{"id":257429,"date":"2024-08-28T13:51:02","date_gmt":"2024-08-28T13:51:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2024\/08\/28\/clair-obscur-expedition-33-a-detailed-breakdown-of-its-painterly-rpg-combat\/"},"modified":"2025-06-25T17:11:44","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T17:11:44","slug":"clair-obscur-expedition-33-a-detailed-breakdown-of-its-painterly-rpg-combat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/michigandigitalnews.com\/index.php\/2024\/08\/28\/clair-obscur-expedition-33-a-detailed-breakdown-of-its-painterly-rpg-combat\/","title":{"rendered":"Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – A Detailed Breakdown of its Painterly RPG Combat"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Clair Obscur: Expedition 33<\/em> <\/a><\/strong>was revealed for the first time at Xbox Games Showcase<\/a>, and wowed an unsuspecting audience with its mix of stunning visuals and RPG combat, set within a truly unique fantasy world inspired by the French Belle \u00c9poque. It\u2019s all the more impressive for being the debut game from Sandfall Interactive, telling the story of a world in which the ominous Paintress regularly condemns everyone of a set age to death \u2013 and the group of adventurers who set out to put an end to the cycle.<\/p>\n

That reveal was a tease for what\u2019s to come \u2013 and in a walkthrough at gamescom 2024, I got a far more in-depth look at the game. Watching a party helmed by\u00a0Gustave, a character we met in the reveal trailer, I saw two areas from the game: a fantastical underwater realm called Flying Waters (with gorgeous, shifting lighting and enormous coral reefs) and a glimpse of Ancient Sanctuary, covered in blood red vegetation and dotted with imposing structures on the horizon.<\/p>\n

But perhaps the most detailed part of the walkthrough focused on combat, a mixture of classic turn-based systems accented with real-time inputs. Clearly inspired by the Persona series, and with flashes of recent Final Fantasy titles, it\u2019s immediately striking in how it turns what could be familiar, simplistic systems into something deeply stylish and gratifyingly reactive.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a rundown of how it all works:<\/p>\n

Exploration and Pre-Battle<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Expedition<\/figure>\n

Areas in Expedition 33<\/em> are freely explorable \u2013 you control a single character (it\u2019s your choice who from your party that will be) as they navigate locations, finding treasures, secrets, and points of interest. Enemies roam these areas, and interacting with them kicks off an instance of battle \u2013 but you have the opportunity to strike them before they strike you, offering a turn advantage as the battle begins.<\/p>\n

Your Turn<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Expedition<\/figure>\n

When in a battle, you and your enemies\u2019 turn order is displayed prominently at all times, allowing you to prepare for battle accordingly. When one of your characters\u2019 turns arrives, you\u2019ll be presented with a slick menu, offering the ability to attack, use items, use skills, or enter a free-aim mode (more on that below).<\/p>\n

Your skills are the key point of difference between characters, offering special physical attacks, elemental abilities, stat buffs and debuffs, and more. Key to all your skills is timing \u2013 each attack comes with an onscreen prompt, asking you to hit a button at the correct time to make the skill more powerful or add additional beneficial effects.<\/p>\n

Each character also has a wholly unique ability that changes how they play. Gustave has a mechanical arm that is charged by other abilities, and does huge damage when unleashed. Lune can create \u201celemental stains\u201d that are created by casting spells and can be consumed to unleash extra effects, while Maelle can seemingly take up different swordfighting stances to allow for a range of different abilities and stat changes.<\/p>\n

Free-Aim Abilities<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Expedition<\/figure>\n

As mentioned above, you can start your turn with a free-aim ability that acts slightly differently to other options. Your character will use a pistol or magic, and you physically aim them at your enemies, adding extra damage. This can come with some added benefits \u2013 in the example I saw, an enemy called a Demineur was attached to a floating sea mine, which could be shot and detonated with Gustave\u2019s gun. This dealt damage to all the enemies, rather than just one, and made the evasive Demineur vulnerable to follow-up physical strikes.<\/p>\n

Enemy Turns<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Expedition<\/figure>\n

