Closed Beta

Overview

The closed beta for The Expanse: Osiris Reborn begins on April 22, 2026, giving eligible players their first hands-on opportunity to experience the game ahead of its full release. Unlike a limited weekend test, this beta runs continuously from its launch date all the way through to the game's planned release in Spring 2027. The beta is available on PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, covering every platform the full game will ship on.

Access to the closed beta is not free. Players must purchase either the Miller's Pack ($79.99) or the Collector's Edition ($289) from the official Owlcat Games website at osirisreborn.owlcat.games. These two editions are exclusive to the Owlcat store and cannot be purchased through Steam, the Epic Games Store, GOG, or any console storefront. The Standard and Deluxe editions do not include beta access.

How to Access

The closed beta is restricted to players who own one of the two premium editions that include beta access. Both editions must be purchased directly from the official Owlcat Games website. No other storefronts carry these editions. Once purchased, players receive instructions for downloading and installing the beta client on their chosen platform.

The following table shows which pre-order editions include beta access:

The Miller's Pack and Collector's Edition are only available through the official Owlcat Games website (osirisreborn.owlcat.games). They are not sold on Steam, the Epic Games Store, GOG, the PlayStation Store, or the Microsoft Store.

Beta Content

The closed beta includes a full mission from the beginning of the game. Players start on Pinkwater Station (Pinkwater 4), a remote space station that is the opening location. During this mission, players meet some of the station's residents, including Zafar, a character who later joins the player's crew as a companion. The mission builds toward a confrontation with a powerful enemy, including a Project Caliban subject, and culminates with the player earning the title of captain.

The beta shows several of the game's core systems. Players experience combat firsthand, including gunfights against hostile forces on the station. Movement in zero-gravity environments is featured prominently, requiring players to adapt to the physics of operating in microgravity. The mission also introduces themes of life and death that are central to the broader narrative, setting the tone for the full game.

Character Creation in the Beta

The beta allows players to create their captain using the game's character creation system. Players select an origin for their character, choosing from three backgrounds that reflect the political and cultural divisions of The Expanse universe. Origin choice affects early story reactions, dialogue options, and certain skill affinities, though later in the game your actions begin to matter more than where you came from.

In addition to origin, players choose from different pre-set starting builds that determine their initial combination of skills and abilities. Two pre-sets were available in earlier demos: one focused on Officer abilities (tactical leadership and squad coordination) and one focused on Hacker abilities (cyber-warfare and electronic systems). Players are not locked into these starting builds and can freely shape their character as they progress.

Character creation also generates a twin sibling named J, who shares the player's chosen origin and gender but has a distinct hairstyle, personality, and set of traits. J is the first companion and joins the player during the opening mission on Pinkwater Station.

Available Weapons

The beta provides access to a selection of weapon types that cover a range of combat styles. Players can experiment with different loadouts to find what suits their preferred playstyle.

Gadgets and Abilities

Beyond conventional firearms, the beta provides access to several gadgets that unlock different tactical abilities. These gadgets add variety to encounters and are particularly useful in the zero-gravity segments of the mission.

The Exploit System in the Beta

The beta introduces the Exploit system, a companion-driven combat mechanic that makes crew members more involved in battle. Exploits are special abilities that companions can activate during combat to turn the tide of an engagement. Under the right conditions, a well-timed Exploit can eliminate an entire group of enemies in a single coordinated strike.

Each companion has unique Exploit capabilities tied to their specialization. Examples of Exploits revealed so far include:

During the beta mission, two companions can accompany the player into the field, while other crew members support from a distance by disabling systems or drawing enemy attention. Zafar, the first companion encountered on Pinkwater Station, plays an important role during the beta mission and can provide fire support when possible.

Combat Mechanics

The beta shows the game's third-person cover-based combat system. Players use environmental objects as cover to avoid enemy fire, but cover is not permanent. Some cover objects can be destroyed, and enemies will not hesitate to flush players out with grenades. Staying in one position for too long is punished, encouraging players to move between cover points and reposition during firefights.

