Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a European love letter to Japanese J-RPGs

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 by French developer Sandfall Interactive is a well-written, story-driven game that will excite and entertain you. It is not a triple-A but neither is it an indie from a small development studio. It is a Japanese role-playing game at heart, which in its gameplay mechanics will remind you of Final Fantasy and Persona but with a treatment of characters and story with a depth that is finally European. It only takes a few hours to get into a story that is never dull, with twists and turns and an art direction not seen in a long time.

Set in a dark fantasy world inspired by the French Belle Époque, the game follows the adventures of Gustave, Maelle, Lune and other members of Expedition 33, who are on a mission to stop the Painter, a divine figure who annually erases people who reach a specific age from reality, in an event known as 'Gommage'.

It is not without flaws. A few oversights and technical errors. Clair Obscur is not necessarily challenging in the traditional sense of the word, but it can be punishing when you get a dodge wrong. It is a first work but precisely because it is a first work it is to be applauded. The team is made up of veterans and it shows.

It is not just a nice narrative game of the kind that video game journalists like so much. The combat system combining turn-based mechanics with real-time actions is a declaration of love for Japanese JRPGs. In fact, let's say the whole game is a homage to a genre. Forty hours flow by like a pleasure without too much repetition and with a plot full of twists and turns. Finally, a creative reboot and not the usual remake of things already seen. The game received wide critical acclaim, with high scores on platforms such as Metacritic and OpenCritic, and sold over a million copies in the first three days after launch.