Games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 don't get made anymore. And that's because games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 can't be made anymore. French developer Sandfall Interactive's influences were obvious to me from the moment I began playing the game, and confirmed when director Guillaume Broche and producer François Meurisse effusively recounted the joys of playing Final Fantasy, Persona, Zelda, and many other Japanese titles.
In terms of gameplay, Expedition 33 looks to be moving in the right direction; drawing from its clear inspirations while also adding interesting twists and new takes. But many other games have done this--in this respect, Expedition 33 isn't notably unique or rare. What does, however, differentiate this game from its contemporaries is how it evokes the vibe of a transitional period of time when JRPGs and its flag bearers struggled to find their place on a new generation of consoles.
While Sandfall Interactive often looks to Final Fantasy as a point of comparison, for me, it is much closer to the games Hironobu Sakaguchi made in the nascent years of the Xbox 360, back when Microsoft was courting Japanese developers and gamers in hopes of expanding its presence in the region.
After leaving Square Enix, where he created Final Fantasy, Sakaguchi founded Mistwalker. The studio's most notable releases were Xbox 360-exclusives Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon. At the time, it was an exciting prospect: the father of Final Fantasy making new IPs that, to many, looked like the rebirth of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. With the spiritual successors of two of the most beloved franchises in Japan being exclusive to Xbox, Microsoft was sure to finally crack that Japanese nut.
Both games garnered some popularity and helped move the needle ever so slightly, but it wasn't meaningful enough to significantly improve Xbox's position. Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon aren't remembered as the instigators of a tide shift for Xbox in Japan. However, for me, the games and their legacies are fascinating as snapshots of a time when JRPGs got a little insecure.
With Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon, Mistwalker pushed the genre from its adolescence--where it was carefully nurtured by Japanese developers in safe, controlled environments--out into the chaos of a changing video game landscape. It was the genre's awkward teenage years where it let go of what it used to be to figure out what it wanted to be, at a time when it was being told what it needed to be. The resulting identity of the games undergoing this journey is so unique to its time and context that you just had to be there to see and feel what that was like.
Much like JRPGs from the 2000s, developer Sandfall Interactive is also trying to find its place in the world while trying to reconcile multiple identities with its first game. The concept of Expedition 33 is born of an intense love of Japanese games, but the small team behind it is based in France. After playing it for a few hours, Expedition 33 feels like it could end up being exactly what I hoped would emerge from the period of uncertainty, challenge, and risk-taking Mistwalker's games faced: who or what I remembered, but self-assured in what it wants to be, and proud of its changes.
Combat was the focal point of the three-hour demo I played, and as the core driver of gameplay it was an insightful illustration of how Sandfall Interactive is interpreting its inspirations and building upon them. Expedition 33's combat feels like how I remember playing Mistwalker's games: a combination of the classic turn-based RPG gameplay that captured me in my formative gaming years and just a little more layered on top. Back when I played Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon, this combination resulted in some awkwardness, but Sandfall's ideas feel like they have been executed more confidently.
The studio calls its gameplay style "reactive turn-based combat," and this is a very apt way to describe it. It takes the basics of any classic JRPG--attack, cast magic, use item, flee--and removes almost all the parts where you're only watching it happen. The basic attack and item use are the only press-and-watch commands I found, while everything else required me to engage one, two, and even three further times to maximize their impact--that's the "reactive" part. All magic and abilities are quick-time events that made sure I remained engaged and focused so that I could do more damage or recover more health.
Gustave functioned as my all-around damage dealer; my Cloud, Squall, Zidane, or Tidus. His abilities were oriented around increasing damage for himself and others. "Mark" allowed me to paint a target with a crosshair so the next attack would deal 50 percent more damage. However, the actual execution also involved hitting a button with very specific timing indicated by an on-screen bar--think of it as a QTE version of Squall's slash and gunshot combo from Final Fantasy 8.
Lune, meanwhile, was more akin to a mage, with elemental spells that could exploit weaknesses and be bolstered with the same timing-based button press. The twist on her gameplay involved the elements interacting with each other. Using combinations of elements can change their damage values, but it's a multi-stage process where you "paint" an enemy with Stains of an element and then follow-up with another to consume it and activate the effect. There is a little diagram on screen that keeps track of which elements an enemy has been painted with so players can plan their approaches.
Maelle is difficult to categorize since she is a secondary damage dealer like Barret, Zell, or Auron might be, but with an interesting mechanical twist. The majority of her abilities involve running up to enemies and slashing them, with a successful QTE increasing damage. However, the added wrinkle is that she has a stance system tied to these various attacks. By using an ability, I was able to go from an un-stanced state into an offense-oriented one that would increase my damage but also make me take more damage as a trade-off. From there, I could use abilities to transition into defensive stances, or others that have their own risk versus reward trade-offs that had important strategic considerations.
Although Sekiro was the inspiration, the QTE and parry system as a whole, when used together, feels more like a rhythm game
When the flow of battle switches to defense, with the enemies attacking, there's also always opportunities to affect the battle to your advantage. This is where, surprisingly, Sandfall looked to From Software's Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice to bring a similar parry system to Expedition 33's combat. The vast majority of enemy attacks have specific timing windows during which, if the parry button is pressed, damage is completely nullified. The window is very tight, but even those who aren't able to react quickly naturally can build muscle memory through repetition and familiarity with the enemy's attack animations. Many attacks have multiple hits, often with staggered timing between them and this is where the extra challenge lies. However, when I was able to parry every part of a multi-stage attack I was able to escape without taking damage and, better still, riposte with my own attack to turn the tables. The final piece of the defensive puzzle is jumping-specific attacks that are telegraphed and can only be avoided by launching into the air. While airborne, a pull of the trigger will execute a mid-air counterattack--think of it as the game's Mikiri Counter; another Sekiro reference point.
