episodes taking place in space, it's nice to have the beautiful backdrop of deep space to look at. The first couple of episodes both take place amongst ship debris in deep space, which started to feel repetitive. But each episode is well crafted and designed to fit the theme of The Expanse universe. There are even a couple of space combat scenes that feel like they?? are right from the show. If you are a fan, you know this is a good thing.

A building block for Telltale gameplay

Though past Telltale titles have been considered "walking simulators", that wasn't really the feeling I got with The Expanse. There's a range of freedom to run around, not to mention the ability to disable your grave boots in Ze?ro-G and float. It's a nice touch for a narrative game, and a step forward fo??r Telltale titles.

There's a?? handful of mini-games scattered throughout the episodes as well. You'll find yourself cutting through hull sections to find items, dodging lasers from drones trying to find you, and properly routing power between junction boxes to enable devices. The added element of gameplay isn't necessarily game-changing, but it does help spice up the adventure through this narrative-focused tale.

However, there are some growing pains as well from adding more gameplay elements. Throughout each episode, you'll find various collectibles such as data logs and Salvage. The data logs are pretty much just some extra story, but collecting the Salvage seems to have no purpose. In the first episode, Drummer comments that the Salvage could be useful, but then nothing is ever done with it. You'll find several other collectible items that do have a purpose. For example, in the first episode, you can find a focusi?ng laser crystal to give to the Doctor on board the Artemis. But Salvage just seems to exist to exist.

Do choices ever really matter?

The ability to make your own decisions is a big part of any narrative title, especially a Telltale title. At the end of the first episode, you're presented wi?th your first big decision which is essentially to kill someone or let them live. The choice feels very important at the time. However, I realized later that regardless of your decision, you just don't see that person anymore. So in the end, did the choice really m?atter?

In typical Telltale fashion, you are shown the decisions the community has m??ade at the end of each episode. Looking through one of the potential outcomes of a decision in the third episode made me very curious to see what could happen. So, I made a separate save just to see how much it actually changed: I got a few extra lines of dialogue, but then the rest of the episode played out exactly like my original playthrough.

"Truth is truth. How you deal with it is up to you."

In the end, The Expanse: A Telltale Series feels like a slightly above-average Telltale game. Visually it's the best we've seen yet, and the added gameplay elements are certainly moving in the right direction. If you're looking to consume any canon The Expanse content and are willing to pay a premium to do so, you'll enjoy what Deck Nine is offering. Just expect the story to enhance what you know about The Expanse, not build upon it.

It's important to note that for anyone who hasn't watched the show, it's a tougher recommendation. While it does technically serve somewhat as a prequel, and it is its own standalone experi?ence, I just don't know if there is enjoyment to be had playing through it if you aren't already on board with the universe. Most of the enjoyable moments for me were when I could relate to something from the show, or learning some more Belter (one of the languages in this world).

Unfortunately The Expanse: A Telltale Series probably won't stick with me like The Wolf Among Us or even The Walking Dead did. But there is still some fun to be had, and it's proof there is the potential to add a little more gameplay to Telltale titles. I even think another proper Expanse entry that h?as a bit more meaningful of a story to tell could be perfect for the Telltale formula. If that happens, I hope the narrative doesn't pl??ay it too safe next time.

[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]

The post Review: The Expanse: A Telltale Series appeared first on Destructoid.

The penultimate episode of The Expanse: A Telltale Series is rather polarizing. In essence, the highs of the episode are probably the peak of The Expanse title so far, but the lows are equally as low. Episode 3 left us—as Camina Drummer—at an old abandoned mining station in deep space. Our oxygen is low and we're all alone after A?rlen and Rayen took control of the Artemis?? and left us.

Drummer adventures back through the derelict station. in an attempt to find a communications panel to activate a beacon and hopefully get help. At the start of the episode, there is a power box puzzle similar to the ones in Episode 3, and then the episo?de turns into somewhat of a walk??ing simulator. And I definitely mean it when I say "walking."

