Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Review. A Magical 10-15 Hour Gem That Stretches Beyond 30 Hours

One of this spring's major events was the release of the enigmatic Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Immediately dubbed a potential Game of the Year contender, its scores impressed even the staunchest skeptics. The title gained buzz beyond gaming circles too — especially since nobody truly knew what to expect pre-launch. Brief teasers only hinted at a Final Fantasy — esque experience. Naturally, we've completed the game and are ready to share our thoughts. In short: it's an outstanding project, but likely not Game of the Year material. We've got plenty of questions about this release, and we'll examine each in detail.

Long ago, the Great Fracture occurred, spawning strange neuron-like monsters and stranding human survivors on an island they named Lumière. But their troubles didn't end there. On the distant mainland, a colossal monolith emerged alongside an equally massive Painter. Each year, she inscribes a number on the monolith, instantly turning all humans of that age to dust (Thanos approves). Naturally, survivors organized expeditions to stop her, then another, and another. For over sixty years, not a single team returned. The day of annihilation became known as Gommage.

Interestingly, gommage originates from French beauty rituals — a term for exfoliants that remove dead skin cells. A fitting allegory.

Our story begins when the oldest remaining Lumière citizens are 33. Without intervention, humanity will vanish. After losing his beloved Sophie to Gommage, engineer Gustave resolves to change fate. He's joined by volunteers including his adopted daughter Maëlle. But upon reaching the mainland, an unknown old man slaughters most of the expedition in seconds. Who is he? Why did he survive? No answers. Gustave survives by luck, regrouping with remnants: the fire-wielding mage Lunet, his prodigy apprentice Maëlle, and Ciel who fights with explosive playing cards (literally).

"Regrouping" isn't entirely accurate though. Progress drags through optional areas and mobs despite minimal plot advancement. This is the first major flaw: the story's 2-hour core works for a film, not a 30+ hour RPG.

The party expands later (spoilers), becoming a ragtag ensemble. Each member has potential but lacks depth. Dialogue scenes — reminiscent of Persona or Mass Effect — only trigger in hubs. You'll engage in one-on-one chats, "level up" relationships, yet face zero consequences for dialogue choices. No conflicts, no mistakes — just polite camaraderie. Even maxed bonds barely affect the story.

Moreover, the characters often behave unlike real people. Half the plot twists wouldn't work if expedition members simply cornered newcomers and demanded answers to obvious questions. Instead, everyone diligently avoids topics any normal person would raise under such circumstances.

Events outside the safe camp are never discussed in transit. This creates bizarre moments when only scripted characters show emotion during major traumatic events, while others remain oddly detached — no breakdowns, no doubts. This severely undermines immersion. Even the remake of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth had emotional depth issues, but handled it far better. There, characters constantly discuss events and react organically to situations. Simple details like these make Cloud's party feel infinitely more alive than Gustave's.

That said, many dialogues are excellent. Scripted conversations never feel irritating, and party members avoid coming across as cardboard cutouts. There's clear potential here that simply went unrealized — likely due to budget constraints or developer inexperience (this being Sandfall Interactive's debut project). The ambition may have overreached: while failing to match FF7's social dynamics, the game surpasses it in combat.

The French flair in names and locations is noticeable, yet the world bears no relation to reality — even the Eiffel Tower bends at unnatural angles. This raises geographical questions: is this an alternate Earth or pure fantasy? Answers come only near the finale, highlighting another narrative weakness.

The game criminally withholds worldbuilding fundamentals. Comparisons to Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth are inevitable — as a modern JRPG, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 suffers by contrast. Final Fantasy meticulously explains its chocobos and oversized swords through internal logic. Here, you'll see floating lanterns and Elden Ring-style giant swords embedded in cliffs... with zero explanation for their existence.

Even the numerous notes formatted as diaries of previous expeditions fail to help. Most contain either jokes or descriptions of final moments — when they should provide worldbuilding clues for future travelers. Occasionally you meet peaceful NPCs or ghosts, but they speak in classic FromSoftware fashion: disjointed ramblings that add nothing to the lore. Sometimes you can't even tell if they're hinting at future events or just spouting nonsense.

This creates an atmosphere of surreal artifice, where players constantly anticipate some grand revelation. And while there is one eventually, the problem lies in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 being a philosophical parable about choosing between cold reality and endless wondrous dreams — a choice ultimately left to the player. This might have worked better if the expedition's surroundings felt less like decorative props. As is, the decision carries little weight.

The final nail in the worldbuilding coffin comes with the continent's peaceful races. There are few, but they're problematic. Take Lunet's baffling reaction to the Gestrals — faceless creatures with hair-like tendrils. Lunet, a local mage who casts elemental spells and levitates everywhere, has slaughtered countless bizarre monsters. Yet these wooden humanoids with furry heads somehow amaze her.

When reaching the Gestral settlement, we learn they can somehow see despite having wooden planks for faces (no eyes or mouths), and even "grow" — one NPC complains about "bones" despite having jointed limbs. While fantasy requires suspension of disbelief, some basic explanation would help. A single line of lore could've sufficed.