The combat system uses real-time companion commands, allowing players to direct their squad members during engagements. Players can combine their own weapon fire with companion abilities and gadgets for a layered tactical approach. The mission on Pinkwater Station features multiple combat encounters against hostile forces, putting all of these systems to the test.

Choices and Consequences in the Beta

Even within the beta's single mission, players encounter meaningful decisions that demonstrate the game's branching narrative design. Each mission in The Expanse: Osiris Reborn presents choices that can carry large, long-lasting consequences, and the beta mission is no exception. Decisions made during the Pinkwater Station mission can affect NPC survival and the trajectory of relationships with characters the player meets.

These choices serve as a preview of the broader story and setting systems that will shape the full game. The consequences of player decisions extend beyond immediate outcomes, influencing how companions and NPCs perceive the player captain going forward.

Platforms

The closed beta is available on all three platforms that the full game will launch on. Players who purchase an eligible edition can choose which platform to play on.

Feedback and Bug Reporting

Owlcat Games has emphasized that player feedback during the beta period is critically important for polishing the game's systems before the full launch. Design Director Leonid Rastorguev and Producer Yulia Chernenko stated at a press briefing that feedback from beta participants will be incorporated into the final product.

The beta client includes a built-in reporting tool that allows players to flag bugs directly during gameplay, including during cutscenes and combat encounters. In addition to this in-game tool, Owlcat maintains official Discord and Reddit channels where players can discuss their experiences, analyze game mechanics in detail, and submit more thorough feedback.

Because the beta runs continuously for approximately one year (from April 2026 through Spring 2027), the development team has an extended window to iterate on systems, fix reported issues, and make adjustments based on community input.

Timeline

The closed beta is not a limited-time event. It begins on April 22, 2026 and continues running without interruption until the full game launches in Spring 2027. This extended testing period allows the development team to gather ongoing feedback and iterate on the game's systems while giving players early access to content as it matures.

Because the beta runs for approximately one year, players who join early will have ample time to explore the opening mission content, test different weapon configurations, and provide feedback that shapes the final product.

System Requirements (Beta)

The following system requirements apply to the PC (Steam) version of the closed beta. These specs may change before the full release, as the beta build is still a work in progress.

For console players, Owlcat recommends playing the beta on Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5 for the smoothest experience. Performance may vary depending on hardware, and the beta build does not reflect the final quality of the game.

Important Notes

• Work in Progress: The beta build is a work in progress and does not reflect the final state of the game. Players should expect unfinished performance and polish in certain areas.

• Sound Design: The game's sound design incorporates authentic space mechanics developed in collaboration with former NASA pilot Leroy Chiao. In zero-gravity combat segments, sound is muffled and replaced with vibration feedback, simulating the vacuum of space.

• Magnetic Boots: Instead of tethers, characters use magnetic boots for locomotion in zero-g environments, a detail informed by the NASA consultation.

• Day One Game Pass: While the beta requires purchasing the Miller's Pack or Collector's Edition, the full game will be available on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate from day one when it launches in Spring 2027.

• Xbox Play Anywhere: The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is an Xbox Play Anywhere title, meaning a single purchase covers both Xbox and PC (Microsoft Store) versions at full launch.

Beta Build Scope in Detail

The closed beta for The Expanse: Osiris Reborn is a single self-contained story mission set on Pinkwater Four Station and the nearby EVA corridors. A careful first run typically lands between about one hour and two and a half hours, with most thorough playthroughs settling around an hour and fifteen minutes to two hours. The mission is not the literal opening of the campaign. It picks up shortly after the player and their twin escape the Eros incident aboard a stolen Protogen ship, the vessel that becomes the Gemini. The twins dock at their home station to brief their boss before Protogen catches up.

