Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 review - a classic JRPG made in France

Metro

23-04-2025

One of the best Japanese role-players of recent years is actually French and it also has one of the most enjoyable battle systems the genre has ever seen.
When it comes to the term Japanese role-playing game (JRPG) we've always been of the opinion that it describes a subgenre of games, rather than being an indication of where a title was made. Not everyone agrees but it's undeniable that there are many games which, in terms of gameplay and structure, are functionally identical to Japanese-made titles, from obvious homages like Sea Of Stars to Ubisoft's South Park games.
In that sense, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is clearly a JRPG – in terms of the style of its exploration, its turn-based combat, and its general structure – except that it's been made by French indie studio Sandfall Interactive. Although, even more so than this week's Steel Seed, calling a game as ambitious and graphically resplendent as Clair Obscur an indie title does it a disservice.
The team has openly acknowledged their love for Final Fantasy 7 in particular, but the game goes well beyond mere homage to create something that not only feels unique but is one of the most thoughtful and enjoyable JRPGs of the modern era.
The story of Clair Obscur (the name is French for the Italian term chiaroscuro , which refers to strong contrasts between light and dark in a painting) involves a god-like being called the Paintress, who every year draws a number on a giant monolith and everyone above that age instantly gets snapped away like she was Thanos – except with showers of flower petals instead of ash.
Nobody knows her motivations, but the numbers are getting smaller each time and at the start of the game number 33 is about to be painted. Main player character, Gustave, is 33 but his former lover is 34. The plot may sound rather silly when you just read about it, but within the opening minutes the game's serious tone immediately draws you into the story.
It quickly becomes obvious that the set-up is a metaphor for the inevitability of loss in general and a meditation on the legacy we leave behind, in terms of both family and art. The survivors of the Paintress all live on an island that is a fractured version of Paris, complete with an unnaturally mangled Eiffel Tower and which, like Lies Of P before it, revels in its Belle Époque style architecture and fashion.
The thrust of the story involves the titular expedition across the sea, onto the mainland; one that has been attempted many times before by other groups, in an effort to find a way to stop the Paintress, but which has always ended in failure. This introduces another of the game's main themes, with the idea of building upon on the efforts and sacrifices of your predecessors.
This works on a meta level too, as the exploration is where the similarities to late 90s Japanese role-players is most evident. Exploring a map of the wider world with a giant-sized avatar of your party leader is like something right out of a mid-era Final Fantasy game, as are the various mini-game distractions and some of the wackier enemy designs.
Clair Obscur is purposefully whimsical at times but there's real depth to the role-playing systems, in terms of the complex skill trees and items called Pictos, which can buff your stats, change status effects, and more. Although the menu for organising them is a bit of a mess, which can also be true of some of the other interface elements.
The combat is turn-based but there's a strong action element inspired by Paper Mario and others, where you not only have to augment attack and defence with button presses at the right moment but also dodge, counter, and parry. Clair Obscur goes well beyond any other game with a similar system, with the different enemies and their tells and faints requiring serious action skills to deal with.
Dodging is relatively easy, no matter your skill level, but you don't get any bonuses for that and so it's best to try and counter if you can. However, more dangerous enemies have attacks that can't be parried, which becomes reminiscent of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, of all things. It's nowhere near that hard though and if you're struggling there are multiple difficulty levels and settings to adjust.
Each party member has very distinctive skills, from Gustave's self-explanatory Overcharge ability and Lune's elemental magic, to Maelle making use of different stances and one character that is basically a homage to Dante from Devil May Cry.
Each party member can team-up with each other in interesting ways too, creating long chains of attacks, which becomes vital in the many excellent boss battles. These are the very opposite of bullet sponges, as each has to be taken down in a very specific way, requiring multiple different tactics at different times – highlighting what is one of the most enjoyably versatile battle systems seen for a long time.
The bosses also look great, and while the technical aspects aren't quite as good as the art design (the facial animation can look a bit odd at times) it's a beautiful looking game that feels very French in terms of its influences and atmospheres, and therefore quite different to the role-playing norm.
The soundtrack is excellent too, and while the amount of accordion music borders on parody at times that is something the game is clearly doing on purpose. From the infeasible number of berets to one of the main characters wearing a black and white stripped shirt with a cravat, the game revels in its French-ness. It has a clear sense of humour about it though and in world where big budget games usually have their cultural identity shaved off before they even start that's very appealing.
We're not sure where Sandfall got the budget for all this, but the voice cast includes Charlie Cox (Marvel's Daredevil), Andy Serkis, and the increasingly ubiquitous Ben Starr. The high production levels are reflected in the price, which is well above the norm for an indie game, but we really hope that doesn't put anyone off. More Trending
The game can seem pretentious and melodramatic at times, but then it's always difficult to try and broach serious subject while also fighting monsters and trying to keep the mood at least relatively light. Given the slow-paced start to the game, we were worried it was going to be self-indulgent in terms of overlong cut scenes and endless exposition, but it's not.
The only real problems are the overly linear dungeons, that are still fun because of the combat but could have offered up some more interesting exploration. The dialogue is a bit awkward at times too, presumably because it's been translated from the original French, and the story can seem a bit contrived at times, in the efforts it goes to in order to hide what's going on, but these are minor issues.
The game is a brisk 30 or 40 hours, around half of what you'd expect from most JRPGs, but that's not because of a lack of content but a lack of filler, and the experience is all the better for it. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is easily one of the best JRPGs of the last decade, with a near perfect mix of old and new influences. It's beautiful, it's fun, and it has something to say. Plus, it's a new IP from an indie developer that has never made anything else before – and you can't ask for much more than that.
In Short: An extraordinary debut release from a French indie studio that has managed to make the best JRPG of recent years, with some of the best combat the genre has ever seen.
Pros: Fantastic combat system that blends multiple different influences to expert effect. Intriguing storytelling that explores real world subjects in a fantasy setting. Great art design and soundtrack.
Cons: Dungeons can be a little tedious and overly linear. Some of the dialogue is a bit awkward and there's a few minor menu issues.
Score: 9/10
Formats: PlayStation 5 (reviewed), Xbox Series X/S, and PCPrice: £44.99Publisher: Kepler InteractiveDeveloper: Sandfall InteractiveRelease Date: 24th April 2025
Age Rating: 18
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