Properly executing parries is incredibly satisfying, with crunchy sound effects and flashy visual effects synchronizing with each successful parry, further rewarded with an over-the-top counterattack. Although Sekiro was the inspiration, the QTE and parry system as a whole, when used together, feels more like a rhythm game. The mixture of inputs at specific timing and the feedback received tickled the same part of my brain that is activated by games like Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan, Taiko no Tatsujin, or even Beat Saber.
A safer defensive option, however, is the dodge. Hit a button as an enemy is attacking and the party member under siege hops backward to get out of the way, and can do so multiple times too. There is a standard dodge, which has a pretty generous timing window, and a perfect dodge, which is done at the very last split-second, it's timing matching that of the parry. With the right loadout, doing this can be rewarded with the AP points spent on actions.
For those that want or need it, lowering the difficulty option makes the timing windows for the follow-up inputs more generous and there's an accessibility option that will auto-complete all your offensive commands. Dodge and parries, however, are not automatically executed using this setting.
Alongside the Final Fantasy 10-like tracker of attack order, there was a wonderful synergy between defense and offense that leveraged timing-based inputs to make every interaction feel rewarding and useful. It also builds a palpable sense of momentum that can sometimes translate to a complete party wipe where no damage is inflicted on any of my crew. With all the metaphorical wheels turning, gears clicking, and pistons firing, the battles have the same thrilling energy as Persona 5 and its baton pass system. Expedition 33's combat is made of familiar mechanics, but they're synergized and layered on top of a classic system that really executes on the foundational decision of doing turn-based combat, but elevating it just a little more. At the risk of overselling it, when I reached a flow state, it had that intoxicating effect that had me seeking out more opportunities to fight enemies. And that is a good sign.
As a permanently From Software-pilled person, I am prone to looking at things through a Soulslike lens. That, it turns out, also goes for Sandfall and its approach to enemies. While the standard grunts can eventually be trivialized (provided you're on point with timing), the bosses are far more formidable--I died a whole bunch of times to a few of them and even opted to avoid one or two optional ones for fear of getting into a spiral of grudge matches. Difficulty isn't the only ingredient taken from the Souls games, as the team has also tried to make sure each boss is memorable both visually and mechanically. I fought nightmarish eldritch creatures that spat ink at me; a vicious French Mime that repeatedly kicked my ass until I decided to come back later for him; rotund sea-dwelling creatures that draw power from flowers; and many other weird monstrosities.
Each boss was a little puzzle that could be solved with the offensive and defensive tools at my disposal, but a few presented unexpected challenges. The ink-spitting giant, for example, was a bit of a tank but after a little experimentation I found a very effective combo of marking it, shocking it with lightning, and casting a defensive barrier to nullify any attacks I wasn't able to parry or dodge. I had it all worked out until it reached down and ate one of my party members, removing them; their tools; and their involvement in my strategy. This happened a second time until just Lune was left. With all items depleted, a sliver of health left, and not enough AP to really dent its lifebar, I turned on my Sekiro brain and decided to just focus on parrying to use the counterattack for big damage. Against all odds, I emerged victorious and I can't describe the elation I felt having locked in and avoided all damage from a barrage of attacks.
Again, tough bosses are a pillar of the JRPG experience--you can look to Final Fantasy's Emerald Weapon, Omega Weapon, Penance, and the like for that. Expedition 33 builds on that pillar with a greater focus on boss phases that switch up the flow of battle. It's boss fights, but just a little more.
In my discussions with Expedition 33's devs, one thing was mentioned repeatedly as the holy grail of JRPGs for the team that, sadly, has fallen out of favor: the world map. There's a big difference between an overworld that connects areas in modern open-world games and the classic world maps of JRPGs. Expedition 33 firmly aligns with the latter style, using an isometric viewpoint of a miniaturized world that a tiny version of your characters runs around in to travel to new areas or discover hidden ones. You can even set up camp and chat with party members, listen to music, or reflect on events. It's not quite as charming as summoning a Moogle that is somehow able to sprint over mountains to come and save the game for you, but it injects the same sense of a grand adventure.
There's so much more to Expedition 33 beyond its gameplay mechanics. It has a simple premise and great hook: a figure called the Paintress appears at certain points in the world of Lumiere and writes a number on a distant monolithic structure. This starts a countdown that, when it runs out, makes everyone of the age of the initial number cease to exist. As Expedition 33, you're tasked with finally stopping the Paintress and the cycle of death. Early in the journey, however, you encounter a mysterious antagonist that has aged, meaning he has somehow escaped certain doom to live a long life. There's a fascinating Belle Époque France meets post-apocalyptic world to discover, characters to meet; Nier Automata-inspired music to listen to, and more. Every part of Expedition 33 feels familiar, but they all come together to create an experience that feels fresh at the same time, kind of like how Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon once felt.
While borrowing design ideas and reinterpreting gameplay mechanics is something many are capable of doing successfully, being able to capture the vibe of a game that existed at a certain place and time is so unlikely that it verges on impossible. And yet, Expedition 33 looks to be doing that. But the game it could be isn't one trying to find itself; it's one that wants to show you what its genre has become. And that's potential worth keeping an eye on.
