‘The Expanse: A Telltale Series’ Episode 4 review: The trials of Camina Drummer

Drummer races against time in episode four of Telltale’s The Expanse.

Vish

September 11, 2023

Telltale’s The Expanse so far has been a love letter for longtime fans of the franchise. Episode four of this series once again proves that. From the threatening presence of Anderson Dawes to the surprise return of a familiar face, Telltale and developer Deck Nine leave no stones unturned when it comes to delivering an eventful story.

The penultimate episode of The Expanse puts Camina Drummer’s fears and past into perspective. Compared to the emotional and jaw-dropping moments of the previous episode, this one is mainly about courage and survival. As the opening minutes of the episode show Drummer in the abandoned station, alone, lost, and at the edge of death due to inadequate oxygen supply, the irony is not lost on me how she is fighting for her life just like the members of the Cassiopeia Collective did years back at this very Belt station. This prove, once again that in the end, Belters are indeed always left to fend for themselves in the universe of The Expanse.

Due to hypoxia, Drummer finds herself stuck in her own head experiencing hallucinations. As Drummer explores the abandoned station, you realize her hallucinations are manifestations of her fears from the past. This entire sequence is enveloped by a spooky atmosphere that just adds to the exploration experience. Once Drummer starts hallucinating, the screen turns distorted and blurry, which was my favorite detail in this episode.

But in spite of seeing some troubling visions, she pushes herself to fight for survival. During these moments, the game effectively puts you in Drummer’s shoes and makes you feel what she’s experiencing. Players new to the franchise also get some bits and pieces of Drummer’s backstory, which I thought was a neat way to bring in new fans to check out the show after playing the game.

The beginning of the episode features a puzzle, which I found to be fun and challenging. I wish the developers added more puzzles in the game because it really forced me to pay attention to the surroundings for clues. Towards the end, there were some more QTEs but other than that, overall, the episode was more cinematic than action or gameplay focused.

My only small gripe with this episode was there weren’t any major choices to be made. Any Telltale game’s main gameplay feature is the narrative driven choices and not including that feels anticlimactic, which is what made episode four of The Expanse a tad disappointing. Nonetheless, I still enjoyed the story elements it offered.

After a narrow escape against death, Drummer finds herself being saved by an enemy she least expects. Does this action make Toussaint, the pirate queen, an ally now? We don’t know, but she sure isn’t a friend. As Drummer comes face-to-face with Toussaint, tensions are high. She has no choice but to play nice if she wants help to take back her ship and the MK Core from her ex-crew member who betrayed her trust. This is when we see her transform from Camina Drummer to Captain Drummer, a woman who means business.

I cannot close this review without mentioning the phenomenal job Cara Gee does by voicing Camina Drummer here. She perfectly captures the emotions and soul of the character needed to convey the struggle and desperation felt through the events of the episode. They say actors are born to embody certain roles and I can easily say that Cara was born to play Drummer for the rest of her life and we should let her.

With just one more episode left, Telltale’s The Expanse has not disappointed me with its storytelling. Episode four gave us a glimpse of Drummer’s fighting spirit to survive and had us embrace Drummer’s past alongside her. As this chapter of Drummer’s story comes close to a conclusion, our beloved protagonist is once again put to test where everything she holds dear hangs in the balance. Will she overcome this adversity? We’ll find out when episode five concludes the series.