Two difficulty levels are live in the beta build: Normal and Hard. Interface and subtitle support covers six launch languages at this stage: English, Spanish, French, Russian, simplified Chinese, and German.

Who Can Play the Beta

Closed-beta access is a founder perk tied to the upper pre-order tiers. The full breakdown of what each tier includes lives in pre-order editions. In summary, only the Miller's Pack and the Collector's Edition grant beta keys; the Standard Pack and the Deluxe Edition do not.

The beta itself ships on three platforms: Steam on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S. The full game is targeted for a 2027 release on those same platforms, with Xbox Game Pass day-one access confirmed by the developer.

Pre-Made Character Slots

Full character creation is locked in the beta build. Instead, the player picks one of four pre-made slots, each seeded with a different gadget kit and a different opening skill allocation. The selection does not lock a class; points can still be invested freely across every combat tree once the crew starts levelling up. Detailed progression notes live in character creation and progression. In the beta, Belter presets default to female and Earther presets default to male. The Martian origin, gender selection, and full appearance customization are reserved for the full-game creator.

Systems Exposed in the Beta

The beta is built as a vertical slice. Each of the following systems can be touched during the mission; each has its own dedicated page for deeper mechanics.

• Cover-based third-person combat with tactical slow-mo. All cover is destructible, shooting over cover does not require peeking, and tapping the active-pause key drops the encounter into heavy slow motion rather than a full freeze. The Engage command focuses a companion on a target. See combat and gameplay for the full rule set.

• Four combat skill trees. Shooter, Gadget, Survivalist, and Leader are all available to the player; companions share the first three. A single point is often substantial, with the first Survivalist pick granting about a 15 percent armor increase.

• Six social and exploration skills. Persuasion, Athletics, Cyber Sabotage, Perception, Analysis, and Engineering. Every character has two of them. Scores from the player and accompanying companions stack for a given check, and consumable focus drugs can temporarily raise one non-combat skill by one point.

• Workbench upgrades and fabrication. Weapons upgrade across three grades using crafting materials like aluminium alloy, with a perk choice at each tier. A fabrication tab lets the player spend blueprints, pulled from skill checks or found in the world, to craft subsystems such as the Tactical Overdrive armor subsystem. The full inventory and slot layout lives in weapons and equipment.

• Environmental exploits. See the exploit system for the four-category taxonomy. The beta exposes at least the Precision flavor (the twin's default) and a PDC support exploit fired from the Gemini by Zafar.

• EVA and zero gravity. Magnetic boots lock the player to the station exterior for long stretches. One short passage drops magnetic grip entirely for a largely on-rails zero-G traversal. The full rule set, including muted vacuum audio and drifting bodies, lives in zero-gravity mechanics and sound design.

• Branching choice and consequence. Two pivotal beta decisions reshape both the mission itself and downstream campaign hooks. See choices and consequences for the full branch map.

Cast Present in the Beta

The beta puts a small, deliberate set of characters on screen. Everyone else is either referenced in flavor dialogue or reserved for later in the campaign. Deeper profiles are on the individual character pages.

Ambient dialogue and the station news screens also reference offscreen figures, most notably James Holden and the rest of the Rocinante's crew, positioning the beta mission alongside the events of the early novels rather than replacing them.

Key Choice Points in the Beta

Two choices carry consequences beyond the immediate scene, and both are revealed only on replay or when players compare notes. The full branching map lives in choices and consequences.

Starting Weapons and Notable Pickups

Each preset starts with a defined loadout, and a handful of additional weapons are seeded across the mission. No item has a rarity tier; anything found can be fully upgraded at the workbench through three grades. The per-weapon stat breakdown lives in weapons and equipment.

Known Technical State of the Beta

The beta is explicitly a work-in-progress build. Players should set expectations around the following, all of which are expected to evolve before release.

• Performance and optimization. Expect micro-stutter during traversal and frame dips during the zero-G destruction setpieces, including on high-end hardware. Frame generation and upscaling help but do not eliminate the issue.

