Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 ≼| OT |≽ La Belle Fantaisie

I'm at the 2nd boss and this game really gives off the Soulsborne vibe. Plenty of unique, intimidating enemies off to the side waiting to beat your ass in. Thankfully they have a limited move set but on Expert there's not much leeway to make mistakes but it's satisfying to win.
 
The game feels very similar to Lies of P.

Obviously a different genre, but it is very, very well done whilst lacking that final element of polish (basically, budget).

And like Lies of P, it does certain things better than the games it has taken inspiration from.
 
So I got my fourth character and now I'm wondering who to prioritize Lumina for. Any suggestions? From using char #4 a bit I feel like their damage potential is quite high. Lune I think if you want high damage you really need to go lightning with her? But I'm not sure how to manage her AP and stains well yet.
 
I'm a bit disappointed that you can't take any photos on console, so I hope they plan on adding a photo mode in a future update. Or at least they should patch out the auto-pause that activates each time you press the capture/share button to take screenshots...
 
Excellent game, just got to the world map.
I've been playing in French but might switch to English, the subtitles are a little too small and sometimes hard to make out.
 
VeganElduderino said:
I heard even if someone like that doesn't like turn based rpg's will love this game anyways , is that true?
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Yeah. The combat really feels like sekiro mixed with persona.
You're not just sitting there waiting for animations to end, you gotta stay alert and react. Especially if you play on hard. It gets the blood pumping.
 
About three or four hours in. Genuinely fantastic stuff. Came for the setting and the story. Didn't expect the combat to slap so hard. Didn't understand the Sekiro comparisons initially, but once it heats up get ready to chain parry to victory!
 
Just finished playing the Prologue, and I'm loving it.

I like the creature design for the creature that's made up of hands in the cutscene.

For whatever reason, it got me thinking how The Order 1886 could be rebooted as a turn-based RPG in this style, where you're fighting against Gothic monsters.
 
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In the quiet hum of a late-night shift, my coworker and I took our first steps into what I can only describe as a landmark achievement in gaming. Within mere hours of playing on the PS5, it became resoundingly clear this could well be a new benchmark for the medium.

It has been many, many years since I have been so thoroughly captivated, if I am honest with myself not since the fateful day I imported Demon's Souls from the Asian market and found myself spellbound by its unknown brilliance. This game echoes that same feeling of discovery, but with a level of polish and vision that feels almost miraculous, something that was lacking in the early Fromsoft games. For them to get this so right on their first game is really quite impressive.

Every element encountered thus far exudes an artistry and craftsmanship that is, frankly, rare in today's landscape:
  • An utterly distinctive art style that breathes atmosphere into every corner of the world, as if the environment itself were a living, sighing character. Again it reminds me of Boletaria or even FF9 oddly.
  • Voice acting and presentation so impeccable that it dissolves the boundary between performer and player, immersion is easy.
  • A combat system that feels startlingly fresh—an elegant fusion of familiar mechanics, innovatively reimagined into something both intuitive and reactive. Going in I thought I would hate the QT overuse but it just works
  • Now for my fellow OST autists - a soundtrack of such haunting beauty and power that it stands proudly alongside the golden era of Final Fantasy—music that doesn't merely accompany the game, but elevates it into memorable set pieces
  • A narrative (so far) that flows with a rare momentum, paced with a precision that modern storytelling often sorely lacks in games nowadays. It feels so attuned

I cant afford to buy a copy for myself until payday since I bought Oblivion, the prospect of completing it with my coworker over the coming night shifts fills me with joy - we explored each fromsoftware game together af launch, and I much feel the same wonder as I did with those games.

top hat tip to the dev team, they are very deeply attuned to the magic of videogames tbh. I hope this sells like gangbusters so we get to see another legendary studio take full form... I actually cant fucking believe only 30 people pulled this off with a low end budget.. it is just unbelievable, how???
 
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Jesus almighty Christ THAT cut scene wtf!?

I take back what I said. Game is on track for being a 10/10 masterpiece.

I did not see that coming…
 
Open-world design has ruined so many RPGs and this game proves it.

Its refreshing how focused everything feels.

One thing that stands out to me is how dodging/parrying feels natural, its not too easy and not too hard. Its such a big part of the combat and important they got right, which they did.
 
kpopSuperstar said:
Open-world design has ruined so many RPGs and this game proves it.
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I don't fully agree with that. because I recently playing Xenoblade X and it was AMAZING.

Linear or open world if its done well then great and it's done poorly then it going to bad no matter what.
 
This was insane! I'm playing on hard and I went on a battle where my girl was 1 hp, so on my turn to attack all I did was heal her. Then enemies attack and I was for sure dead, but I parried for my life. I did it 3 times and kill them, that was so wild

 
I've been limited with my amout of playtime but this game is nailing everything for me.