[caption id="attachment_403819" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The Expanse: A Telltale Series �Episode 4 (PC [Reviewed], PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S)
Developer: Deck Nine
Publisher: Telltale
Released: September 7, 2023
MSRP: $39.99

A rough start

A majority of the episode is walking through the station—with no ability to run—while Drummer hallucinates due to oxygen deprivation. To put it bluntly, this is by far the slowest and most boring part of The Expanse yet. Not only is it painstakingly slow due to the hindered movement speed, but it also just so??rt of rehashes everything that has happened so far. This wouldn't be so bad if we were in the p?enultimate chapter of a long game. However, in this case, our total playtime is literally only several hours. Some of the things the game is having us relive, I literally experienced an hour or so ago in terms of gameplay.

Filler is definitely not necessary when we're talking about five one-hour-long episodes. Maybe there would be some intensity there if we didn't know the fate of Drummer. But seeing as The Expanse game here is a prequel to the show, we know Drummer survives this event just fine. Instead, the majority of the episode just feels ??like filler meant to get us to the next episode.

Near the end of the segment in the station, Drummer has somewhat of a flashback where we get a little more information a?bout her time working for Anderson Dawes before the show. It's a nice little nod to fans of the series, that gives us a little bit more information. But, none of what happens ?is game-changing in any way in terms of story. And as far as gameplay, you literally just walk to each part of the room, triggering another moment from her past.

Perhaps the worst part of this long section of the episode is that, graphically, your screen is blurry due t?o Drummer's ox?ygen deprivation. Unfortunately, I was unable to get any good screenshots of the episode for this reason.

All around me are familiar faces

Near the end of the episode, we finally reach the comms panel and activate the rescue beacon. Unfortunately, our saviors are in fact the pirates from Episode 2. Not quite the help we were looking for. Once taken on board, we also encounter another familiar face. Not familiar to Drummer, but familiar to fans of The Expanse TV series. I won't say who it is, but I'm also not sure if the character's appearance really mea?ns too much. In the end, this may just be a cool nod to the fans, rather than an impactful narrative.

We also finally come face-to-face with savage pirate captain Toussaint whom we evaded in Episode 2. She talks about wanting Drummer to join the team—which canonically we know does not happen—but also points out she tracked the Artemis and is following it. This, of course, is setting up a final showdown between Drummer and Arlen and Rayen. While cool, this really does nothing for the overall narrative of The Expanse, and it's hard to ??really care about the characters we have barely ??seen and that did not exist in the show.

Another o??dd point about this episode is that there weren't many choices. I found myself wondering near the end of the episode if there would even be a post-episode screen that shows the community split on choices throughout the episode. In the end, there was, but the number and quality of choices we made in this episode were super-low compared to the previous episodes.

[caption id="attachment_403820" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The beginning of the end

As we conclude the penultimate episode and head into the finale, I find myself a bit disappointed. The adventure started strong with Episode 1, and I was very excited for the future. In the beginning, I was thrilled about the potential The Expanse: A Telltale Series had, and it seemed to be handling the story right. But every episode since has felt pretty lackluster. The connecting story revealed at the end of Episode 3 feels as though it's not going to progress any further with?? just one episode left.

And once again, we have to talk about length. Telltale titles and other narrative games have never been super long, but The Expanse is still way too short. Each episode has been about an hour, some a little less, and some a little more. But to say I've played about 4-5 hours through four out of the five episodes really makes me question the value. After all, The Expanse: A Telltale Series is priced at $39.99.

On September 21 we will get the final episode of The Expanse: A Telltale Series. At this point, I will write my final review and score for the series. With the direction we're headed at the end of this episode, I'm not optimistic. But, The Expanse has certainly surprised me before. My hope is that, in the end, this is a memorable addition to The Expanse universe. Unfortunately, my fear is that it will instead be a forgettable—and honest??ly irrelevant—footnote in the story of Camina Drummer.

[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher. We’re saving the score for the final episode to encompass the complete experience.]

The post Review: The ??Expanse: A Telltale Series �Episode 4 appeared first on Destructoid.

