🔗 Share this article

An interesting tidbit: The name “Obscur” in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 alludes to the complex nature of the interface systems and gameplay loops.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 places you in the role of a team of glamorous spellcasters, spearheaded by the audacious British Daredevil, on a journey to reverse a universal phenomenon that halts the natural aging process. It blends turn-based RPG encounters with real-time parries drawn from action RPGs, all presented with a distinctive visual style.

It has proven to be the biggest releases of the year, having garnered a huge player base and won Game of the Year recognition. The game can feel somewhat dense at first, but after you grasp its systems, you’ll uncover a deep and captivating role-playing game that is quite unique from other games. Here are are 10 essential starting pointers for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

Change Team Members Frequently

In Expedition 33, allies who are active during a battle receive a sizable bonus to Experience Points relative to those in reserve. Furthermore, the story will periodically force you to field certain characters. The easiest approach to these challenges is to switch members often and aim to keep everyone at a similar strength.

The upside is that grinding is fairly fast. Battles provide a substantial amount of XP, often enough for a stat increase after just several. You can respawn an zone's monsters by taking a break at an expedition flag—these markers are scattered throughout each zone. If you need to accumulate XP fast, simply engage in combat near a flag, refresh, and continue the cycle.

Change Gear Often

The game features two main ways to grant bonus effects to your allies: Picto accessories and Lumina skills.

• Pictos are accessories that provide numerical bonuses and come with a unique passive skill. A character can wear a maximum of three Pictos. After being worn, winning four battles with a Picto unlocks its linked Lumina.
• Luminas aren’t physical items but essentially act as skill tree nodes. Every ally has a pool of LP (which grows via items). Every Lumina ability has a specific point cost. If a character has sufficient LP, you are not restricted can benefit from the identical ability, allowing you to stack key bonuses across your whole party.

The optimal tactic is to always one of your characters equips each fresh Picto you find and fights through the required fights to unlock its Lumina. This ensures the ability will be available for when needed.

If you don't have new Pictos to work on, simply use the Pictos with the best stats for your needs.

Perfect Guards Are Not Your Sole Defense

Expedition 33’s key feature is its fusion of RPG systems with twitch-based defenses. However, the parry window is notoriously tight on all difficulty levels. In place of frustrating yourself trying to master the timing, focus on evading.

Even though a successful parry refunds Action Points and causes massive extra damage, not blocking gives you nothing. Fortunately there are multiple Pictos and Luminas that restore Action Points on a perfect roll. If you can't get the block down, focus on those roll-centric options instead.

The Break Status Is Your Key Tactic

The Break status effect is a decisive condition that can turn the tide. As you attack a foe, a special bar fills up beneath their life bar. Upon maxing out, you can apply the Break status, which lowers their armor by a significant amount and prevents them from acting for their next action. It is the most impactful status effect in the game, but only specific abilities can apply it.

Build Characters Deliberately

You are able to re-spec attributes and skills using a limited consumable called a Recoat item. Given its scarcity, it's smart to plan your build prior to committing your attribute points. Try out a party member's role and chart a progression route in advance.

Don't Forget to Stop At the Save Flag

Using your tent at an save point refills the health of your all characters and replenishes all of your healing items, including HP restoratives and Revive Tints. Make it a habit to rest at every flag!

Checkpoints also act as the closest thing to quick traversal in the game. There is no traditional map, GPS, or objective markers. But, each flag has a designation. At a flag, you can view a list of every flag you've found in that area under a fast travel menu. It's a basic yet helpful way to track your progress.

Paint Cages Are Invariably Worth the Effort

Glowing chests are effectively puzzle caches that demand you to discover and activate three hidden locks in the surrounding area to opening them. The treasure inside is consistently high-tier, such as respec items or powerful weapons. The associated mechanisms aren't easy to spot, but they are typically within the same area. If you are stuck, try exploring thoroughly or scanning the environment vertically.

Go Ahead and, Fight the Shopkeeper

Every merchant has a one-of-a-kind piece of gear that doesn't appear in their standard shop. To unlock it, you must select a party member and defeat the merchant in a one-on-one fight. This is invariably a worthwhile endeavor, as these rewards are truly unique. The earliest vendor you meet, for instance, offers a Picto that causes the Defenseless debuff, which amplifies attacks against the target by a quarter.

Trust In the Autosave

There is no {manual saving