The Expanse: Osiris Reborn and Owlcat’s Big RPG Pivot

Owlcat Games has spent the last decade earning a loyal following among CRPG fans with dense, isometric adaptations like Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, and most recently the Warhammer 40,000 RPG Rogue Trader. With The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, the studio is attempting something radically different: a third-person, cinematic action RPG built in the hard science fiction universe made famous by the books and TV series The Expanse.

Rather than abandoning its strengths, Owlcat is trying to fuse its reputation for sprawling narratives and crunchy systems with a more accessible, Mass Effect-style presentation. That ambition could finally push the studio out of the niche CRPG corner and into the mainstream spotlight if it sticks the landing.

From Isometric Maps to Over-the-Shoulder Cinematics

To appreciate how sweeping this pivot is, it helps to remember where Owlcat is coming from. Its previous games are classic top-down RPGs with:

• Text-heavy storytelling and extensive companion dialogue
• Complex character builds and interlocking systems
• Turn-based or pauseable real-time combat viewed from an isometric camera
• Long playtimes that can easily exceed 80–100 hours per campaign

With The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, Owlcat shifts to a third-person camera, cinematic cutscenes, tighter mission structures, and a focus on real-time action combat layered with tactical commands. It is less about zooming out to survey a battlefield and more about living inside a firefight, ducking behind cover and issuing orders to your squad mid-gunfight.

Why the Studio Needed to Grow Beyond Isometric CRPGs

Isometric CRPGs have seen a healthy resurgence, but they are still fundamentally niche. Meanwhile, cinematic action RPGs like Mass Effect or Star Wars Jedi reach dramatically larger audiences. Major publishers and platform holders consistently feature such games in marketing pushes and hardware showcases, highlighting the mainstream appeal of third-person action and narrative-driven experiences. For a mid-sized studio like Owlcat to sustain growth, flirting with this broader audience is almost inevitable.

The Expanse: Osiris Reborn becomes the vehicle for that growth: familiar narrative depth, new visual language.

Why The Expanse Universe Fits Owlcat’s Ambitions

The Expanse setting, originally built by authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck and later adapted for television by Syfy and Amazon, is grounded in realistic orbital mechanics, believable political tensions, and limited, high-impact uses of speculative technology. Its commitment to “hard” science fiction elements—plausible physics and near-future tech—makes it fertile ground for story-driven games.

The TV adaptation, in particular, earned praise for its gritty, realistic depiction of life in space and for translating complex science into visual storytelling without overwhelming newcomers. That visual style dovetails with Owlcat’s desire to deliver a visually arresting but grounded action RPG instead of a power fantasy filled with world-breaking magic.

Mass Effect DNA Without Becoming a Clone

Because Osiris Reborn is a squad-based, third-person action RPG set in space, comparisons to Mass Effect are inevitable. Owlcat is clearly drawing inspiration from BioWare’s landmark trilogy in several areas, yet the game is not trying to be a one-to-one homage.

Shared Touchpoints with Mass Effect

Based on hands-on previews and Owlcat’s own positioning, you can expect:

• Party-focused combat: You fight alongside a small squad and issue tactical orders.
• Cinematic storytelling: Dialogue scenes and story beats play out with camera work reminiscent of modern action RPGs.
• Hub-and-mission structure: A central ship and recurring locations that anchor a series of story-driven missions.
• Player-driven choices: Conversations and decisions that alter relationships and mission outcomes.

Where Osiris Reborn Carves Its Own Path

The key differences emerge from the Expanse license itself and Owlcat’s design priorities:

• No alien empires: The drama focuses on humans—Belters, Earthers, Martians—and corporate actors, not galaxy-spanning alien civilizations.
• Harder science fiction tone: Weapons, ships, and tactics stay much closer to plausible technology, avoiding biotics-style superpowers.
• Narrative perspective: You are no legendary galactic savior; you are a working mercenary caught in someone else’s power struggle.
• System depth: Owlcat brings its CRPG experience to bear in how progression, loadouts, and tactical options are layered onto moment-to-moment action.

