Sandfall Interactive is doing something kinda risky. They’re making a high-fidelity, big-budget turn-based RPG at a time when most studios think "turn-based" is a dirty word that scares away the "mass market." But Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 isn't just another riff on Final Fantasy. It’s weird. It’s French. It’s hauntingly beautiful. Honestly, it looks like someone took a Renaissance painting, smashed it into a clockmaker's workshop, and told a group of doomed explorers to fix it before they die.
The premise is genuinely chilling. Every year, a being known as the Paintress wakes up. She paints a number on a monolithic scroll. Everyone of that age? They just turn to smoke. Vanish. Gone. The game starts when she’s about to paint "33," and our protagonists—the members of Expedition 33—are the ones tasked with trekking into her domain to kill her before she can finish the brushstroke.
It’s a suicide mission. Everyone knows it. This isn't a "save the world and go home for tea" kind of story; it’s a "we are the last ones left who can do this, so let’s make it count" vibe.
The Reactive Turn-Based Combat Most People Miss
When you see the trailer for Clair Obscure: Expedition 33, you might think it’s an action game. The animations are fluid, the camera is tight, and the impact feels heavy. But it’s turn-based.
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The magic sauce here is what Sandfall calls "reactive" combat. You aren't just clicking a menu and watching a bar fill up. When an enemy swings a giant, porcelain-looking blade at you, you have to time your parry or dodge in real-time. If you mess up the timing, you take full damage. If you nail it, you open them up for a counterattack.
It’s a lot like the system in Paper Mario or Sea of Stars, but scaled up to a massive, "pre-rendered" looking aesthetic. It keeps your hands busy. You can't just look at your phone while the enemy takes their turn. You're constantly engaged. It’s a smart way to bridge the gap for people who usually find turn-based games too slow, but it keeps the tactical depth of choosing specific skills and managing resources.
Aiming for Critical Points
There’s also a free-aim mechanic for certain ranged attacks. You can actually target specific weak points on these bizarre, surrealist monsters. If a boss has a glowing core or a fragile limb, you don't just "attack" it—you manually aim your shot to trigger a break state. This adds a layer of player skill that goes beyond just having better stats than the bad guy.
A World Built on Art History and Surrealism
The art style is where Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 really separates itself from the pack. The title itself—Clair Obscure—is the French term for Chiaroscuro, the painting technique focused on the dramatic contrast between light and dark. Think Rembrandt or Caravaggio.
The world feels like a fever dream. You’ll see giant, crumbling statues that look like they belong in the Louvre, but they’re overgrown with alien flora. One moment you're in a lush, underwater-looking forest, and the next you're in a desolate wasteland where the sky looks like oil on canvas.
The monsters aren't your typical dragons or goblins. They’re "Lumières"—twisted, artistic abominations that look like they were sculpted from marble and regret. There’s a specific enemy shown in the early footage that looks like a giant, multi-limbed creature covered in flowing fabric, moving with a grace that is deeply unsettling. It’s beautiful in a way that makes you feel like you shouldn't be looking at it.
Meet the Expedition Members
You aren't playing a nameless protagonist. You're controlling Gustave and his team.
- Gustave: He’s the leader, burdened by the fact that he knows exactly when his clock runs out. He’s voiced by Charlie Cox (yes, Daredevil himself), which gives the character a grounded, weary grit.
- Maelle: A nimble fighter who uses a rapier and seems to be the emotional core of the group. She’s voiced by Jennifer English, who fans will recognize as Shadowheart from Baldur’s Gate 3.
- Lune: The scholar/mage archetype who is obsessed with uncovering the Paintress's origins.
The voice cast is actually stacked. You’ve got Andy Serkis and Ben Starr (Clive from Final Fantasy XVI) in the mix too. Having that level of talent for a new IP from a relatively small studio is a huge signal that they are swinging for the fences with the narrative.
Why the "Expedition" Structure Matters
The game isn't an open world in the way Skyrim is. It’s a journey. You are moving forward, always toward the Paintress. This "Expedition" structure allows the developers to create highly curated, stunning environments without the "filler" that plagues many modern RPGs.
Each area is a bespoke challenge. You'll find "Remnant" echoes of previous expeditions—Expedition 32, 31, and so on. You see where they failed. You find their notes, their gear, and their corpses. It builds this incredible sense of mounting dread. You realize you aren't the first hero to try this; you're just the latest one.
The gear system is also surprisingly deep. You aren't just finding "Sword +1." You're finding "Gifts" and "Charms" that fundamentally change how your abilities interact. You can build Gustave to be a tank who counters every hit, or a glass cannon who relies entirely on the player's ability to dodge.
Addressing the Turn-Based Skepticism
There is a lot of chatter online about whether people actually want a high-fidelity turn-based game. After Baldur's Gate 3 exploded, that argument started to die down, but Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 is different. It’s not a top-down isometric game. It looks like an action-adventure game.
Some players worry that the "reactive" elements—the parrying and dodging—will make the game too hard for traditional RPG fans. Sandfall has been pretty clear that they want it to feel rewarding, not punishing. If you’re a strategy master, you can win through better builds. If you’re a mechanical god, you can win by never taking a hit. It’s about giving the player more agency during the "down moments" of a battle.
Honestly? It's refreshing. We have enough "souls-likes" and generic open-world shooters. Seeing a studio lean into the beauty of French art and the tactical crunch of a turn-based system is exactly what the mid-tier "AA" or "III" (Triple-I) gaming space needs.
Setting Expectations for the Launch
The game is built on Unreal Engine 5, and it shows. The lighting is incredible, especially how it plays off the different textures of the environments. But with great visuals comes the question of performance. We've seen a lot of UE5 games struggle on consoles lately.
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However, because it's turn-based, the game doesn't necessarily need the twitchy 120Hz response time of a competitive shooter. It just needs to be smooth. Sandfall seems focused on the atmosphere, and as long as the "reactive" window for parries is consistent, the frame rate shouldn't be a dealbreaker for most.
How to Prepare for Expedition 33
If you're looking to dive into this world when it drops, here is how you should approach it:
- Brush up on your timing: If you’ve played Lies of P or Sekiro, you’re already halfway there. The parry windows in Expedition 33 require that same kind of rhythmic focus.
- Pay attention to the lore: This isn't a game you should speedrun. The environmental storytelling is dense. Read the notes left by previous Expeditions. They often contain clues about boss weaknesses or hidden paths.
- Experiment with the "Gifts" system: Don't get stuck in one build. The game encourages you to swap out your passive buffs and active skills to match the biome you're currently exploring.
- Follow the developers on social media: Sandfall Interactive is being very transparent about their influences. Looking into the "Belle Époque" era of French history will give you a much deeper appreciation for the architectural and fashion choices in the game.
Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 is a gamble, but it's a beautiful one. It’s a game that respects the player's intelligence and their time, offering a dark, poetic journey that feels genuinely new in a sea of sequels and remakes. Whether it can stick the landing on its high-concept story remains to be seen, but the foundation is rock solid. Keep an eye on the numbers the Paintress paints; your time might be closer than you think.