With Episode 3, The Expanse: A Telltale Series reaches the midpoint of its story. After the end of the second episode, we find Drummer and her crew piloting the Artemis toward the coordinates found on a data card in the first episode. Episode 3 begins with the Artemis approachi?ng the?? location of those coordinates: an old derelict space station.

Interestingly, this is one of the earliest created space stations. It was built shortly after the creation of the Epstein Drive, which allowed interplanetary travel in the solar system. This station existed before the term "Belters," and before the formation of the OPA. This stat??ion was home to some of the first humans to leave Earth and set??tle in space.

[caption id="attachment_399107" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The Expanse: A Telltale Series �Episode 3 (PC [Reviewed], PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S)
Developer: Deck Nine
Publisher: Telltale
Released: August 24, 2023
MSRP: $39.99

A monumental narrative episode that connects with the show

Until this episode, The Expanse: A Telltale Series has kind of been its own standalone experience in The Expanse universe. More specifically, it takes place before the events that unfold in the six-season television series. However, in Episode 3, the overall narrative actually connects with the show and gives us a mo??re detailed look at the events leading up to it.

Honestly, I was curious if Deck Nine would end up doing this, but wasn't too sure if it would. After all, the events of The Expanse: A Telltale Series are canon in The Expanse universe. Part of me felt like it would just be its own separate standalone story that simply takes place using a character we came to love from the show. But let's be real here. If the goal is to make this a truly memorable experience, it would probably have to connect to the show in some way. Now that it does, the story definitely feels more impactful and meaningful. I'm more interested in seeing where?? we go from here with the final two episodes.

[caption id="attachment_399125" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The gameplay loop continues

I had stated in my impressions of Episode 2 that I was afraid every episode would be exploring ship wreckage. For the first two episodes, that's what we were doing most of the time. Fortunately, we step foot in an actual space station for the majority of this episode, though explor??ing a structure in zero-G is obviously very similar to exploring what's left of a derelict ship.

While Episode 2 introduced a laser-dodging gameplay mechanic, Episode 3 features a new puzzle. For several spots throughout the space station, you have to direct power via cables to connect a grid of power boxes. It's honestly very simple and not difficult at all; you just trace where which cable goes to the next box and activate it. Once again, The Expanse: A Telltale Series is primarily a narrative-??driven experience. How??ever, it is nice to see the developer try to throw in some new gameplay elements with each episode, no matter how simple they may be.

[caption id="attachment_399111" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Yep, my choices mattered

In Episode 2, it felt like my choices were starting to matter. But, in Episode 3, it's very clear that m?y choices do in fact matter. Two big things happened at the end of the episode that made me curious—did I affect this outcome? In standard Telltale fashion, at the end of each episode, you get to see how your choices compare statistically to the choices of other players. While it appears one of the big things that happened does in fact happen no matter what,? it appears as though the other big thing can be prevented. Sorry for the lack of detail here, I don't want to spoil anything.

However, it gets even more interesting. Out of pure curiosity, I speed-ran through Episode 3 again, specifically trying to change the outcome. Don't worry, I still planned to use my original playthrough going into Episode 4. With these types of titles, I find it most interesting to live with your choices. But I was surprised to find out that despite changing things, I still had the same outcome. I could be wrong, but I think it was actually a choice I made at the end of Episode 2 that had an effect on the outcome in Episode 3, which is great.

[caption id="attachment_399128" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

A solid experience so far

As we head into the final two episodes, I'm overall feeling pretty happy with The Expanse: A Telltale Series so far. My only issue with it so far may be the length in comparison to the price point. The Wolf Among Us was $14.99 for five episodes that totaled close to 10 hours. So far, through three of the five episodes of The Expanse: A Telltale Series, I'm at a little less than four hours. And the price is $39.99, over double the price compared to The Wolf Among Us.

Not taking the length and price into consideration, this has been a fun trek through the universe of The Expanse. And, I feel like it's about to get even more interesting as we head int?o the back half of the story.

