As one of the busiest RPG developers right now, Owlcat Games has a lot on its plate. Outside of exploring new reaches of the Warhammer 40,000 universe, though, arguably the most exciting project the developer has lined up is its new third-person RPG set in The Expanse universe.
Since the reveal of The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, the Mass Effect comparisons have been coming in quick and hot, and Owlcat doesn't seem to mind them at all. In a recent interview with Polygon, Osiris Reborn's creative director Alexander Mishulin said the following:
"First of all, [we feel] humbled [by the comparisons]. Mass Effect is a great inspiration for us because it's an iconic game for [the] Xbox 360 generation, and a lot of [Owlcat] team members played it in their youth. We're inspired by it. Some [people] get into the industry of making games because they saw [Mass Effect] and were inspired and decided for themselves they want to do something similar, or just make games, as a living. So it would be impossible to deny that Mass Effect has [had] a lot of impact on us as game developers."
However, we shouldn't think of it as a direct clone of the Mass Effect games, despite it being a sci-fi RPG. "On the other hand, it's an Owlcat Games game and it's different [from Mass Effect] in many ways," said Mishulin. "First of all, we make our story a little bit differently. We're making more choices and consequences, and we want to make sure that this game still has a lot of them provided with a lot of agency."
Considering the first Mass Effect came out nearly 20 years ago, it's probably time for some innovation on its formula. Mishulin also explained that character origins will matter a lot more, saying that depending on which character you make at the start of the game, you can face a welcoming or unwelcoming environment on different planets.