Alongside plenty of other games revealed at the Xbox Showcase 2024, we got to take our first look at a new turn-based RPG coming in 2025, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. This will be developer Sandfall Interactive’s debut title, taking the stage with a mature narrative and absolutely stunning visuals backed by the powerhouse that is Unreal Engine 5. With inspirations from both action games and more classical JRPGs, this is certainly one that I’m going to be keeping an eye out for next year.
Join Gustave and his fellow Expeditioners as they journey against the Paintress in the trailer above, and read on below for more details:
Once a year, the Paintress wakes to paint a cursed number upon her monolith and everyone of that age instantly turns to smoke and fades away. Year by year, that number ticks down. Tomorrow she’ll wake and paint “33.” Join Gustave, and his fellow Expeditioners as they embark on a desperate quest to break the Paintress’ cycle of death once and for all. Retracing the steps of dozens of failed Expeditions before them, players will overcome powerful enemies and fight to save the future of their world. Set in a dreamlike world, the story unfolds as fantasy and art converge, backed by an enchanting soundtrack to create a breathtaking story unlike any other.
“We poured our hearts and souls into creating the game of our dreams, something that would feel fresh and new, so we sincerely hope you will enjoy discovering the world and characters we crafted with love,” said Guillaume Broche, Founder of Sandfall Interactive and Creative Director of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. “With an incredible and epic story, a unique reactive turn-based system, and a vast hand-crafted world to explore, we gave our all to make the journey in ‘Expedition 33’ one that you will never forget. We can’t wait to share more with you as we get closer to release!”
Powered by Unreal Engine 5, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, or ‘Expedition 33,’ is an innovative reactive turn-based RPG with immersive real-time offensive and defensive commands to enhance combat, making battles more engaging than ever. Players will master their offensive skills and magical abilities, dodge, parry and counter enemy assaults in real time, and target enemy weak points using a ranged free-aim system to overcome seemingly overwhelming odds. Furthermore, players will be able to customize each character’s unique stat growth, skill tree and gear alongside a wide range of learnable passive traits, offering endless opportunities to fine-tune their preferred strategies.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is available to wishlist now and will be available for Xbox Series X|S (available day one with Xbox Game Pass), PlayStation 5 and PC (via Steam and the Epic Games Store) in 2025. Fans curious to learn more about the gameplay, story and world of Expedition 33 can visit the game’s official website at www.Expedition33.com and sign up for the newsletter and receive new information and updates.
Corvo is a writer who loves to explore journalism through video games. Writing and editing reviews for triple-A games and indies alike, he finds his passion within expressing his experiences in a fair and accurate manner. Some of Corvo's favorite games are Destiny 2, Mass Effect, and Disco Elysium.
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