In two weeks we will take a look at Episode 4. And on September 21 we will reach the conclusion of The Expanse: A Telltale Series with the final episode.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher. We're saving the score for the final episode to encompass the complete experience.]}

The post Review: The Expanse: A Telltal?e Series �Episode 3 appeared first on Destructoid.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series picks up right where the first episode left off. Things were in a bit of disarray, so the opening moments of The Expanse: A Telltale Series Episode 2 are a bit hectic. However, Camina Drummer is now the captain of The Artemis,?? which mean??s our choices should now matter more than ever. Even though we're technically still in the first half of the series, by the end of the episode I certainly feel like things are moving forward.

[caption id="attachment_395756" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The Expanse: A Telltale Series �Episode 2 (PC [Reviewed], PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S)
Developer: Deck Nine
Publisher: Telltale
Released: August 10, 2023
MSRP: $39.99

A familiar gameplay loop

I have to admit, Episode 2 is very similar to Episode 1. We start out onboar?d the Artemis, before encountering a ship debris field. We navigate the wreckage, find a few hidden items, then finish out the episode back on the Artemis. Don't get me wrong, the narrative moved forward in Episode 2. But with each of these episodes only lasting about an hour and a half so far, I'm starti?ng to worry a bit.

Listen, I understand...this is The Expanse. It makes sense that we've spent all of our time in the depths of space so far. But, that doesn't make it a fun gameplay loop. Space looks just as beautiful as it did in the first episode, but navigating the derelict ship felt a bit too much like I had just done the same thing. It would be cool if we get to explore a station at some point, or even maybe visit Earth, Mars, or even another planet. Even though that's highly unlikely given the overarching narrative of The Expanse, I do think it would be cool to do.

About halfway through the episode, there is a new gameplay element in which you have to navigate the wreckage while dodging the lasers from drones that ar??e searching for you. It's nothing game-changing, but it is nice to see Deck Nine trying to add some new gameplay mechanics into a narrative-focused title.

[caption id="attachment_395755" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Choices do seem to matter

While I seemingly made some big choices in the fir??st episode, I wasn't sure if they were actual??ly going to end up mattering or not. Furthermore, I went out of my way to complete some "side missions", obtaining various items my crew had requested.

To my surprise,  the choices I made actually seemed to impact what happened throughout this episode, which is great. Also, it seems like going out of my way to gather those extra items also made a difference too. For example, in Episode 1 our medic had requested a new laser crystal for our surgical device on the Artemis. I was able to find it and in Episode 2 someone required a surgical procedure. The procedure was seemingly effective sp?ecifically because I found the laser crystal. I am a bit curious about what ?would have happened had I not found it.

As a side note to The Expanse fans, this is definitely the Camina Drummer from the show. As I said in my impressions of Episode 1, Cara Gee knocks it out of the park. I'm really glad they were able to get her to reprise the voice of Drummer. There are a few choices you have to make throughout this episode, and they certainly fe?lt like Drummer options. At the end of the episode, we catch up with our crew on the Artemis. We really get to see the effects of Drummer being captain, which I'm sure is setting up future episodes.

In two weeks we'll take a look at Episode 3 at which point I think we'll have a good idea of the direction The Expanse: A Telltale Series is taking.

The post Review: The Expanse: A Tell??tale Series �Episode 2 appeared first on Destructoid.

After a five-year hiatus, Telltale has returned with The Expanse: A Telltale Series. With all the drama surrounding the company's bankruptcy in 2018, followed by its acquisition by LCG Entertainment in 2019, it's fair to have some doubts. Furthermore, Deck Nine are the developers. While they have experience with narrative-driven games, will this even feel like a Telltale game? Well, I can tell you that answer is yes. And while I'd never dare try to dethrone The Wolf Among Us, I will tell you this: The Expanse is shaping up to be one of the best Tel??ltale G?ames titles yet.

I should start by saying I am a huge fan of The Expanse. The SyFy/Amazon Prime series is genuinely in my top three TV shows of all time, maybe even number one. I have to admit that when I first discovered the details behind The Expanse: A Telltale Series I was a bit worried. With it taking place befor?e the show, how could I really care about the story? Furthermore, I loved Camina Drummer in the show, but could a narrative-driven experience focused on one of her adventures really hold my interest over five episodes? Thankfully, my concerns were allayed early on in Episode 1.

