Some gameplay footage from an early prototype version of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 from 2019 appeared online. Back then, the game was called We Lost, and it was supposed to be related to time. So, let’s take a closer look at it.
Guillaume Broche came up with the idea of Clair Obscur in 2019 while working on a Might and Magic game at Ubisoft. Guillaume believed that Ubisoft would never greenlight a game like Expedition 33, which is why he decided to quit the company. Tom Guillermin, the game’s director, also quit Ubi to join Broche’s new team. And then, the small team Broche created started exploring Unreal Engine 4.
Now, the gameplay footage from the early prototype version of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is really rough. The character models are nowhere close to the quality of those we got in the final game. There are also a lot of placeholder graphics. Plus, the environments look really rough.
From what I can see, the final game still kept the “close-to-the-character” camera viewpoint of the prototype. The team also decided from the get-go to create a turn-based RPG. However, the prototype did not have the QTE during the combat that the final game has. And this is perhaps one of the best ideas they came up with.
In a way, this “active” turn-based combat system reminded me of Super Mario RPG for SNES. In Super Mario RPG, you could hit your enemies harder if you pressed the attack button at the right moment. You could also minimize the damage you’d take by hitting the right button at the right time. Obviously, that system in Super Mario RPG was way simpler and not as complex as the one we have in Expedition 33. Still, this is the game that immediately came to my mind.
Anyway, I always enjoy watching prototype gameplay footage of games. So, make sure to watch the video if you are curious about it. The prototype gameplay footage appears early in the video.
Speaking of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, here are some mods for it. ClairObscurFix Mod is a must-have mod. At least in my opinion. This mod will remove the 30FPS cap from the in-game cut-scenes. Moreover, it will remove the sharpening filter that the devs have used. It will also skip intro logos, and it will reduce letterboxing/pillarboxing in cutscenes.
Then we have this mod that improves its Lumen/Ray Tracing effects. You should use this mod only if you own a high-end GPU. In my opinion, it’s not a must-have mod like the ClairObscurFix Mod.
Perhaps the most popular mod on NexusMods for Clair Obscur is the following one. This mod will make Dodge and Parry easier or harder. Some purists may not like it. However, if you had difficulty with the Parry system, you can use this to make it easier. Similarly, those who want some extra challenge can use it to make the game even harder.
Fans of NieR: Automata can also use this mod to replace Lune with 2B. This is a simple character swap mod.
Finally, you can download a DLSS 4 Frame Gen Mod. Sadly, though, this mod is put behind a Patreon wall. As of right now, I haven’t seen a free DLSS 4 Frame Gen Mod. So, that’s kind of a bummer. Let’s at least hope that the devs will add official support for Frame Gen via a future update.
Enjoy and stay tuned for more!
John is the founder and Editor in Chief at DSOGaming. He is a PC gaming fan and highly supports the modding and indie communities. Before creating DSOGaming, John worked on numerous gaming websites. While he is a die-hard PC gamer, his gaming roots can be found on consoles. John loved – and still does – the 16-bit consoles, and considers SNES to be one of the best consoles. Still, the PC platform won him over consoles. That was mainly due to 3DFX and its iconic dedicated 3D accelerator graphics card, Voodoo 2. John has also written a higher degree thesis on the “The Evolution of PC graphics cards.”
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