Former NASA astronaut on Owlcat’s approach in new dev diary debuted at the Golden Joystick Awards
Nicosia, Cyprus | Recently, Owlcat Games offered fans a look behind the scenes of The Expanse: Osiris Reborn and its depiction of life in space in the form of a new dev diary revealed during the Golden Joystick Awards. In collaboration with former NASA astronaut and ISS commander Leroy Chiao, the studio worked at striking the right balance between realism and playability.
*Archival spaceflight footage courtesy of former NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao
The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is based on the book series and TV show. The Expanse is famous for taking a “hard” approach to the science-fiction genre, incorporating real-world scientific theories and practices. In order to make life in space in-game as faithful to the original as possible, while at the same time creating a fun gaming experience, Owlcat collaborated with former NASA pilot and ISS commander Leroy Chiao, incorporating his experience on how he moved, breathed, and even ate in space. For example, astronauts tend to favor spicy food in order to regain some of the loss of sensation that comes from living on a space station for months or years at a time — this is reflected in-game with characters clearly having a craving for fiery food!
On the other hand, the team had to move away from a purely realistic depiction of life in space at some points, so the gameplay didn’t suffer. Real astronauts use tethers when they leave the security of their ships and space stations; but since this would be cumbersome in a video game, magnetic boots were introduced as a compromise.
The same approach applies to combat: firearm ballistics and recoil work differently in zero-G than on solid ground, and famously, there is (almost) no sound in space. However, since sound effects and weapon feedback are important elements of what makes combat in games feel good, the team had to find a compromise. Sound in game is muffled, but players can still get feedback in the form of vibrations, breathing, and radio sound.
Stay tuned for more information about The Expanse: Osiris Reborn in the future.
The Expanse: Osiris Reborn will launch on PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG, and on console via Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5. Fans can wishlist the game now.
Stay up to date with The Expanse: Osiris Reborn by visiting the official website and following Owlcat Games’ Facebook, X (Twitter), Instagram, Discord, and YouTube.