Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – A Stunning Debut By Sandfall Studio
Claire Obscur: Expedition 33, the debut title by Sandfall Interactive and published by Kepler Interactive has officially launched on PS5, Xbox, and PC. This turn-based RPG arrives with a distinct visual style, intriguing story, and gameplay that fuses traditional RPG systems with real-time mechanics.
Alongside the game’s launch Laced Records is releasing the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 original soundtrack on all major streaming platforms. The soundtrack comes with 154 tracks, over eight hours of music, composed by Lorien Testard and vocals by Alice Duport-Percier and guest vocals by Victor Borba and Ben Starr, who also lends his voice to the character Verso, among others, in the game.
“With only one year left to live, join Gustave, Maelle, and their fellow Expeditioners as they embark upon a desperate quest to break the Paintress’ cycle of death. Follow the trail of previous expeditions and discover their fate,” it says on Sandfall Interactive’s official website. “Get to know the members of Expedition 33 as they learn to work together against impossible odds.”
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A Dark World Where Art Decides Who Dies
The game is set in Lumière, a surreal world inspired by Belle Époque France. Each year, a mysterious figure known only as the Paintress awakens and paints a number onto a towering monolith. All people of that age disappear instantly in a cloud of petals and ash.
As the number approaches thirty-three, a group of survivors sets out to end the Paintress’s cycle once and for all.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 tells a story about mortality, sacrifice, and the influence of art on reality. The writing is character-driven, and the setting is densely layered with allegory and emotion. Players explore dreamlike cities, battle nightmarish creatures, and uncover the hidden truths of the world through dialogue, combat, and discovery.
Turn-based Combat With Real-time Tension
Combat in Expedition 33 is turn-based at its core but incorporates timing-based systems more often seen in action games like Dark Souls. Players must dodge, block, or parry incoming attacks in real-time during enemy turns, adding a layer of tension that rewards reflexes as well as strategy.
There’s also a free-aim system which allows for a more methodical approach. Some enemies will have vulnerable points that can be targeted directly for increased damage. This is another feature that shows that the developers took their time to come up with an expanded combat system that really fits with the game.
Character builds can be customized through skill trees, gear upgrades, and party synergies. This hybrid system gives the game both mechanical depth and accessibility, allowing for a wide range of playstyles.
Sandfall Interactive Pushed Unreal Engine 5 to New Levels
Sandfall Interactive was co-founded in 2021 by its CEO Guillaume Broche and its CTO Tom Guillermin, both former Ubisoft employees. Together they based their new studio in Montpellier, France, and grew it to roughly 30 developers who have pushed the Unreal Engine 5 to new levels.
The game showcases advanced lighting, details to the environment, and cinematic presentation that can only be described as stunning. Its environments resemble moving paintings, with a palette and architecture that echo Claude Monet, but in 4K resolution.
The studio has cited Final Fantasy, Persona, and Western narrative games as key inspirations. The design definitely reflects this mix, delivering an experience that feels familiar, yet fresh within the RPG genre.
An Impressive Cast And Original Score
Claire Obscure: Expedition 33 features performances from a cast that includes Andy Serkis, best known for his portrayal of Gollum in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, as Renoir and Charlie Cox, aka Matt Murdock/Daredevil in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as Gustave.
The characters are brought to life with fully voiced dialogue and facial animations that match the game’s theatrical tone. Testard’s soundtrack becomes a background character in the sense that it shifts mood and intensity with the environment and during battle.
Only hours after its official launch, critics were quick to sing Expedition 33’s praise for its worldbuilding, visuals, and combat, describing the game as a standout release in a year already filled with major titles like Avowed and Assassin’s Creed: Shadows.
