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A fun fact: The name “Obscur” in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 alludes to the initially cryptic nature of the interface systems and systems.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 casts you as a band of social media mages, led by the bold British Daredevil, on a mission to combat a global affliction that prevents aging. It merges strategic role-playing battles with real-time parries inspired by Soulslike games, all wrapped in a unique visual style.

It has proven to be the major titles of the year, having garnered a huge player base and earned Game of the Year praise. The game can feel slightly intimidating in the beginning, but when it clicks, you’ll discover a deep and captivating role-playing game that is quite unique from contemporary titles. Here are are ten crucial beginner's tips for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

Swap Party Members Regularly

In Expedition 33, allies who are active during a encounter earn a hefty increase to XP relative to those not fighting. Additionally, the narrative will at times require you to field certain characters. The easiest solution to both issues is to switch members often and try to keep your roster at a similar level.

The upside is that farming experience is fairly fast. Encounters award a sizable amount of XP, frequently enough for a character progression after just several. You can reset an zone's monsters by stopping at an save point—these flags are scattered throughout each area. If you need to power level, simply battle monsters near a flag, refresh, and repeat.

Swap Gear Frequently

There are two main ways to grant bonus effects to your party members: Pictos and Lumina abilities.

• Pictos function as gear that give numerical bonuses and also feature a special ability. A character can slot a maximum of three Pictos. When equipped, winning four fights with a Picto will unlock its corresponding Lumina.
• Luminas aren’t physical items but can be thought of as skill tree nodes. Every ally has a number of Lumina Points (which grows via items). Every Lumina ability has a set cost. Provided that a character has sufficient LP, you are not restricted can equip the identical ability, allowing you to combine key bonuses across your full roster.

The most efficient approach is to always a party member has equipped any new accessory and fights through the required fights to reveal its Lumina. This ensures you gain access for later builds.

If you don't have fresh gear to work on, simply use the Pictos with the most beneficial attributes for your current build.

Blocking Is Not Your Only Option

Expedition 33’s key feature is its marriage of turn-based combat with action-oriented blocks. But, the timing for a perfect block is notoriously tight on every setting. Instead of frustrating yourself trying to master the timing, focus on rolling.

Although a well-timed block restores one AP and causes a huge damage spike, missing the timing gives you nothing. Luckily there are several gear and skills that restore Action Points on a well-timed evade. If you find parrying difficult, focus on those evasion-based abilities instead.

Breaking Enemies Is Your Greatest Advantage

Break is a decisive state that can turn the tide. As you attack a foe, a yellow gauge increases below their HP bar. Upon maxing out, you can stun the enemy, which lowers their damage resistance by a significant amount and prevents them from acting for their next action. It is the most impactful debuff in the game, but only certain attacks can trigger it.

Allocate Points Deliberately

You are able to re-spec stat points and abilities using a scarce resource called a Recoat item. Since they are uncommon, it's prudent to think ahead prior to spending your stat investments. Experiment with a character's playstyle and chart a build strategy beforehand.

Make Sure to Stop At the Checkpoint Flag

Using your tent at an expedition flag fully heals your whole team and refreshes all of your potions, including healing potions and Revive Tints. Make it a habit to use each flag you see!

Expedition flags also serve as the closest thing to navigation in the game. You won't find a mini-map, GPS, or quest indicators. Instead, each flag has a identifier. At a flag, you can see a menu of all discovered flags in that level under a teleport list. It's a simple but effective way to see how far you've come.

Paint Cages Are Consistently Worth the Effort

Glowing chests are basically locked treasure chests that demand you to find and hit three concealed seals in the immediate vicinity before claiming the prize. The contents is without fail high-tier, such as rare resources or strong equipment. The associated mechanisms aren't easy to spot, but they are usually within the same area. If you are missing a lock, try exploring thoroughly or looking up.

Absolutely, Battle the Vendor

Each shopkeeper has a secret, unique item that isn't listed in their standard shop. To get them to sell it, you must select a party member and beat them in combat in a one-on-one fight. This is invariably a worthwhile endeavor, as these pieces of gear are exceptionally powerful. The first merchant you meet, for instance, sells a Picto that applies the vulnerability status, which increases damage dealt against the target by a quarter.

Rely On the Auto-Save System

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