Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is fuckin awesome

I know I’m not the first to tell you this, but I wanted to say it anyway: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is sick. I’ve been pretty busy lately, but I made sure to pick it up this past weekend for PS5 on the recommendation of a friend who sang its praises. I thought it looked great when it was revealed nearly a year ago, but I had some worries about the story. Well, I’m an idiot. The story starts throwing hefty punches right from the start, and after 20 minutes, I was hooked and couldn’t put it down. My partner was sitting next to me when I first started, and to annoyed by my “Woooooww’s” and “holy shit!’s” She wants to check it out on her own, but I made sure she stuck to those plans by reminding her every five minutes “No seriously you need to play this” .

Even though I’m still early on—I just finished Act I—I’m already feeling as though this may be a contender for some big awards later this year. I know it’s early. But so far, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has continued to fire on all cylinders through the entire first act. The world-building is insane, and it’s the first game in a while that has deeply pulled me into a world that feels incredibly unique in every way, similar and plausible enough with its storytelling to keep me immersed.

In the team’s debut game, Sandfall Interactive has thus far perfectly threaded the needle of mystery. The fantastical world progresses like the first season of Lost: each answer also poses two new questions, urging you to constantly push forward to see what more you can discover.

I’m a fan of turn-based RPGs, but I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. The real-time mechanics weaved in throughout make the combat fresh enough that I’d even recommend those who traditionally don’t like such turn-based systems to give it a whirl. Reaction-based contexts throughout both attacking and defending add a very rewarding element that makes the system much more palatable.

Hopefully, I find time to get through it soon, and I’ll put my words down into an actual review. But for now, I just wanted to share my experience so far. Through Act 1, Clair Obscura: Expedition 33 is a helluva game, and at a $49.99 price tag (and free on Xbox Game Pass and Game Pass for PC!) you should check it out for yourself!