Why Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Has Become My Most Anticipated Game Of 2025

As soon as it was revealed mid last year, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 shot onto my radar as a game to keep an eye on. Its unique premise, high fidelity visuals, steampunk aesthetic and an interesting looking turn-based combat system had me wanting to know a lot more about the game. Further details about the game have been quite scarce in the months following the initial reveal, outside of announcing the main casting, but thanks to the recent Xbox Developer Direct, we now know a lot more about the game, it’s characters, and world. It’s now not just on my radar as a game to keep an eye on. It has now become my most anticipated game of 2025.

For those that may not have seen the latest trailer yet, give it a quick watch below:

The latest trailer gave us a new look at Expedition 33 heading out on their journey and contains an overview of a lot of the game’s new components that were featured in more detail in the game overview portion of the Developer Direct.

We get to see more of the flashy combat system before getting to learn a little bit about the Gestrals and the new companions Monoco and Esquie that will join us on our journey. As with the reveal trailer, we see more of the game’s otherworldly art direction for its biomes, which give me an almost Alice in Wonderland vibe at times.

The thing in the trailer that really hooked me though, was when it showcased more of the characters. It’s clear that this game is going to feature a character driven story, with solid acting performances and also hints at some inner-party conflict that is going to bring a level of emotion to the story I wasn’t initially expecting it to have.

But Why Is It My Most Anticipated Game?

Well, that’s because of the load of information we got about the game, its initial concept, and how it’s progressing behind the scenes from the game overview portion of the Xbox Developer Direct.

As a lover of RPG games, I could see the passion these developers had for the genre but also how they’ve utilised their skill set to not only just replicate games they may be fans of, but to also innovate on those systems to make something that has it’s own identity and brings something fresh to the table.

The 3 core pillars that Clair Obscur was designed around are also the main things I look for when I want to immerse myself into a new RPG title too.

The team mentions the game has been designed with

A story with great emotional depth
Gameplay that innovates on classics and
A world that is completely original, beautiful and massive

I was already on board with my interest for this game, but hearing that this is the team’s core focus further ticked all the boxes for me.

The Story

For those that may not be aware of the game’s premise yet, it was summed up perfectly in the overview video by Jennifer Svedberg-Yen, the game’s lead writer, and it highlights the uniqueness of the plot.

“67 years ago, a massive slumbering paintress and a monolith appeared with no warning. Once a year the paintress wakes and paints a number on her monolith, everyone who is past that age is erased. Every year that number ticks down, and everyone dies younger and younger. Expeditions depart to kill the paintress, determined to fight until their final breath, but none have ever returned. This game’s story follows Expedition 33.”

The latest trailer hints at some inner-party conflict, but the team further expands on that, mentioning that Expedition 33 is not a story built upon the premise of good vs evil, and the conflicts between characters seem to arise from a position of deeply caring for one another and a clash forming when it comes to a difference of perspective on how to tackle their mission.

We’re told to expect a story that is dark and mature with characters that feel real, and that is something I’ve been wanting to see more of in the RPG genre. A story of loss and grief, dealing with the impending threat of the Paintress and trying to maintain and regain hope has me sold.

The Characters

We learn during the overview that each of the characters in the story will have their own personal motivations and reasons for joining the Expedition. Gustavo and Lune are apparently deeply invested in the mission, Sciel is hinted at having a dark past and may be carrying some trauma that we’ll learn more about in the game, and Maelle seems like a character whose ideals may clash with others as she wants to live a quality life, not necessarily a longer one.

We also get more information on some non-human characters that will be joining us on the journey.

There’s Monoco, a friendly yet bloodthirsty Gestral that has the ability to speak the language of humans and joins the expedition due to their love of battle, something that the Gestrals see as a form of meditation.

And then there’s Esquie, a large and powerful character that reminds me of Baymax from Big Hero Six, thanks to his balloon-like design and his playful mannerisms. We’re shown that Esquie acts as your mount in the game and lets you travel to new areas in the world. It’s also revealed that there’s an ongoing questline involving him where if you bring him back specific special stones, you can unlock new abilities for him that allow him to access new locations and secrets. Providing a new gameplay loop that directly ties into character progression and rewards for doing so.

The Turn Based Combat System

If you take a look back through my reviews, you’ll see I’m no stranger to games with turn based combat systems. I love them. I’ve reviewed all the modern Persona and Shin Megami Tensei titles and numerous Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest games. So any time I see a game coming that is implementing their own take on a turn based system, it certainly grabs my interest.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is taking what appears to be a traditional turn based battle system and is adding in real-time elements on enemy turns so that you have the ability to parry and dodge the attacks in real time, and if timed well, is able to negate or minimise the damage taken. I love the idea of this, as it should make the combat more dynamic and engaging while maintaining the strategic combat layer that you get in turn based systems.

The overview also mentions that this is a system that has been getting balance tweaks for some time and explains that for players that are not good at the real-time elements, there are still items that can be used in battle to help buff that gap and help you succeed in the combat overall.

The Customisation

Based on what was shown in the video, I’m really loving the level of customisation that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is offering. Each character is built to be unique and have their own special mechanic. We’re told that Maelle can switch between stances and can choose to boost defence or power, for example.

There are also hundreds of passive effects called Lumina that can be equipped to characters that provide additional boosts and perks. We got a quick glimpse at a number of these during the presentation that show the kinds of stat boosts we should expect from the Lumina system, such as the Effective Support Lumina that lets the character use an item for 2 less AP, or the Dodger Lumina which grants the character 1AP on a perfect dodge each turn.

Each character has more than 20 unlockable skills in their skill tree to unlock and pick from, as well as hundreds of Lumina available to allow you to tailor the character and party to play in a way that suits your playstyle. I love this is RPGs, not only because it lets me have my character build be completely different from someone else playing the same game, but it also means that my repeat playthroughs can play out completely differently thanks to the level of customisation.

The World and it’s Creatures

One of the most eye catching things about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is its art direction and world design. The colours used are vibrant and out of this world and bring an interesting and unique twist when juxtaposed with the high fidelity visuals of the character models.

Each level in the game is said to have its own visual identity. We get to see more of the Gestral’s village, which acts as a bit of a bazaar style town in this world. It’s built with a red, brown, and white colour palette with the rocky landscape offset by vibrant red foliage. We’ve also seen a glimpse in a couple of the trailers where the group is journeying through what appears to be an underwater zone, yet they are walking upright. This kind of unique curiosity about what is happening in this world is one of the key reasons I can’t wait to see more of this game’s worldbuilding.

Speaking of the world. The team have revealed that this game will include a fully navigate-able world map and showcased how that looks in-game. It reminds me of how the party would move from zone to zone in games like the original Final Fantasy 7 or Chrono Trigger for example, something that is rarely seen these days done in this way. For longer journeys, it appears the party will be able to utilise Esquie to travel large distances, and he’ll also be needed to uncover some of the game’s hidden areas and secret bosses.

As I touched on before, all of these features and their unique twist on some classic foundations are what has me incredibly keen to see more of what Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is able to deliver. It seems to be shaping up to be something that could be really special, and if you’re an RPG fan and it’s not already on your radar, it definitely should be.

And for those that love listening to soundtracks, Check out the official playlist below where Sandfall Interactive have released a new Gustavo Edition EP featuring some of the game’s original score.