Last month, Telltale and developer Deck Nine Games, the team behind the Life is Strange franchise, delivered an immensely satisfying first installment in The Expanse: A Telltale Series titled Archer's Paradox. The Expanse’s premiere episode re-introduced many of the elements that fans loved but quickly distinguished itself thanks to its significant growth in both gameplay and storytelling. The Expanse: A Teltale Series - Episode 2, titled Hunting Grounds, continues this excellence, delivering another satisfying entry. However, Episode 2 truly stands out due to its exemplary relationship-building. While Archer’s Paradox re-asserted the age-old promise that players’ actions impact the story, Episode 2 confirms that, for the first time, nearly every decision truly matters.
In The Expanse: A Telltale Series, players take on the role of Camina Drummer, voiced by returning actress Cara Gee, in a story set long before the events of the television series. Episode 2 sees Drummer thrust into the role of Captain, following the reveal that Garrison Cox, the former Captain, attempted to kill her in Episode 1, due to her finding a data drive housing the coordinates to a mysterious treasure. At the first entry’s conclusion, pirates, led by the fearsome Captain Toussaint, were giving chase to Drummer and her crew in an attempt to locate the treasure themselves. The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2 picks up where Archer’s Paradox left off, with the crew attempting to hide from Toussant's crew in a ship graveyard.
The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2 continues to push the boundaries for the studio’s signature visuals. Just as in Episode 1, players spend time navigating Drummer through the vastness of space and the tight confines of both The Artemis and its surrounding salvageable wreckage. Both settings again boast an incredible amount of detail, with Deck Nine Games’ rich color palettes and detailed environments elevating Telltale’s cartoonish style to create a beautiful and daunting portrayal of The Expanse universe. However, much of The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2 is spent indoors, allowing for Deck Nine Games’ best visual improvement, facial animations, to once again take the spotlight.
The Expanse’s core mechanics continue to impress, with both free-floating and close-quarters exploration boasting seamless transitions and smooth controls. Drummer’s capacity to boost while floating and sprint on foot allows players to explore with real urgency, and The Expanse - Episode 2 sees these mechanics put to the test in a lengthy stealth segment. When Toussant’s crew catches up with The Artemis, the player is tasked with continuing their search for salvage while avoiding detection from both enemy combatants and flying drones. These drones patrol the wreckage inside and out, forcing players to employ both on-foot and floating traversal in a satisfying mix-up of Episode 1's formula.
While the introduction of stealth delivers a nice change of pace to parts of Hunting Grounds’ salvaging segments, the episode’s early gameplay loop is nearly identical to that of Episode 1. Players must again explore multiple pieces of wreckage in the hopes of finding enough salvage to move the story forward. As in Episode 1, players can explore the wreckage at their own pace, stumbling on a variety of optional salvage. However, players are again given no hints as to the significance of these items, nor confirmation of how many pieces of salvage exist. This repetition leads Hunting Grounds’ first act to feel all too familiar. Episode 2's stealth segment gives way to second and third acts spent entirely aboard the Artemis, allowing The Expanse to refocus on its true priority - character relationships. While attempting to build these relationships, players discover that their actions during each episode's exploration segment are critical to successfully bonding with the crew and keeping them alive.
The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2 quickly makes it apparent that nearly every piece of salvage, since the opening moments of Episode 1, is capable of playing a pivotal role in the series’ relationships. Within the first five minutes of Hunting Grounds, Drummer is given the option to gift another crew member with a unique piece of salvage, a cigar, from Episode 1. Finding the cigar has an immediate impact in Archer’s Paradox, but gifting it during Hunting Ground’s first interaction paves the way for Drummer to bond with her most oppositional crew member. During this conversation, Drummer learns of the crew member's life-defining moment. In addition, Drummer learns of a codeword that she can use if the ship is boarded by pirates.