The result is a hybrid: recognizable to fans of cinematic space RPGs, yet anchored in a grittier, more grounded universe that forces different storytelling and gameplay choices.

Life as a Merc in the Belt: Story Foundations

The Expanse: Osiris Reborn centers on a small crew of mercenaries working in the aftermath of the events familiar to fans of the series, but with a fresh cast and vantage point. You play one of two twins who have signed on with a corporate security outfit, trying to keep a fragile crew and fragile ship intact as everything goes sideways.

Protagonists and Player Identity

Early builds suggest limited but meaningful character choice: you choose which twin you control (with different backgrounds such as officer or hacker) and grow that character over time via:

• Level-based upgrades that emphasize combat prowess, tech expertise, or support skills
• Equipment changes that alter playstyle (heavier armor versus mobility, weapon attachments, and so on)
• Dialogue options that let you steer personality and relationships

This approach keeps production focused—fully voiced protagonists and cinematic storytelling are expensive—while still allowing for role-playing flexibility.

The Crew as the Emotional Center

Owlcat’s previous RPGs demonstrate a knack for writing companion characters with strong viewpoints and personal quests. Transposing that expertise into a more compact, squad-focused game means:

• Fewer companions, more depth: Instead of a dozen party members, the game can invest more writing, animation, and reactive dialogue in a smaller cast.
• Interpersonal tensions: Class, faction, and personal histories create friction on the ship, which your choices either soothe or inflame.
• Consequences: In a universe as unforgiving as The Expanse, poor decisions can lead to broken trust, mission failures, or even permanent losses.

Handled well, this can deliver the tight-knit crew feel that made the Rocinante’s team so compelling on screen, without directly retreading their storyline.

Combat: Cover Fire with Tactical Brains

Moment-to-moment, Osiris Reborn plays like a cover-based shooter with a layered tactical component. You move in real time, repositioning behind cover, firing weapons, and deploying gadgets while issuing commands to your AI-controlled twin and other allies.

Core Combat Loop

From previews and early footage, battles appear to follow a simple but flexible loop:

1. Survey the encounter: Identify enemy positions, cover spots, and explosive opportunities.
2. Take initial positions: Move into cover and send your squadmate to a flanking position.
3. Trade fire and manage resources: Use weapon fire, grenades, and abilities while tracking ammo and cooldowns.
4. Issue tactical orders: Direct your twin to relocate, focus fire, or activate specialized skills.
5. Adapt: When enemies advance or reinforcements arrive, reposition and adjust strategy.

Real-Time with Tactical Pause

In a nod to Owlcat’s CRPG roots, the game reportedly includes some form of real-time with pause system, allowing you to freeze the action briefly to:

• Queue up movement and attack orders for your party
• Switch weapons or deploy gadgets safely
• Get your bearings in more chaotic firefights

This hybrid approach caters to players who like the immediacy of action games but still want the cerebral decision-making synonymous with CRPGs.

Progression and Customization

Owlcat appears to be aiming for a middle ground between deep character-build spreadsheets and streamlined accessibility:

• Leveling: Level-ups grant stat boosts and new abilities without overwhelming skill trees.
• Weapons and gear: You can swap, upgrade, and modify weapons, armor, and gadgets, using materials scavenged in missions.
• Crafting-lite systems: Resources collected during exploration feed into a compact crafting or upgrading loop for gear improvements.

This makes character growth feel tangible and strategically interesting without intimidating newcomers who might be allergic to spreadsheets.

Exploration Beyond the Firing Line

Between firefights, The Expanse: Osiris Reborn emphasizes exploration of tightly designed environments: ships, stations, industrial sites, and dusty rock surfaces.

Environmental Storytelling and Lore

Exploration is not just about loot. Owlcat is leaning heavily into environmental storytelling and optional lore that both fans and newcomers can enjoy. Expect to encounter:

• Terminals and datapads documenting local disputes or corporate secrets
• Audio logs providing personal perspectives on major events in the system
• Visual touches—graffiti, worn machinery, improvised repairs—that make locations feel lived-in

The goal is to mirror what made the show captivating: a sense that every station corridor and cargo bay belongs to someone with their own unglamorous problems.

