Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (PS5) Review

It might be on-the-nose to say that a game which is so strongly focused on literal art has reminded me of the potential of video games as an artistic medium, but that’s exactly what Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has done.

The beauty of video games is their potential to bring every aspect of art—visual art, music, drama, writing—to bear through a technological medium, and give players the ability to interact with and control these experiences. And this debut title from France’s Sandfall Interactive excels in all of these departments, providing a feast for the eyes, ears, and soul alongside a stimulating gameplay experience.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a beautiful hybrid of several genres. At its heart, it is a turn-based RPG following strongly in Persona 5’s footsteps, but featuring prominent action-based prompts—Quick Time Event-like inputs to increase the power of certain attacks, or precise reactions to avoid being attacked in return. Exploration feels reminiscent of... Read more