Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a special game, and it's not down to one single thing. Developed by Sandfall Interactive, many of the turn-based RPG's individual parts are top-class, yet together they are even better. How the game confidently commits to its narrative concept is particularly noteworthy.
The start of the story introduces the people of Lumière, who suffer loss every year. During the annual Gommage, in the far, far distance the Paintress lowers the number on a monolith by one – killing everyone who is at least that age. We see the number 34 replaced with the number 33, leaving Lumière to grieve and pay tribute as all of the 33-year-olds are wiped out.
Each year after the Gommage, a group of people from Lumière set off on an expedition hoping to reach and kill the Paintress before any further lives are taken. This game follows Expedition 33, comprised of mostly 32-year-olds who hope to break this painful cycle and who have less than one year left to live.
Two phrases that you hear every now and again emphasise the nature of these expeditions, "When one falls, we continue" and "For those who come after". After several decades of failed expeditions, nobody really expects to return home. But the hope is that the sacrifices made will help the next group succeed.
This is reflected in several smaller aspects to the exploration that add up to something greater. Rest points – where you can spend attribute and skill points upon levelling up – are represented by numbered flags of previous expeditions, while the '33'-painted monolith is visible in the background at numerous points to remind the characters and the player of the task that they face.
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Journals are a collectible that I usually don't care for in other games; they often feel jarring and incongruous with the world. Yet, the journals here – left behind by previous expeditions – are an exception. Not only do they feel like a natural part of the world (circling back to the "For those who come after" mantra), but they are also genuinely interesting to read and listen to.
You learn snippets about the previous expeditions, often their final moments. Many are tragic but maybe give a clue about the dungeon or an enemy ahead. There are some that are poignant, sweet, or amusing, while others even contextualise things like grapple points and handholds. The latter may seem like a minor detail, but the idea that the grapple points you use to traverse many of the areas are a legacy of the people that came before adds to the richness of the setting.
Expedition 33's journey literally wouldn't be possible without everyone before, and this also makes wandering the overworld narratively more interesting, as you find locations off the main path that past expeditions stumbled across.
The game's vision is felt all the way through, including design decisions like having no mini-map inside dungeons. While many modern games provide a mini-map as a quality-of-life feature, Expedition 33 wants to reinforce the feeling of exploration and the larger journey.
Grief and sacrifice are two major themes, and while the characters – with a stellar voice cast including Charlie Cox, Baldur's Gate 3's Jennifer English, Final Fantasy 16's Ben Starr, and Andy Serkis – have endured much pain in their lives, Expedition 33 makes the players themselves go through a range of emotions through the events of the story, helping them connect with the group in a way that not many larger game narratives succeed in.
The turn-based combat is wonderful all the way through. Each main party member has a unique combat style, from Maelle who must cycle through different stances to deliver maximum damage to Lune, an elemental magic user who generates and uses 'stains' to power up her spells.
There is a huge focus on synergy between the characters, if you want to get the most out of your party. A very basic example involves a skill of Maelle's that lets her switch to the powerful Virtuose stance if she attacks an enemy with a burn status. There are many ways to inflict burn, but one effective way is to utilise Lune's fire-based spells.
Building characters to take advantage of each other's strengths is really satisfying, and that extends to the Pictos system, where characters can learn and equip a huge variety of passive buffs. Some, for example, offer further methods to apply burn or provide damage or critical boosts against burned enemies.
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You can be expressive with how you build your team, and it's always fun to see high numbers when dishing out damage as a result of that planning. If you don't want to synergise the party through burn, then there are plenty of other combat mechanics you can build around and reap the rewards from instead.
I felt compelled to have my party's builds complement each other in battle, and a big factor behind that was that I found these characters so likeable. In addition to that, it's yet another way the game instils ideas of unity, friendship, and sacrifice for each other.
A significant part of combat is reacting to enemy attacks in real time. Button presses for dodging and parrying must be timed correctly to avoid taking damage from enemy attacks. Dodging has an easier timing window, but parrying can result in counter-attacks.
I'm not big on parrying systems – I'm really bad at FromSoftware games – but I loved how dodging and parrying work here. They feel fair, add an extra layer of excitement and danger to battles, and emphasise having to familiarise yourself with individual enemies.
There isn't enough space to talk about everything that I really enjoyed about Expedition 33, but one standout part I want to mention is its soundtrack, which mixes classical and orchestral music with more contemporary styles.
There is some Persona 5 inspiration in how the music makes environments and battles feel more alive, but in places it goes further than that. In a fairly late dungeon, the way in which music was used to portray the setting mesmerised me, and this impact felt even more powerful because it paralleled the characters' state of mind at that moment. The game doesn't just 'tell' you how the characters are feeling, but tries to make you feel that too.
The confidence in its approach and execution is perhaps the most impressive thing about the whole game. So many of its ideas and mechanics have been crafted to service the wider narrative, and the player feels closer to the expeditioners' journey as a result.
Expedition 33's story is a touching and highly emotional ride that, even as the stakes increase, always feels personal in the way that it thoughtfully depicts its themes. It's a stunning game, and stands alongside the best in the genre.
Platform reviewed on: PC
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is out now on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