The world feels hollow overall. Despite numerous locations, developers only offer two activities: combat and fetch quests. Even side missions inevitably culminate in fights — don't expect interesting cutscenes. This disappoints because both the world and expedition members have such visual potential that could've translated into richer content.

All resources clearly went into the main story. And here, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 shines as true "CINEMA." The mystery of the giant Painter hooks you immediately. Emotional moments land perfectly, and the resolution demonstrates remarkable creativity. Some lyrical scenes might move you to tears.

The narrative alone makes this game worth recommending. We haven't seen such a complete fairytale — neither sequel, prequel nor remake — in ages. The main storyline surpasses Final Fantasy 16 with its endless kaiju battles, delivering more emotional impact. Despite the fantasy setting, it tells a touching parable about ordinary people and universal struggles — leaving room for interpretation and discussion, an incredible achievement for a debut title.

Only one flaw mars the experience: stretching this compact story over 30+ hours. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 should've been shorter. The narrative's pacing and tension work best when condensed. Instead, the game artificially pads runtime with repetitive distractions — mostly fighting the same monsters the same way for the millionth time. A fundamentally misguided approach, considering how little substantial content exists between main story beats.

As we mentioned earlier, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a Japanese-style role-playing game with a turn-based combat system and deep character customization options. Your party consists of three characters, providing some flexibility in team composition, but that's only part of the picture. While exploring the world, you'll be searching for useful items, weapons, costumes, and hairstyles. The latter are purely cosmetic but help add variety to your characters' appearances when you grow tired of their default looks.

The exploration process is divided into two distinct phases: the global world map and individual levels. There is no true open world here. However, the world map doesn't differ much from standard levels. It still features random enemy encounters, hidden items, and secret paths that either require careful observation or specific unlocked skills to access. There are also some optional side quests available, though these are rather mediocre and serve primarily as a means to earn additional experience points. For the most part, you can comfortably progress through the main story while completely ignoring all optional content — this approach works fine on normal difficulty settings.

If you choose to challenge yourself with higher difficulty levels, be prepared for a tougher experience. Even on easy mode, battles require concentration and attention to detail. On hard difficulty, you'll need to scavenge every possible bit of experience you can find and spend considerable time mastering all the intricate details of the progression system.

Each expedition member has core attributes that closely resemble the stat systems found in souls-like games. You can develop these attributes as you see fit, but must consider how they interact with different weapon types. For instance, if a sword has a "C" rating next to the endurance stat, this means high endurance will significantly boost the sword's effectiveness, while low endurance will substantially reduce its potential. Naturally, with the wide variety of equipment available, you'll need to respec your attributes multiple times throughout the game (though this isn't necessary on lower difficulty settings).

The second aspect of character progression involves skills. Each character has their own unique skill tree with abilities that can be unlocked using skill points. There are six skill trees available in total, requiring careful consideration of your choices. These skills can only be used in combat and consume action points — the game's equivalent of mana. Fortunately, these points regenerate through standard attacks, eliminating the need for excessive resource conservation.

The third pillar of the system consists of Pictos and Lumins. Pictos are buffs that you can select up to three at a time. After winning four battles with a Picto equipped, it becomes mastered and can be transferred to the Lumins section. These are the same buffs but can now be purchased unlimited times using Lumin points. Your available points increase as you level up and when you find them hidden in secret locations. This system allows you to easily expand your character's basic capabilities, granting benefits like double basic attacks, increased damage, and much more. You'll need to navigate this complex system carefully, as the combat is the crown jewel of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

The French developers significantly enhanced the standard JRPG formula, drawing inspiration from modern Final Fantasy titles and other notable projects. However, the true marvel lies in how everything connects together. Each of your three party members takes turns along with enemies. You have basic attacks and skills that consume action points. Additionally, every character has a ranged attack, which becomes essential when fighting flying enemies that can't be defeated any other way. To maximize effectiveness, each skill requires completing a small QTE sequence. If you fail, the ability's power drops significantly.

Things get particularly interesting when defending against enemy attacks. You can either parry or dodge each incoming strike. This seemingly small detail completely changes the gameplay approach. Not all attacks should be parried — some are better avoided entirely. Each monster attacks at different speeds and uses deceptive moves. You must carefully observe enemy movements and memorize their attack patterns. You won't be able to play Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 relaxed on your couch with a cup of tea — it demands your full attention.

The system becomes even more layered with upgrades over time. For example, you'll unlock Gradient Attacks — particularly powerful strikes, and Gradient Blocks that require pressing different buttons than the standard parry. Sometimes you'll need to jump rather than dodge.

The standout feature is that each expedition member is completely unique. It's not just about different skills — their entire combat approach varies. For instance, Lunet's abilities leave behind corresponding elemental pigments. When the right pigments are available, certain skills become enhanced and "consume" these stored resources. This forces you to constantly monitor which magical abilities to use to maximize efficiency.