One of The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2’s main objectives is simply to speak with each member of the crew, a task that is accomplished over the majority of Hunting Grounds’ runtime. In each instance, optional salvage from either Episode 1 or Episode 2 proved essential to building deeper relationships between Drummer and the crew member. However, one interaction stands out, as it sees players disregard the main objective to “Speak with Maya”, before utilizing optional salvage to open a second conversation with the crew member. Using the data hacking cube from Episode 1, Drummer can prove this individual was hiding something during their mandatory “check-in”. Drummer can take this info back to that crew member, rather than following the present objective, leading to a confrontation that sees the two develop a much deeper relationship than the previous, mandatory, discussion allowed.
Whereas previous Telltale offerings boiled their narratives down to three of four “life or death” choices, The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2 sees players’ willingness to invest themselves in the title’s environments and characters prove to be the most impactful decision of all. The Expanse’s ability to attach a tangible impact to players’ choices beyond the narrative is truly something to celebrate, as it accomplishes what every choice-driven experience promises, but few, if any, provide. While this accomplishment is undoubtedly The Expans e’s greatest strength, the fact that players are not made aware of exploration’s importance until Episode 2 will likely prove divisive.
A glimpse at The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2’s results page highlights the biggest issue with its long-form decision-making. Telltale's previous titles included results screens that showcased the percentage of players that chose each option during their major decisions. However, The Expanse - Episode 2's entire results page focuses on players' use of salvage to build relationships. The problem is that most of these items originate in Episode 1, leaving players who rushed through The Expanse's first episode locked out of Episode 2’s biggest moments. While The Expanse - Episode 2 does culminate in a single “this or that” decision, the choice is whether to get intimate with a fellow crew member and has little known impact.
The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2 is a strong follow-up to the exceptional Episode 1, further cementing Telltale’s place in modern gaming. Hunting Grounds confirms that the player’s choices have a bigger impact than ever before. Even the smallest decision, such as exploring an optional room, is capable of having a profound impact on future episodes. However, the lack of guidance in regard to The Expanse’s optional salvage has begun to negatively impact some players, potentially leading to some major ramifications moving forward.
The Expanse - Episode 2 continues to deliver a compelling origin story for Camina Drummer, and a strong return for Telltale Games. Boasting strong gameplay, stunning visuals, and excellent character building, Telltale and Deck Nine have created a game in which players’ actions truly matter. Hunting Grounds sees these decisions begin to shape the series' overall narrative. As it stands, The Expanse: At Telltale Series appears poised to deliver one of Telltale’s most revolutionary titles.
The Expanse: A Telltale Series
- Released
- July 27, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
Experience the exciting universe of The Expanse like never before in Telltale’s latest adventure, The Expanse: A Telltale Series. Follow Cara Gee, who reprises her role as Camina Drummer, and explore the dangerous and uncharted edges of the Belt aboard the the Artemis. From scavenging wrecked ships in a zero-g environment, to surviving a mutiny, to combating fearsome pirates, you make the difficult choices and reveal Camina Drummer’s resolve in this latest Telltale adventure.
A TELLTALE STORY LIKE NO OTHER
Immerse yourself in the role of Camina Drummer, the Executive Officer aboard the Artemis, a scavenging ship hunting for a big score in the outer regions of the Belt. You must corral a crew rife with tense relationships and powerful personalities, and make tough decisions that will decide everyone’s fate.
EXPLORE THE BELT IN ZERO-G
Scour shipwrecks, use mag boots to walk on walls and ceilings, and utilize Zero-G thrusters to float through the void. As you fly through sections of ships and the open expanse of space, interact with objects in the world and converse with members of the crew in the largest and most immersive exploration of any Telltale game to date.
DIFFICULT CHOICES, GRAVE CONSEQUENCES
Contend with the unforgiving brutality of space, the politics of a corrupt solar system, the animosities of your crew, and Drummer’s own conflicting responsibilities to the people she cares about and The Belt she has sworn to protect. There is no right or wrong path - only your choices and the consequences they unleash.
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+
- Developer(s)
- Deck Nine, Telltale Games
- Publisher(s)
- Telltale Games
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One
- Genre(s)
- Graphic Adventure
The Expanse: A Telltale Series - Episode 2 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. The Best War Games was provided a PS5 code for this review.