Kepler Interactive and Sandfall Interactive’s ambitious turn-based RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which was unlucky enough to be released the same week as The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, has received its first reviews from Western critics.
Image source: Kepler Interactive
The aggregator site Metacritic has collected over 86 reviews of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 with an average rating of 92% (PC, PS5) to 95% (Xbox). The picture is similar on OpenCritic – 91% with 56 reviews (the game is recommended by 96% of critics).
The result makes Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 the highest-rated game of 2025 on Metacritic, alongside Dogubomb’s recently released strategy puzzler Blue Prince.
The synergy between the characters is highlighted by quality acting.
Reviewers raved about the game’s colorful fantasy world (inspired by the Belle Époque), colorful characters, emotionally charged story, dynamic and deep combat system, and epic soundtrack.
The project’s downsides included an overload of visual effects in battles, sometimes unintuitive level design, a not always user-friendly interface, and technical problems (bugs, lip synchronization with speech).
The mix of turn-based combat and real-time elements was not to everyone’s taste
Critics have concluded that Sandfall Interactive has produced an outstanding debut title that reimagines familiar elements from more established games and stands on par with its inspirations.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 will be released on April 24 on PC (Steam, EGS), PS5, Xbox Series X and S, as well as on Game Pass. The game risks being overshadowed by The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, which reminded Kepler of the situation around Barbenheimer.