Ciel fights with dual sickles, but her true power comes from Omen Cards. Her dark moon-aligned attacks build up these cards, while her bright sun-based attacks spend them. Many of her abilities grow stronger depending on how many Omen Cards are marked on an enemy. Maëlle can switch between different stances that either boost her defense or offense. Gustave charges his prosthetic arm with electric energy, and so forth. Without revealing details about other characters, each one has completely unique mechanics that make them feel distinct and original.

All these systems built on top of traditional JRPG foundations force you to think like a real tactician during turn-based battles. One of the biggest strengths of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is that each character can serve at least two different roles in your party. This will absolutely delight players who love experimenting with different character builds and team compositions.

However, there's a significant downside. Eventually you'll discover one optimal combat strategy that works better than anything else. As your characters grow stronger and weapons get upgraded, battles start feeling repetitive. While mistimed button presses still have consequences, the strategic depth begins to fade. You'll catch yourself using the same effective combos over and over, and what began as an amazing combat system slowly turns into a boring routine. The occasional boss fights help break up the monotony, but there simply aren't enough of them.

Every area throws endless waves of respawning enemies at you (they reappear when you rest at expedition flags — the game's version of bonfires from Souls games). These repetitive encounters mainly serve three purposes: refilling your healing items, letting you redistribute stat points, and unlocking new skills. The grinding wouldn't feel so tedious if the gameplay offered more variety, but beyond some mediocre platforming sections, there's not much else to do. Like many first-time developers, Sandfall Interactive tried to show off all their ideas without properly considering the overall pacing. This leads to frustrating moments where you have to navigate clumsy platforming sections and annoying obstacle courses, often dealing with unreliable controls that make characters slide off platforms even when jumps look perfect.

The end result is a great story stretched thin by about 15 hours of filler content. The fatigue sets in quickly, especially since different areas don't offer enough enemy variety to stay interesting. By the halfway point, you might start trying to run past regular enemies, though the level design often prevents this with aggressive enemy behavior that forces combat. While the deep combat system and build customization initially set the game apart from others in the genre, these excellent systems ultimately can't support such an overly long playtime.

The visual presentation stands as one of the strongest aspects of this French debut. Built on Unreal Engine 5, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 delivers stunning visuals on high-end PCs, showcasing an intricately designed fantasy world with remarkable lighting effects and near-photorealistic facial animations. However, console players and mid-range PC users will encounter some compromises. The most noticeable issue is a persistent chromatic aberration effect that coats everything in a rainbow-colored haze, somewhat obscuring environmental details. Lighting can also behave erratically, sometimes becoming blindingly bright or suddenly dimming without transition. Shadow pop-in occurs occasionally as well. While still visually impressive, these technical limitations do diminish the overall impact. On the positive side, the game remains remarkably bug-free throughout.

Where the game truly shines is in its distinctive art direction. Every element — from character costumes and weapons to special abilities and monster designs — features unique, memorable aesthetics that give Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 its own unmistakable visual identity separate from other fantasy RPGs.

The musical score similarly impresses, containing several tracks worthy of being added to personal playlists while others perfectly underscore key dramatic moments. That said, the audio experience isn't without its flaws.

Repetition undermines both the visual and audio strengths. Combat encounters always take place on the same handful of arena templates regardless of your actual location in the game world, making even the most beautifully designed environments feel stale through reuse. The music suffers from similar overuse — the same overworld theme plays from the beginning every time you're on the world map throughout the entire 30+ hour experience, and battle tracks become grating through constant repetition. Audio transitions are often jarringly abrupt as well, lacking the smooth fading found in better-produced titles.

Another curious omission is the complete lack of any minimap functionality. While levels follow relatively linear paths, the branching side routes can become confusing to navigate without any mapping assistance.

Ultimately, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 presents a collection of contradictions across all aspects — technical, gameplay, and narrative. For every brilliant creative decision, there are multiple puzzling shortcomings. While we recognize this as a debut project with inherent development challenges, it's worth noting that Sandfall Interactive includes several veterans from Ubisoft who presumably should have recognized and addressed these issues during production.

***

In conclusion, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is truly an exceptional game. While Final Fantasy 16 simplified its combat to single-button mechanics and the FF7 remake opted for action-pause hybrid systems, this French project remains faithful to traditional JRPG foundations while meaningfully modernizing every established mechanic. We wouldn't be surprised if it becomes the new genre benchmark. Beyond this, the game boasts numerous strengths — a compelling narrative, strikingly beautiful original world, and enchanting music that will captivate thoughtful players weary of the repetitive grind found in recent titles like Assassin's Creed Shadows. However, it falls short of being a Game of Year contender. Too many rookie mistakes plague the experience — irritating design concessions and artificial gameplay padding being most egregious. We absolutely recommend trying it (especially since it's on Xbox Game Pass), but suggest tempering expectations. The ideal approach? Play on easy or normal difficulty primarily for the story. This provides sufficient exposure to the brilliant combat system while avoiding frustration from repetitive side activities.