The Expanse: A Telltale Series is a newly-reanimated Telltale Games' first outing since filing for bankruptcy in 2018, before reviving a year later under LCG Entertainment. Now, with many of the studio's original staff having returned in a freelance capacity, the first episode (of five) is available, and we were eager to dive in. It's a strong first showing, reminding us how the Telltale snowball got started in the first place. Our only real issue with The Expanse was how quickly it was all over, but more on that in a moment.
If you didn’t know, The Expanse is an immensely popular sci-fi series, first in the form of nine novels (written by James S. A. Corey), then later as a six-season TV, which began its run on Syfy, and was completed under Amazon. The Expanse grapples with a believable vision of the not-too-distant future, one where both life and labour are exceedingly cheap commodities.
Finally ditching the dated proprietary tech, The Expanse is powered by Unreal and is the best-looking game Telltale has produced by a country mile. The voice work is top-notch, with several of the TV show's actors returning to voice their video game counterparts. Nowhere else is this more apparent than with the player character Camina Drummer, who serves as XO aboard The Artemis.
As Executive Officer, Drummer is second-in-command, and one of her responsibilities is maintaining the ship's log, an official accounting of everything that happens aboard The Artemis. The developers, in a cute turn, give that well-worn Telltale mechanical trope narrative meaning; Drummer will remember that, because she's the one writing everything down. Without giving too much away, what was supposed to be one last job goes awry, and The Artemis is beset by threats both within and without. Almost from the outset, Drummer is making life-or-death decisions with incomplete information and reaping the consequences in real-time.
Another cool thing about The Expanse is that it tells a self-contained prequel of sorts; Drummer is a recurring character in the later TV series (played by Cara Gee), and fans of Telltale's game will be primed for the show. Similarly, fans of the show can learn more about the origins of one of its central characters.
That said, we have to imagine those entirely unfamiliar with The Expanse might find themselves lost if they choose to start here; several members of The Artemis' crew are Belters (Drummer included), a distinct society of space-born humans inhabiting stations within The Belt, the asteroid-strewn region between Mars and Jupiter. Generations of living in low-gravity environments make their bones longer and more brittle, they are pejoratively referred to as Skinnies and ruthlessly exploited by the "Inners", inhabitants of Earth, Luna, and Mars. As such, Belters comprise an oppressed working class stranded in space, speaking a distinct Belter Creole full of industrial slang. It's a fascinating culture that Telltale doesn't have the runtime to explore properly, although you get the gist from context.
As in previous Telltale games, the gameplay is largely comprised of Drummer exploring environments and interacting with other members of the crew. These two activities are oftentimes smartly combined, and rather than interact with an object of interest directly, Drummer can radio a relevant crewmember for a second opinion or extra information. Exploration will take Drummer into the hard vacuum of space, and occasional quick time events will keep players on their toes.
Our biggest concern, then, is the runtime, which is significantly shorter than the standard Telltale fare. Episodes of The Walking Dead averaged about two hours (even in the first season), whereas the first episode of The Expanse took us barely one, and even that might be generous. Obviously, the additional quality is appreciated, and The Expanse plays better than those old games ever did, but the series is only five episodes long. As great as it is, if the entire season clocks in at under five hours, we imagine that might be a tough sell for some at its current price point of $39.99 USD, or £32.99.
It's a strong first showing from Telltale and one we are genuinely excited to continue. Episodes release fortnightly, with Episode 5 slated for 21st September. Once we've seen the season through to the end, we'll circle back and let you know what we think, but so far, so good.
Are you planning on picking up The Expanse: A Telltale Series? Have you played through the first episode, and if so, what did you think? Run a tight ship in the comments section below.
Comments 20
Actually reading the last book of this series now (Leviathan Falls), which is great. TV show is also under rated.
Its a shame they stuck with the 5 episodes format releasing at different times. The big issue with telltale was always the inconsistent release schedule. It meant i never bought in until the whole series was released so i could play in one go - by which time (more often than not) the season pass was on sale
"then later as a six-season TV series on Syfy"
This is inaccurate. Syfy cancelled it after season 3 and the last 3 seasons were made by Amazon.
Never watched the show but I have this in my wish list because I love the Telltale games. I’m not a fan of the fortnightly episode releases though. I’ll wait until all episodes are available (and maybe even a sale).
I started reading Leviathan wakes a few years ago, before the TV show started, and was loving it but fell off because a lot of family related things came up. Maybe now is the time to return to that and actually stick with it. I've heard great things about the TV show, with people saying it's almost game of thrones level of quality when it comes to writing and acting
@Rob_230
Well said. This episodic format where you wait for the next episode really messes up the consistent flow of the game.
They are basically telling people not to bother getting it until the full season is complete.
I'll probably play this when all the parts are released they feel more enjoyable that way than playing 1 episode then having to wait a while for the next.
I can't be doing with the episode thing these days, I'll just wait for the full release.
The game does look good though
The biweekly format is a little odd, considering Deck Nine, who I believe is the developer, released Life is Strange True Colors as a full game, broken up into individual episodes
I’ve never played any of these games b/c I really can’t get into them, I watch too much tv as it is, but I would pick this up $10 Black Friday for Drummer, she’s the best. Well as long as it continues to review this well and it ends well. #beltalowda
I thought the TV series was extremely boring and had an absolutely garbage ending, I'm also not interested in episodic games so I'll wait for the whole thing. I do own the books but have yet to read these so far.
@Batesy125s the show is an absolute masterpiece. I agree with the writing and quality of GoT but it actually gets better as the series goes on. It’s my absolute favorite show and can highly recommend it.
@Victor_Meldrew You watched 6 seasons of an extremely boring TV show?
I do prefer the books, and they actually end properly so maybe you would prefer them.
@Netret0120 Exactly. The episodic format is absolutely fine if they develop it like Life is Strange True Colours and drop all episodes in one go, but i dont think having a gap between episodes works any more. I dont think people will forget the fear that they wouldn't see a finished series with the walking dead part 3. And then there is also the risk that you put the game down and then forget half the key plot points when the next episode drops.
So i'm like you. Im very much interested in playing the expanse (and wolf among us 2 when they get to it) but i'll definitely be waiting for the finished product
One of the best shows ever made. Drummer is possibly the best character too, and that's saying something as all of the characters in that show are amazing. I would love for them to make a non-canon spin off of Drummer and Klaes Ashford bounty hunting around the universe.
@Dramlin Drummer stole every scene she was in, she was such a great character and so well acted.
@Rhaoulos Good catch! I fell off after the second season, if I'm honest, preferred the books. Updated
@Rob_230 I am surprised they've stuck with that. I assumed they were going to do what Life is Strange True Colors did, still have multiple episodes but they're all out at once.
One of the best SF shows of all time. Looking forward to playing this.
I bought the digital delux edittion (since it will have a bonus episode with the queen bitch of the universe Avisarala ), and I have mixed feelings. The new graphics style really does not click with me, the old games looked like cartoon - sure, but at least they were obviously intended to do so and executed well. This art style seems like a mix of cartoon and some pseudo-realism, and I just find myself stuck in the uncanny valley. Also I like to explore every nook and cranny for additional collectibles, dialogue etc. and even with that effort in the episode clocked barely over an hour. The story seems OK, but it essentially ends on what I would expect to be a mid-point in a Telltale episode. Makes me a bit concerned how long the rest of it is, also how long The Wolf Among Us Season 2 is going to be, and how will it look like now that they've changed the engine.
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