Ship as Hub and Home

Your crew’s ship acts as a narrative and mechanical hub, echoing the role of capital ships in other space RPGs. Onboard, you will likely:

• Talk to companions between missions to progress personal arcs
• Review contracts, mission intel, and faction updates
• Manage loadouts, check upgrades, and possibly tinker with the ship itself

By keeping the hub compact, Owlcat can concentrate its resources on making the ship feel richly reactive to your story decisions instead of building a sprawl of underused locations.

Balancing Newcomers and Hardcore Fans

One of the biggest challenges facing The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is satisfying two demanding audiences at once:

• Existing Owlcat fans who expect deep role-playing, meaningful choices, and replay value.
• The broader action RPG crowd who may know The Expanse from TV and want a polished, cinematic adventure.

Accessibility Without Dilution

Based on the structure of recent AA and AAA action RPGs, there are several design levers Owlcat can use to appeal to newcomers without betraying its roots:

• Multiple difficulty settings to accommodate both story-first players and those looking for a tactical challenge.
• Clear tutorialization of key systems to avoid the notoriously steep learning curves associated with some CRPGs.
• Shorter campaign length relative to sprawling isometric epics, but with concentrated reactivity and branching outcomes.

This kind of balancing is common in modern RPG development: for instance, major RPGs routinely include scalable difficulty, accessibility options, and story-focused modes while still embedding deep systems for those who seek them.

What Success Could Mean for Owlcat

If The Expanse: Osiris Reborn lands, it could be transformative for Owlcat’s place in the RPG landscape.

Access to a Wider Audience

Cinematic, third-person action RPGs are more frequently featured by platform holders, covered by major outlets, and spotlighted during industry events. That increased reach can translate to:

• Higher sales and longer-tail interest via discounts and subscription services
• Stronger leverage for future licensing or original IP negotiations
• Greater brand recognition beyond CRPG enthusiasts

Future Projects and Portfolio Diversity

A successful launch would broaden Owlcat’s technological and creative toolkit, allowing the studio to:

• Alternate between isometric and third-person projects
• Pitch more ambitious cinematic titles with confidence
• Attract talent interested in either deep systems design or action-focused gameplay

Conversely, if the studio fails to convince either its existing fans or the new audience it is courting, it risks landing in an uncomfortable middle ground—too action-heavy for CRPG purists, too dense for casual action fans. That tension is precisely what makes Osiris Reborn such a pivotal project.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does The Expanse: Osiris Reborn retell the TV show’s story?

No. The game is set in the same universe and draws on its established events and factions, but it follows a new crew of mercenaries experiencing the system’s turmoil from a different angle. Fans may see familiar references, but new players won’t need encyclopedic knowledge of the series to follow the story.

Is it a pure shooter or a full RPG?

It is best described as a hybrid action RPG. Combat plays out like a cover-based shooter with squad commands, but there are RPG staples: character progression, branching dialogue, gear upgrades, and decisions that influence relationships and missions.

Do I need to have played Owlcat’s earlier CRPGs first?

No. Osiris Reborn is a standalone project with a different perspective and mechanics from Owlcat’s previous games. Familiarity with their earlier titles might help you appreciate their writing and systems design, but it is not a prerequisite.

How faithful is the game to the hard sci-fi of The Expanse?

While details will vary from mission to mission, the overall tone embraces realistic tech, plausible space travel, and the political tensions that define the setting, rather than leaning into magical abilities or space opera excess. That balance mirrors how the TV series translated the novels’ realism for a wider audience.

Will choices genuinely matter or just change dialogue?

Owlcat’s pedigree suggests that player choices will extend beyond cosmetic dialogue shifts. Expect decisions that alter crew relationships, affect mission outcomes, and potentially lead to different consequences over the course of the campaign.