• Animation polish. The default run cycle is stiff, and some interaction animations still clip through geometry, particularly for the taller Belter models. Melee connects visually but feels weightless.

• Enemy AI quirks. Enemies mostly behave as expected, taking cover and flanking, but occasionally pop out of cover into open fire, and path-finding sometimes struggles to close behind destructible cover.

• Voice acting variation. Performances are uneven across roles. Several companion and NPC voices land well. The male player voice has been called out as flatter than the female counterpart. Oscar's mix shifts between clean and sharp takes within the same scene.

• Audio gaps. Some loot containers open silently, certain cinematic debris impacts are missing their muffled layer, and a small number of cutscene interactions lack matching sound cues.

• User interface. The HUD is blocky and text-heavy, and the static bottom-left portrait is the most common piece of community feedback on presentation so far.

• Hacking mini-game. The number-alignment puzzle ships without onboarding and runs on a fifteen-second timer. Failing does not lock the door, but the lack of tutorial has tripped up first-contact players.

• Body diversity. Non-Belter and Belter body models are largely similar beyond the distinct height difference, and Belter Creole speech patterns are not yet represented in audio.

Developer Stance and Feedback Goals

The beta is explicitly framed as a feedback-collection window rather than a performance or content show. Game Design Director Leonid Rastorguev and Lead Game Designer Grigory Ponomarev, speaking in the developer-narrated beta-mechanics overview, walked founders through the Pinkwater Four Station mission and invited player input on combat tactile feel, pacing, squad command ergonomics, and the UI. The pair explicitly encouraged founders to experiment with different builds, different playstyles, and different dialogue options across the beta mission, with the goal of seeing how the same encounters change when the gadget kit, weapon loadout, or persuasion path swaps. They also flagged the workbench as a core part of the progression loop, recommending players upgrade weapons and equipment with materials gathered during exploration before stepping into combat. Performance issues, animation polish, and the voice-over coverage are expected to evolve between the beta and the full launch; deeper studio context lives on Owlcat Games and development history.

The studio has positioned the beta as an early-access-style feedback loop rather than a server-load stress test, with iteration planned on the UI, control scheme, and animation set on the road to release.

Getting More Out of a Second Run

The beta rewards replays. A single run only brushes a portion of the available skill checks, gadget combinations, and branching beats. Players exploring the beta as preparation for the full game, or simply wringing every last pocket of content from a founder key, can use the following angles. Broader orientation tips for new players live on getting started.

• Swap the preset. Running Officer on one pass and Hacker on the other is the fastest way to feel how the same encounters shift when the gadget kit swaps. Some skill checks are only passable on one preset without consumables.

• Flip the Pinkwater Four choice. Running the opposite answer at Oscar's office opens a completely different armory state and rearranges which Pinkwater mercenaries accompany the player through the interior.

• Take the engineering route. Passing the Engineering check on the damaged door near Luciana opens a short detour with unique subsystem gear that is otherwise sealed off.

• Rush the spacewalk airlock differently. Rushing the nearby airlock instead of waiting on Zafar's recommended approach exposes a small hidden loot pocket along the alarm-triggered path. Taking Zafar's airlock leaves Zafar's approval intact for the campaign.

• Push Luciana's gossip tree further. Each successful persuasion roll against her reveals another layer of station gossip, including the Piranha's captain's dealings with the Martian Congressional Republic.

• Inspect every data pad. Codes such as the 9009 keypad code are remembered automatically and are held on the HUD when you reach a matching terminal, so reading ambient text is never wasted effort.

Road to Release

The closed beta sits inside the longer lead-up to the full release, which is targeted for 2027 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC via Steam, GOG, and the Epic Games Store. Xbox Game Pass day-one access is confirmed. Between the current beta window and that launch window, additional content, languages, character creation, the Martian origin, and additional companions such as those listed on companions are scheduled to come online. The studio's wider project history lives on Owlcat Games.