[caption id="attachment_393844" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 1 (PC [Reviewed], PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S)
Developer: Deck Nine
Publisher: Telltale
Released: July 27, 2023
MSRP: $39.99

Long live the Belt

In The Expanse: A Telltale Series you? take on the role of Camina Drummer, XO of The Artemis, a scavenging ship skirting the uncharted edges of The Belt. Drummer is?? voiced by Cara Gee, who played her in the show, and she absolutely continues to prove she's perfect for the role. If you are expecting some good ol' Belter Creole, don't worry—there's plenty of it, Beratna.

The ship's captain discovers the wreckage of an Earther ship near Jupiter. Based on the f??act the ship is out here alone and there's no public record as to why it would be out there, the captain thinks there has to be something valuable on board. The crew sets course for the wreckage, setting up the events that will pan out over all five episodes.

Like any Telltale game, there's a big emphasis on choices mattering. With this being just the first episode of five, most of the story threads haven't had time to result in any s?ort of consequences for my actions, which is understandable. However, at the end of the episode I had to make what certainly felt like a meaningful choice. To be honest, I'm not entirely sure I made the right one—only time will tell.

Similar to previous Telltale titles, the choices are often not easy. It's not, "Do you want to save?? a puppy or drop it down a volcano?" In fact, in most cases, you can even guess what sort of consequences may arise from each choice. From there, it's up to you to decide what you think is the lesser of two evils. I'm excited to see how much player decisions actually shape the game, because it always felt a bit hit-or-mi??ss in previous Telltale games.

Doors and corners, kid

Graphically, The Expanse is the best-looking Telltale game to date. Even though there's still the somewhat cartoony style, it looks very clean. Some of the sections of The Artemis are surprisingly detailed, and the vast expanse (hehe) of space looks incredible. Deck Nine really knocked it out of the park in this regard—deep space has never looked so beautiful. Furthermore, character facial animations of come a long way. It's fun to see Drummer react to an intense sit??uation or banter with her crew, and actually react to it accordingly.

This is definitely still a story-driven game, but the gameplay itself has big improvements as well. Running around as Drummer feels a lot smoother and less restrictive than I remember in The Walking Dead �The Final Season. There's also a system to float around in zero-G space that reminds me a lot of the similar zero-G segments in Dead Space.

Also, there are even little side missions you can tackle while progressing through the chapter. I've yet to see if they will actually influence the game in any way, but they are a nice addition. While exploring t?he wreckage of the Earther ship I managed to find a laser crystal for The Artemis' medic, and a cigar for the pilot. There's even a mission log on the bridge of the ship so you can check your active mission. I also came across several areas where I could pull out my blow torch and slice through a panel to retrieve some salvage. Every time I did my crew would commend me for doing so, but I'm not sure just yet if there will be a practical use for the materials.

[caption id="attachment_393870" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

I'm excited about the future, beltalowda

Overall, I really enjoyed my time with The Expanse: A Telltale Series �Episode 1. With episodic content, we really won't have a full appreciation for The Expanse until the entire story is told. New episodes will release every two weeks, so The Expanse should be complete in September. What I do know, is this is a very strong start to the adventure. I'm very excited to see what's i?n store for Drummer and the crew of The Artemis.

If you are a fan of The Expanse TV series, this should be a no-brainer purchase for you. Any more The Expanse material is worth checking out. That being said, this story takes place before the show, so it's not necessary to have watched it to enjoy this entry. Sure, you might not recognize a couple of easter eggs, but the narrative itself is its own. This first chapter does a great job of setting the stage for the remaining four episodes. Regardless of your previous experience, The Expanse: A Telltale Series �Episode 1 is a fun experience in a beautiful universe.

The post Review: The Expanse: A Telltale Series – Episode 1 appeared first on Destructoid.

New episodes will arrive every other week

Telltale Games is premiering the first episode of The Expanse: A Telltale Series this summer. The first installment will go live o?n July 27, with more episodes to follow in the weeks after.

