I was rather sad when Telltale Games ended up closing. I wasn't a fan of everything, but the developer's concept of narrative-driven story "episodes" were pretty engaging, and there was something distinct about titles like The Walking Dead that one didn't get in similar games like The Last Of Us, which wasn't confined to the needs of an action-shooter. I was excited to hear the developer was coming back, even if it wasn't with all of the old staff. Its first game, The Expanse: A Telltale Series, is based on a television series I'm only loosely familiar with, but it made me want to sit down and watch the show.

The Expanse is set in the distant future. Humanity has moved among the stars, but things haven't been pleasant. Humanity is divided into three factions: the people of Earth, the people of Mars, and the "Outer Planet Alliance" or "OPA." The three groups exist in an uneasy truce, and the entire solar system can devolve into an all-out war at the slightest provocation. At the edge of this cold war live the everyday people who eke out difficult lives mining, scavenging, and otherwise trying to keep themselves alive in the most inhospitable places for human life.

The Expanse is a prequel to the television show. Players control Camina Drummer (played by Cara Gee) during her life before the events of the show, where she is the first mate on a salvage ship. As you might imagine, her "peaceful" life won't stay that way, and the first episode, Archer's Paradox, follows her on a trip to a wrecked spaceship that houses a deadly secret. What should've been the salvage job to set her up for life ends up forcing her into a conflict that could cost her everything. The second episode deals with consequences from the first episode and thrusts Camina into a new role.

The Expanse is a return to form for Telltale Games. The basic gameplay involves walking and exploring, talking to people with dialogue choices, and the occasional quick time event (QTE) action event. If you've ever played a Telltale game (or one of the many similar titles), you have a good idea of what to expect. Much of the storyline is guided, but you'll find the occasional adventure-style puzzle. Like previous games, the devil is in the details, and exploring everything may find information or details that change your view of characters or events.

Perhaps the most distinct thing about The Expanse as an adventure game is the way it handles zero gravity. You actually control your mag boots, which keep you from floating off into space. You can activate them to walk along walls or deactivate them to drift, and making proper use of these abilities is necessary to explore the ruined wreckage. It isn't just for show, as there are hidden items and secrets that you can only access with proper use of your gravity-defying boots, which open up new dialogue and options.

While dialogue and options are nothing new for Telltale games, in The Expanse, they feel more akin to side-quests that you're tasked with completing instead of general interactions. This makes me wonder about how big the changes will be. We've already seen some of this in the first couple of episodes. A medical machine that I had repaired in episode one was necessary for episode two, and I couldn't help but wonder what would've happened had I not repaired it previously. There's a lot of encouragement to explore and think about how to access things, and that aspect feels nice.

The core issue with The Expanse is largely the one you'd get from the first chapters of any episodic game. Almost everything in it is setup. It introduces characters and potential plot beats for the future, and it sets up later conflicts. There are a couple of major choices to be made, but it's difficult to tell how important they will be. Obviously, the story can't deviate too much from the source material, so like most Telltale titles, it'll be about the details and the tone more than anything else. The first two episodes are interesting enough, but they're clearly setting up for things to get more extreme later on. Episodes one and two feel a little too similar at times.

The Expanse is Telltale's best-looking and -running game to date. It still uses somewhat cartoony character models, but they're on the realistic side as befitting the series, and the use of motion capture helps convey body language. It also runs much smoother than the old-school games, with far fewer hitches and slow moments. The voice acting is excellent, with Cara Gee reprising her role from the show to add that touch of verisimilitude to the experience. Overall, it's a huge step up for the company.

The first two episodes of The Expanse: Archer's Paradox are a solid beginning. They're mostly there to introduce the setting, the tone and the characters, but that's really all it needs to do. How well it holds up as an entire story isn't something we'll be able to judge for a few months, but isn't that how most TV shows go? As far as quality as an adventure game/interactive movie, The Expanse is a strong return to form for Telltale Games. If you've missed Telltale's games, even if you're not a fan of the TV show, it's worth trying out The Expanse. If nothing else, maybe it'll get you interested in the shows.

Score: 8.0/10