Telltale Games revealed a new trailer forThe Expanse: A Telltale Seriesat Gamescom Opening Night Live this year. Telltale is returning to form with a unique take on a well-known TV series, following in the steps ofGame of ThronesorStranger Thingsthat released before Telltale’s sudden closure in 2018. With a significant following and a wealth of potential for new stories from its source materialThe Expansecould be an ideal series for Telltale to adapt.
What makesThe Expanseespecially interesting is its new zero-G mechanic. SinceThe Expanseis predominantly set in the depths of space, it would be unusual to not give players the opportunity to become fully weightless astronauts. Audiences saw a glimpse ofThe Expanse’stake on zero-G environments at Gamescom, showcasing the extent to which they can explore various levels from ship corridors to outdoor wreckages. With Telltale’s penchant for adding inpuzzles alongside moral choicesand dialogue trees, zero-G environments could add a new depth to puzzle-solving.
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Telltale’s Previous Puzzles
Telltale Games rose to prominence with games likeThe Walking DeadandThe Wolf Among Us,characterized by episodicformats and the significance of moral choices. While at first these games were more akin to visual novels with branching dialogue trees that had quick-time events for moments of action, Telltale refined its formula to incorporate more game-y elements. It’s no surprise that Telltale began to include puzzles in its later titles.
Telltale’sBatmangames are good examples of this, as while theBatman: Arkhamseriesbrought in huge crowds, these were still action-adventure beat ‘em ups at their core. Telltale was able to explore the side of Batman as the world’s greatest detective, providing players with opportunities to conduct their own investigations of crime scenes and uncover hidden truths. Though straightforward, it made Telltale’sBatmangames stand out for providing more than just moral conundrums, and likely would have continued into the future projects had the studio not gone bankrupt.
The Challenges of Zero-G Puzzle-Solving
With the introduction of zero-G to the Telltale format, level design can take on a more vertical approach than ever before. Traditionally, players would be provided with an enclosed environment with things to do and find, but with zero-G players will be able to explore up and down as well - turning these once flat levels into potentially expansive areas, with many hidden corners and inherently different routes. InThe Expanse’sgameplay trailer, players are shown exploring a wrecked ship or station, demonstrating just how open these levels can be.
In addition to the increased range of exploration, zero-G is a novel mechanic in games likeHeavenly Bodies,which incidentally demonstrates the challenges of navigating and puzzle-solving in space. Telltale could take advantage of the weightlessness by moving ordinarily heavy objects, or use the physics of momentum to create situations in which players may need to save themselves from drifting into space. With its unique setting andThe Expanse’sextensive source material, there’s ample potential.
How Telltale plans to use zero-G could be tricky, depending on how close toThe Expanse’scommitment to real scienceit will stick. Canonically, ships inThe Expansedon’t generate gravity, but instead use physics to simulate it by exploiting centripetal force or maintaining acceleration. If players encounter a situation where realistic zero-G is used, they won’t be able to just switch it on and off. It will be interesting then to see how Telltale navigates this challenge, and what puzzles it can throw in players’ way.
The Expanse: A Telltale Seriesis set to release in summer 2023.