World building
Atmosphere
Voice over
Music
Gameplay

Just gonna try and play it slow and enjoy it
 
I've never played a game like this before but I'm having a blast. I have no idea what I'm doing but I've been a few bosses. Is there anyway back to camp without leaving an area?

Also it says I can use this stuff I picked up to upgrade weapons to level 3 at camp. I'm at camp how do I do that? Ok I found the guy at the camp!
 
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The hype is real on this game. Amazing this was made by ex Ubisoft devs and a team of 30. The music, the voice acting and the art is beautiful and somber. It's the first adult RPG I've played that's not a persona game. It grabs you by the throat and makes you think and the interactions between characters feels real and organic. I'm only 5 hours in but wow. These guys have a promising future these are the next CDProjectRed.

I know this game is gonna affect me. Hell, it's already made me get weepy eyed. This is proof that bigger dev studios with insane budgets don't mean much when it comes to a small studio with a vision and passion kinda like the guys behind Baldurs gate 3. And to think this is on game pass day one is nuts!

I'm thrilled that Microsoft gave them that developer direct spotlight and support. I'm getting Nier Automata vibes. That kind of one of a kind experience that gets under your skin and sticks with you.
 
Nice intro. Is Gustave supposed to look like robert pattison. How much combat is there, that is my least favorite part
 
kikkis said:
Nice intro. Is Gustave supposed to look like robert pattison. How much combat is there, that is my least favorite part
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Buckle up. Game layers on elements for combat and each character has their own mechanics.

And there is a ton of combat and exploration.
 
VeganElduderino said:
I heard even if someone like that doesn't like turn based rpg's will love this game anyways , is that true?
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Maybe. I don't like them at all, only one's I've played recently are FFX and some of FF13.(all when they came out) JRPG is my least favorite genre, and I've been around since NES days.

That said I kind of like the game, the dodging/parrying makes it more action oriented. It is fun but still has turn based combat which isn't anything crazy. I turned on auto QTE cuz why not. Story is interesting and it's well acted, graphics are nice especially in cutscenes.

Maybe I missed it but I could use a reason why they're sending off expeditions. I guess I know? But why are they counting downwards? I'm like level 10 or 11 if that matters, have played a little bit but not a whole lot. I hope I didn't miss some important side dialogue.
 
drotahorror said:
Maybe I missed it but I could use a reason why they're sending off expeditions. I guess I know? But why are they counting downwards? I'm like level 10 or 11 if that matters, have played a little bit but not a whole lot. I hope I didn't miss some important side dialogue.
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?
This wasn't some side dialog it was pretty much the entire main opening segment.
 
Anyone else feel like Lune is irreplaceable as a party member? I'll never switch her out, favourite RPG mage since Lulu ❤️

LaiqpBA.png


Amd they have similar names too lol
 
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I'm not a fan of turn-based but if there is an easy mode or difficulty sliders, I've no shame in using them to try this game out. Is there an easy mode or difficulty sliders?
 
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I'm really finding the combat design fascinating, you can win very difficult fights 2 different ways, you can be a god at dodging and parrying and win with very suboptimal gears and builds, or you can suck at dodging and parrying (like me) but have really well built and geared characters. So it has something to offer to both people who like to min-max and people who are action gamers.
Also I love the fact you can be down to your last person standing with 1 HP, and still somehow come back to win the fight if you can win a series of parries, so the fight is never over.
 
Blank Space Invader said:
I'm not a fan of turn-based but if there is an easy mode or difficulty sliders, I've no shame in using them to try this game out. Is there an easy mode or difficulty sliders?
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Yep. Story mode and auto QTE. You can turn and change them any point in the game too.

Try on normal and scale down if you need to. The game auto saves very generously so you can generally die, and then walk 10 feet back to a boss or where you were before you died.

A lot of the games difficulty is just learning when to hit the parry or dodge button during fights. You learn the timing through a little trial and error, then you feel super rewarded as you wipe the floor with something counter everything it throws at you.
 
I just made it past the
the tournament and need to find esquie
game is really fun. Only had to grind a little for an optional boss called chromatic troubador (not a big spoiler) that would one shot me when I found him but got through it.

I cant stop thinking about this game. Easily my goty so far.
 
Blank Space Invader said:
I'm not a fan of turn-based but if there is an easy mode or difficulty sliders, I've no shame in using them to try this game out. Is there an easy mode or difficulty sliders?
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There is but I'd recommend giving it a fair shot before you do that. This is probably the most accessible and engaging turn based RPG I've ever played. It's so fun. The real time aspect to the combat where your learning attack patterns to parry and dodge attacks makes this really engaging, it demands your attention as opposed to just giving commands. The QTEs are endless, but I treat them as mini games because the timings are always different depending on the skill.

Then figuring out the most optimal combinations of Pictos to use within the party for max damage output is oddly addictive, I just want to keep engaging in battles.

Just try to learn and understand it, give it an hour or two of real effort and it will pay off. If it doesn't, no worries, you can ease the process to enjoy other aspects of the game.
 
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