The Expanse series will be episodic, with f?ive episodes in total. After the first drops on July 27, each episode will follow two weeks after each other, putting the targe?ted end date in September.

There's a standard edition for $39.99, or a Deluxe Edition for $44.99 that will give 24-hour early access on PlayStation or Epic, and also future DLC. Yes, Telltale confirms ??DLC is on the way, though it doesn??'t clarify what shape that will take.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzG5WI5ak1g

All part of the churn

This new Expanse series arrives from the revived Telltale Games, under LCG Entertainment. While it's rolled out games like the Shadow Edition of the Batman Telltale series, The Expanse is one the studio has been building up to for a while, in collaboration with Life is Strange: True Colors developer Deck Nine.

Telltale also confirmed that The Wolf Among Us 2, its follow-up to the previous Fable adventure, is delayed into 2024. The shift is to avoid crunch, and move from Unreal 4 to 5, according to an IGN interview at the time.

This will be an interesting one to watch, to see what the new Telltale is putting out. Deck Nine's involvement certainly has me intrigued, as True Colors was a really solid entry in the Life is Strange series, and I'm a fan of The Expanse too. Opting for an episodic st??ructure similar to what old Telltale popularized has me curious about its reception, though. At the very least, it will be weeks between episodes rather than months.

We'll see if the sci-fi drama's gradual rollout works. The Expanse: A Telltale Series p?remieres on July 27 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Epic.

The post The Expanse: A Telltale Ser??ies kicks ??off its episodic run in July appeared first on Destructoid.

Gear up for launch next year, Belters

The Expanse: A Telltale Series is setting a course for launch. The sci-fi narrative adventure set in The Expanse universe is aimin?g for a summer 202??3 release window.

The Telltale series showed up today, as part of Gamescom Opening Night Live 2022. The series will follow beloved Belter captain Camina Drummer, in a prequel set before the events of The Expanse show.

In the gameplay shown today, we got a look at some of the zero-G nav?igation and space sections. Looks like there will be the usua?l quick-time events, as well as some tough choices to make.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdU8hhftinE

The Expanse: A Telltale Series is being developed by Telltale and Deck Nine, the makers of Life is Strange: True Colors. Today, the team set a r??elease wi??ndow of next summer in 2023.

The post Telltale’s The Expanse looks to take off in summer 2023 appeared first on Destructoid.

Just caught in the churn

Gamescom Opening Night Live is less than a week away, which means we're steadily seeing which games are pre-announcing their show appearance. Today, showrunner Geoff Keighley and Telltale Games confirm that the latter's The Expanse series will show off a first look at gameplay during the? ??showcase.

The Opening Night Live stream is airing on Twitch and YouTube, on August 23 at 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT. The show's expected to run for two hours, with over 30 games on stage to show.

//??tw??itter.com/telltalegames/status/1559933630104752128

The new Telltale series is from the reformed Telltale Games, which was bought and revived after the first Telltale Games had to shut its doors. This new Telltale, under LCG Entertainment, is the one working on The Expanse: A Telltale Series al??ongside fellow narrative game s??tudio Deck Nine and Alcon Interactive Group.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=13h1mxJUZjc

No risk, no reward

I am pretty curious to see what this combination has in store for The Expanse. While the new Telltale is fairly fresh, Deck Nine proved its mettle with Life is Strange: True Colors, a really phenomenal entry in the series.

The story will follow Camina Drummer, who Expanse fans will remember as the all-around-badass Belter from the series. It takes place prior to the events of the series, following Drummer's search for a mysteri??ous treasure on the fringes of the Belt.

While IP adaptations were Telltale's go-to during its original run, The Expanse is a new franchise for the company. It's also one that could, in my opinion, really benefit from a narrative-focused approach. The tensions and politics of the Solar?? System playing out in verbal standoffs through Telltale's systems could be a good tim??e, if done well. We'll learn more at Gamescom Opening Night Live.

Telltale is also working on The Wolf Among Us 2, which we got a look at earlier this year. That's set for sometime in 2023.

The post The Expanse: A Telltale Games Series will get a gameplay first look ??at Games??com ONL appeared first on Destructoid.