Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 devs discuss classic turn-based RPG inspiration and real-time mechanics
blog.playstation.comClair Obscur: Expedition 33 is an upcoming RPG and the first release from French development team Sandfall Interactive. The game’s unique design combines fantasy and the French historical period of Belle Epoque. Currently, the stylish game is slated for a 2025 release on PS5, check out the reveal trailer if you haven’t already.
To get a deeper dive into what’s going into this promising game, I spoke with Guillaume Broche, founder & creative director at Sandfall Interactive about the game’s unique approach to classic, turn-based RPG gameplay, classic inspirations, and even the unqiue game title itself.
One aspect of intrigue for the game is its title, so I asked Broche about the inspiration behind it.
“‘Clair Obscur’ refers to the real-world artistic and cultural movement in France in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries,” says Broche. “It influenced the game’s artistic direction, and also refers to the overarching world of the game.”
“Expedition 33 reflects the Expedition group led by the protagonist Gustave to destroy the Paintress,” says Broche. “The members of Expedition 33 are the protagonists of the game, and players will get to know each member of the Expedition in their journey. For years, the Paintress has painted a number on her monolith and erased everyone of that age in an event known as the Gommage, and each year a new Expedition ventures out to try to destroy her and stop the cursed cycle.”
Other characters, such as the mage Lune, the genial warrior Sciel, and the young explorer Maelle are also part of the team, and you’ll be learning a lot about them and their histories throughout the game.
In the reveal trailer we got a glimpse of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s eye-catching graphics. Broche explains that the graphics are one of the focal points for the developers.
“There hasn’t really been any attempt at making a turn-based RPG with high-fidelity graphics for a good while,” he says, “and that left a deep hole in my gamer heart. We took it upon
