The Expanse: A Telltale Series

The Expanse: A Telltale Series works well as a tie-in, because it recreates the atmosphere of the series and explores the past of a loved character (Cara Gee as Drummer is amazing as always!). However, as a whole, it is a middling game that ends before it really gets going. I also regret that the developers missed the opportunity to delve deeper into The Expanse’s universe, as this setting has a lot to offer.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series is a return to form, though that form is almost out of style. Each of the five episodes takes an average of about two hours to complete if you’re hunting for all of the collectibles, so the amount of content is on the shorter end. But if you’re looking for solid writing and characters that fit well within The Expanse universe, this adventure is another chance to revisit the series and see Camina Drummer be a badass all over again. However, the dated mechanics and the game’s choice to be a prequel impair the effort.

Unsurprisingly, to fully appreciate it, The Expanse: A Telltale Series requires you to be a fan of both Telltale Games' narrative-driven format and The Expanse series or books. It faithfully captures the essence that drew to the original, even though gameplay innovations are scarce.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series makes for a compelling prequel to the show with a few glaring issues outshone by complex, engaging characters.

I can see why the episodic structure is appealing, but the choice to release each episode two weeks apart is a huge misstep. There is a reason why people binge-watch series. They want to know the ending while they still care. Releasing The Expanse in this way only punishes the early adopters, which are the ones that are paying the most for the worst experience.

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.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series is a solid entry in the studio’s long-running series of narrative-driven games. The episodes look great, and Cara Gee’s performance as the main character is excellent, helping to recreate the feel of the television series even when the most of the regular characters from the show are absent. The game struggles to find engaging mechanics outside of its dialogue scenes, relying too heavily on quicktime events and mediocre movement challenges. But the story and choices you make work well enough that these are minor faults.

Fans of The Expanse will enjoy this story. I’m curious about what happens in the next couple of episodes, and that’s exactly the sort of narrative pull that I was looking for. But you might also get frustrated with the game at times - it’s not a flawless experience by any means, and I really wanted more from it.

The fact that you can't skip a single cutscene and that some save points are far apart are also relics of previous Telltale adventures that I'm not particularly stoked about. You could therefore say that the new old studio is still very much the old one, despite the closure, takeover and new start. Which also means, maybe most importantly, that it captures the essence of the source material very skillfully, which is why I can recommend The Expanse: A Telltale Series to fans of the series despite the criticisms.