Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

Steam Reviews

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• Recommended Posted November 16, 2025 on Steam Clair Obscur feels like one of those games that shouldn’t exist, but somehow does because a bunch of passionate weirdos decided “yeah, why not?” The dev story alone is wild: A French dude who speedruns Sekiro gets tired of his job at Ubisoft and just… quits to make his dream game. He calls his old university buddy, who ends up becoming the lead tech. He finds a musician on SoundCloud who makes the entire OST. He finds a girl on Reddit who agrees to voice the demo for free and she eventually becomes the lead writer. Then they hire like thirty fresh grads who are all in over their heads but clearly giving it everything they’ve got. And member number thirty-three? A dog. Literally credited as the Happiness Manager in the end credits. And the crazy part is: the game actually turned out great. Stylish, unique, full of heart, exactly the kind of thing you get when people make something because they want to, not because some exec told them to. Clair Obscure is a win for gamers and a big, beautiful middle finger to AAA companies that fill their games with garbage and micro transactions.
• Recommended Posted August 24, 2025 on Steam [h2]For Those Who Come After[/h2] Games like Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 don’t really get made anymore. It feels like a one-time thing you wish you could play again for the first time. The game is full of passion and creativity. It’s one of those games that makes you remember why we play video games at all. This is the kind of game you’d pick up when gaming starts to feel boring, because it makes you fall in love with it again. The atmosphere, the story, the art direction, all of it just feels special. [hr][/hr] [h2]Gameplay[/h2] I had never played a turn-based game before this and I always thought they wouldn’t be fun. But this isn’t your typical turn-based combat. The dodge and parry are [b]real time[/b], just like in an action game. So when an enemy attacks, you can dodge or parry in the moment, and that makes it way more fun than I expected. The combat has a lot of depth. It’s simple enough to learn but it keeps you engaged all the way to the end. If you want to see what it looks like in action, just search on YouTube, but the important part is how satisfying it feels to actually play. [h2]Story[/h2] I don’t want to spoil the story because this is one of those games you should experience blind. The story is [b]excellent[/b]. Normally I care more about gameplay than story, but here both are equally strong. The prologue hooked me right away and made me realize this was going to be something special. Just when I thought the story might slow down, it pulled me back in again. [spoiler]Trust me, avoid spoilers online and just play it yourself.[/spoiler] [h2]Game Design[/h2] This game feels [i]hand crafted[/i]. Every area has its own look and personality, the enemies are well designed, and the skill tree is interesting. Nothing feels like filler or empty space. Everything has purpose and weight. You can tell the developers really cared about what they were making. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3540563384 https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3537537274 [h2]Sound Design[/h2] Sound design doesn’t always get the attention it deserves, but here it’s amazing. The music and sound effects are really good and they fit the atmosphere perfectly. No complaints in this part at all. [h2]My Only Complaint[/h2] The only issue I had was with exploring. The map is there, but it doesn’t really show you if you’ve already visited an area or if a new path is worth checking out. Sometimes it felt a bit confusing. Still, the atmosphere made it easy to ignore this problem in the long run. [h2]Conclusion[/h2] Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 is more than just a video game. It’s an [b]experience[/b]. The gameplay is fun, the story is powerful, and the design feels personal and unique. It’s the kind of game you’ll think about long after you finish it.. If you ever feel like games aren’t fun anymore, play this one. It might just remind you why you started playing in the first place.
• Recommended Posted October 18, 2025 on Steam One of the best movies I've seen, featuring probably the best soundtrack I've ever heard, yet it manages to unapologetically remind you that it's a video game in the most wild of ways. All wrapped within a resonating lesson on the nature of what it means to be alive. This was a unique experience that I don't anticipate being rivaled for a long time. Truly a game made by gamers for gamers. Thank you, Sandfall Interactive.
• Recommended Posted July 13, 2025 on Steam Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 might be the most beautiful game I have ever played, and it's one of those rare games that I would recommend to every single person I talk to (even if it isn't the type they normally play). I loved every second of it; the music, the art, the setting, the characters, the story-- it all raised the bar for my expectation of RPGs, and I worry it won't be met again for a long time. I laughed, I smiled, and I sobbed like a little baby when it came to its bittersweet conclusion. I have no witty jokes to make or clever things to say, I just needed to give this game the acknowledgement it deserves and hope that I can share it with as many people as will listen. It's not just game of the year, it is so much better than that.
• Recommended Posted January 1, 2026 on Steam After finishing the game, I used my free time to read a lot of positive and negative reviews. I saw a lot of negative comments, so I wanted to add my voice to balance that. I don’t write many reviews. I’m not a hardcore gamer. I’m just a casual player. I’m not a voice that matters. Just a casual player passing through. But I still wanted to leave a thank you. Thank you for sharing your creativity with me. At times it didn’t feel like a game at all... More like walking through an art gallery or an artist’s studio, it was incredible. If you let this game work on you, it takes you on a creative journey. The world feels like art. The atmosphere is strong. It entertained me... And it stayed in my head after playing. Big respect to the developers. Making games is hard. And to be honest: modern gamers can be exhausting. Some negative reviews are so abstract or angry that I don’t even understand their point. It feels like nothing is ever good enough anymore. Of course, not every style or genre is for everyone - that’s fair. But if you like artistic games, mood, and a unique experience, this is worth your time. Recommended.
• Recommended Posted November 19, 2025 on Steam I love this game! Unfortunately it does not do well on steam deck. If you have a good PC then great but I do not. I bought it on Xbox instead and am loving my time. I am just writing this in case you were wondering how it performed on steam deck. I tried tweaking settings for 30 min but couldn’t get it looking right. Otherwise highly recommend!! Update: I know it says verified on Steam Deck now and that there are those who have managed to get good results with Decky Loader and what not. I love this game so much that I will be purchasing it again on steam when it goes on sale again and will update my review if the game is playable. It is worth the multiple buys.