You can\u2019t take your eye off the ball during enemy turns, either. Expedition 33<\/em> has a neat risk-reward system for enemy attacks \u2013 many attacks can be dodged or parried with well-timed button presses, but which you choose can determine how well you succeed. A successful dodge has a longer input window, and will negate all damage you receive. Parries, however, are harder to pull off \u2013 but manage them successfully and you can perform massive counterattacks as well as avoiding the damage. Neither is designed to be easy to pull off, but there\u2019s a clear indication about how you should prioritize which to use during tougher bouts.<\/p>\n

Boss Battles<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Expedition<\/figure>\n

I only saw sections of a single boss battle \u2013 against a gigantic monster called Goblu \u2013 but it\u2019s clear that Expedition 33 <\/em>will add more to think about in its signature fights. Goblu can attack all your party members at once, making dodges and parries more important than ever \u2013 and of course comes with an enormous health bar that means your choices are more important than ever.<\/p>\n

Post-Battle<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Expedition<\/figure>\n

While I only saw a glimpse of its skill trees, Expedition 33<\/em>\u2019s battles end with the loot and XP rewards you\u2019d expect \u2013 as well as more in-depth stats like the highest damage you did, the number of successful parries and dodges, and more. You can even get a bonus for taking no damage at all within a fight, teasing the possibility of doing a challenging no-hit run of the game for die-hard players. How all of this ties into your party\u2019s progression is still a mystery, and I look forward to seeing more.<\/p>\n

Even in a short look at the game\u2019s combat, it\u2019s clear that Expedition 33<\/em>\u2019s combat is as flashy and in-depth as you\u2019d hope for from that first look \u2013 and a tease of the areas and enemies we\u2019re still yet to see promises that there\u2019s so much more to find out.<\/p>\n

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33<\/a><\/strong> comes to Xbox Series X|S in 2025, and you\u2019ll be able to play on day one with Game Pass.<\/em><\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\"Clair
\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Xbox\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33<\/h2>\n
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Kepler Interactive<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\u2606<\/span>\u2606<\/span>\u2606<\/span>\u2606<\/span>\u2606<\/span> \n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n


\n\t\t\t\u2605<\/span>\u2605<\/span>\u2605<\/span>\u2605<\/span>\u2605<\/span> \n\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\n\t\t\u201cYear by year, She erases us.\u201d
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\nOnce a year, the Paintress wakes and paints upon her monolith. Paints her cursed number. And everyone of that age turns to smoke and fades away. Year by year, that number ticks down and more of us are erased. Tomorrow she\u2019ll wake and paint \u201c33.\u201d And tomorrow we depart on our final mission \u2013 Destroy the Paintress, so she can never paint death again. We are Expedition 33.
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\nClair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a ground-breaking turn-based RPG with unique real-time mechanics, making battles more immersive and addictive than ever. Explore a fantasy world inspired by Belle \u00c9poque France in which you battle devastating enemies.
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\nReactive Turn-based Combat
\nIn this evolution of JRPGs, real-time actions enhance the heart of turn-based combat. Craft unique builds for your Expeditioners that fit your playstyle via gear, stats, skills, and character synergies. Open an active dimension in combat \u2013 dodge, parry, and counter in real time, chain combos by mastering attack rhythms, and target enemy weak points using a free aim system.
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\n\u201cTomorrow Comes\u201d
\nWith only one year left to live, join Gustave, Maelle, and their fellow Expeditioners as they embark upon a desperate quest to break the Paintress\u2019 cycle of death. Follow the trail of previous expeditions and discover their fate. Get to know the members of Expedition 33 as they learn to work together against impossible odds.
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\nA Hauntingly Beautiful World
\nExplore an enchanting realm populated by surreal adversaries. Wander through breathtaking landscapes, from the Island of Visages to the Forgotten Battlefield, discovering secrets and hidden quests along the way. Find allies of fortune in creatures of legend and recruit special companions, access new travel methods and discover secret areas in the World Map.
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\nExperience the debut game from Sandfall Interactive, fully realized in Unreal Engine 5 with stunning graphics and a heartbreaking soundtrack.\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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