You know that bittersweet feeling of post-game blues? The hollow ache when a game is so profoundly good that it elevates your expectations for everything that follows? That moment you realize whatever you play next simply won’t measure up to the standard just set?
That exact feeling is hitting me right now as I sit down to process my time with Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. And honestly, capturing the experience in words feels almost impossible. Because the truth is, no description can truly do this game justice.
In my initial hands-on preview, I drew comparisons to established RPG giants like Final Fantasy and Paper Mario. While those influences are present, having now played the full game, I need to emphasize that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 stands distinctly on its own. It delivers one of the most unique and thought-provoking stories I’ve ever encountered.
A Narrative Unlike Any Other
The premise, as outlined on the official website, is intriguing from the jump. An entity known as the Paintress paints a new number each year, and every person of that age across the world dies. Every year, a group of Expeditioners journeys to confront the Paintress and end this cycle, but every attempt before yours has failed. This setup immediately raises significant moral and ethical questions about limited time and how living with such certainty of death shapes a society. I was captivated by how the developers would explore this concept, and it hasn’t left my mind since finishing the game.
Crucially, the full game includes a prologue that masterfully addresses questions I had after the preview. This is, without a doubt, one of the strongest prologues I’ve witnessed in any medium. It provides essential context for the world and its inhabitants, packing a remarkable amount of exposition into a relatively short sequence. What surprised me most was discovering just how much more story there is. The major plot points are genuinely meaningful and profound. While this sounds vague, trust me – it’s an experience best discovered firsthand, free from spoilers.
Focused Scope, Rich Content
At around 20-30 hours, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 might seem short to RPG fans accustomed to sprawling, 100-hour epics. However, this length works entirely to the game’s advantage. Every interaction, every scene, feels deliberate and purposeful, with zero wasted moments. The narrative moves seamlessly, never dragging, making for a much stronger, more focused experience. I’ll take a tighter, impactful story over one that overstays its welcome any day.
For those seeking more, the side content is equally impressive. Like the best RPGs, the world is a joy to explore, and optional quests feel reminiscent of classics like Final Fantasy X. It’s clear the developers poured effort into this content, rewarding exploration with ample lore and exposition. Collecting expedition journals, for instance, reveals the fates of past expeditions and how they paved the way for your own journey. The wider lore was so compelling that I eagerly sought out every journal. Optional superbosses near the end test your mastery of the gameplay mechanics, and Sandfall Interactive did a phenomenal job designing challenging encounters I highly recommend for the full experience.
Evolved Gameplay Mechanics
After completing the game and taking on the superbosses, I see the gameplay as a significantly deeper and more rewarding evolution of the Paper Mario formula. Timing attacks and parries is fundamental, but there’s a wealth of traditional RPG depth beneath the surface. Compared to the preview, the final game’s stat system seems rebalanced, with optimal stat allocation now directly tied to your equipped weapon. This scaling system makes resetting stats when changing gear an important consideration. Accessories called Pictos encourage tailoring each character’s build to their unique strengths, adding another layer of customization. Like any good turn-based RPG, strategic turn order management is also key to success.
A Visual and Auditory Masterpiece
Graphically, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is one of the best implementations of Unreal Engine 5 I’ve seen. Testing it on a PlayStation 5 Pro in both Performance and Quality modes, the game looked phenomenal. While Quality mode had occasional frame drops, the visual fidelity it offered made it my preferred way to play. The art direction is simply striking – like walking through a dream painted with surrealist fantasy strokes and Belle Époque opulence. Environments are dripping with atmosphere: mist coils over cobblestone paths, gilded ruins shimmer under fractured skylight, and distant architecture twists with impossible elegance.
If the visuals paint a world you want to get lost in, the soundtrack by Lorien Testard ensures you feel every step. Without question, this is the best score I’ve heard in an RPG since NieR: Automata. It strikes an incredible balance, somewhere between NieR’s haunting elegance and Xenoblade’s sweeping drama, but with a heavier reliance on strings that weave a constant undercurrent of melancholy. Violins wail like fading memories, cellos carry the weight of a world in slow collapse, and even quiet moments mourn something just out of reach. Furthermore, the heartfelt voice acting deepens the emotional impact, with Maelle’s performance delivering raw, aching sincerity. Looking at the talented cast lineup, it’s no surprise this is some of the most compelling acting in the genre. Sandfall Interactive’s investment in the cast paid off tremendously.
Minor Stumbles on a Grand Journey
Attempting to find significant flaws feels like searching for needles in a haystack, though I did encounter a few notable issues across my three playthroughs. The most obvious is occasional lip-syncing problems, particularly in minor scenes, where character mouths don’t quite match the dialogue. I also experienced a couple of audio bugs where music cut out mid-combat.
The most impactful issue, however, was a bugged side quest. A quest giver requested several specific items, one dropped by a mini-boss that doesn’t respawn. Unfortunately, I had already defeated this boss before accepting the quest, and the item only drops when the quest is active. This made the quest impossible to complete, forcing me to start a new game to see its conclusion. To be clear, this seems like an isolated incident likely fixable in a day-one patch, so I don’t fault the developers excessively for it in the grand scheme.
But consider this: do a few minor glitches truly matter? Aside from that one quest bug, nothing pulled me out of the experience. In fact, I enjoyed the game so immensely that I was always eager for another playthrough. For this reason, the New Game Plus mode feels tailor-made for players like me. You carry over weapons, levels, and Pictos, but enemies are much stronger, maintaining a sense of challenge and progression without allowing you to completely overpower everything.
The Mark of a Timeless Debut
There’s a rare magic in playing a game that feels like the genesis of something truly special, something potentially timeless. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 gave me that feeling. I constantly craved to delve deeper – not just into the mechanics, but into the world itself. I wanted to uncover its history, meet every character, discover every secret. By the time the credits rolled, I didn’t just want a sequel; I yearned for an entire series set in this captivating universe.
In lieu of a traditional conclusion, I’ll simply state this: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is the single most impressive debut RPG I have ever played. If this bore the Final Fantasy title, it would easily rank among my all-time favorites in that legendary series. I cannot recommend it enough.
