Highlights
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 offers a unique blend of real-time and turn-based RPG elements inspired by Belle Époque France.
- Sandfall Interactive’s new RPG features a story centered around stopping the Paintress, an entity that paints numbers leading to death.
- Expedition 33 stands out from similar games with experimental action elements drawn from titles like Final Fantasy 8 and Paper Mario.
2024 has been a fantastic year for RPG fans so far, and it seems like that trend is going to continue. Early games like Persona 3 Reload and Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth are currently set to be followed by Metaphor: ReFantazio and Avowed, with more RPGs stretching into the future. As of the Xbox Games Showcase 2024, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has joined their number, dated for 2025, alongside other notable RPGs like Fable. While several RPGs were expected to be at that conference, courtesy of Bethesda and Obsidian, it was a pleasant surprise when Expedition 33 revealed itself as a fresh addition to their number.
The main source of this surprise was the particular kind of RPG that Expedition 33 was aiming for, that being the turn-based RPG genre. Its developer, Sandfall Interactive, cited classic JRPG franchises like Final Fantasy and Persona among its inspirations for the upcoming title, and they shine through in its uniquely modernized approach to turn-based combat. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 will be a welcome addition to the ongoing surge of RPGs, even if it ends up stealing some thunder from another fantasy RPG on the way.
Related
Jaw-Dropping New RPG Confirmed for Xbox Game Pass in 2025
During Microsoft’s Xbox Games Showcase, Sandfall Interactive reveals an intriguing new RPG title called Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
AAA turn-based RPGs never left, but they’ve become a rarer sight as the cost of games has risen, and some old figureheads like Final Fantasy pivoted towards action instead. That makes Atlus sticking with them stand out, especially as they continue innovating on their Shin Megami Tensei and Persona series’. Now, however, Persona‘s main development team, Studio Zero, has decided to branch out into the first new IP it has made in a long time, which is Metaphor: ReFantazio. Due out in October 2024, this RPG is primed to make a name for itself even in a stacked year with multiple other SMT releases.
Metaphor: ReFantazio’s Fantasy Elements Were Built On The Backs of Giants
Couched in Persona‘s colorful anime art style, detailed menus, and stylish transitions, Metaphor: ReFantazio is a fantasy take on Persona that trades its familiar high school setting for a journey across a magical world. Managing time and investing it in relationships are still important, but now the context involves charting journeys through the countryside and gathering support for the ongoing contest to crown the next king. Even its battles have a mixture of familiar turn-based combat, with Archetypes replacing the traditional Personas, and real-time components preceding field fights. Metaphor already has a lot of people looking forward to it, though it’s not the only blockbuster game of its type anymore.
From an overhead view, Expedition 33 has a surprisingly large number of parallels to Metaphor: ReFantazio. Both are European fantasy-style games that take after prestigious turn-based JRPG traditions, despite being new properties themselves. They also both contain references to classical art, with Expedition 33 being based on the late 1800s/early 1900s Belle Epoque France like Lies of P, while Metaphor‘s bizarre “human” monsters recall the world of Hieronymus Bosch. Last but not least are both games mixtures of action and turn-based combat, though it’s here that Expedition 33 throws down the gauntlet.
How Expedition 33 Stands Out From Metaphor: ReFantazio
While Metaphor’s battles are an evolution of Persona’s, much like many of its other elements, Expedition 33 instead cherrypicks experimental action elements from games like Final Fantasy 8, Paper Mario, and The Legend of Dragoon to create an altogether unique experience. Players can do anything from rhythmically timing button inputs for increased damage, actively blocking or dodging enemy attacks, and even aiming their attacks at specific enemy weak points in each battle. With Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Metaphor: ReFantazio offering different takes on a familiar formula, it will be interesting to see which one comes out on top.
![Clair Obscur Expedition 33](https://static0.gamerantimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/clair-obscur-expedition-33.jpg)
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
- Developer(s)
- Sandfall Interactive
- Publisher(s)
- Kepler Interactive
- Genre(s)
- Action , Turn-Based RPG