With the change in the Final Fantasy series from turn-based battles to real-time, a gap has arisen that a new role-playing game for PS5 now aims to close.
Which game are you talking about? This is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the first game from the Sandfall Interactive development studio. It is a role-playing game with turn-based combat, but with a modern twist.
In a new trailer, the developers have announced a release date for the game. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 will be released on April 24, 2025 for the following platforms:
You can see the trailer here:
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – JRPG with a French flair has a release date
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French fantasy with round-robin combat
What is the game about? The world of Expedition 33 is haunted by a mysterious and dangerous painter. Year after year, she paints a smaller and smaller number on her monoliths, after which everyone of that age crumbles into dust. Your task is to find the painter and stop her from ever painting another number on her cursed monolith again.
The setting is based on the French “Belle Époque”, while the developers were inspired by classic JRPGs such as the old Final Fantasy titles and the Persona series in terms of gameplay. You will also be accompanied on your journey by a cast of speakers featuring real stars, including Jennifer English (Shadowheart from Baldur’s Gate 3).
When it comes to gameplay, Expedition 33 takes a different path than the Final Fantasy series: While its newer offshoots focus on real-time action battles, developer Sandfall Interactive wants to revive the feeling of old JRPGs – exactly what you get with Final Fantasy could currently be missing.
Expedition 33 features a turn-based combat system enhanced with real-time action. You carry out parries, counterattacks and evasive maneuvers in real time, mastering certain attack rhythms enables powerful combos and firearms allow you to target your enemies’ weak points.
Is the roleplaying game too obscure?
How is the game currently being received? If you just look at the number of views on the trailers, there doesn’t seem to be much interest in the game. The new trailer has just under 100,000 views on PlayStation’s YouTube channel (as of January 24th, 3:17 p.m.), and things aren’t looking any better on other channels either.
If you take a look at the comments under the trailer, the anticipation for the game is already great: the great graphics, the strong voiceovers and the combat system are reason enough for many to try out the game on day 1.
Let’s just hope that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 doesn’t remain too, well, obscure. There were similar concerns about another promising role-playing game. You can find out more about this game here: The role-playing game Avowed could finally fill the gap left by Skyrim