I knew Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was something special from the first moment I laid eyes on it. In a sea of Summer Game Fest trailers showcasing everything from Doom: The Dark Ages to that Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred trailer, it was, for me, the standout. Between its gorgeous world, stellar graphics, and intriguing plotline, Sandfall's debut has cemented itself as one of the greatest turn-based RPGs of all time, arriving to critical acclaim and even giving Bethesda's much-anticipated Oblivion Remastered a run for its money. It's all over my timeline, it's probably all over yours, and it's even attracted the attention of French President, Emmanuel Macron.
In our Clair Obscur Expedition 33 review, Josh says that it's "an essential turn-based RPG that is both a love letter to its inspirations and a potential vision of the genre's future" - something the world has been quick to agree with. Currently the highest-rated game of 2025, with the highest user score on Metacritic, Sandfall's debut has become the viral game of 2025, reminding me of the likes of Baldur's Gate 3 and Helldivers 2.
But Expedition 33 isn't just a hit with gamers. On Thursday May 2, French President Emmanuel Macron responded to one of Sandfall's Instagram posts, congratulating the team and commending their "creativity."
Sharing various in-game images, Sandfall writes "It's been seven days since we launched Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. What a pleasure it's been to see players from all over the world experiencing the game. We hope you've enjoyed spotting the nods to our home country throughout."
In response, Macron comments, "A million copies sold and, to date, one of the highest-rated games in history: yes, it's French! Bravo to Sandfall Interactive and all the creators of Expedition 33. You are a shining example of French audacity and creativity." Note that this has been machine translated.
This isn't Macron's first foray into the world of gaming, however. Once upon a time the French President had a Minecraft server - something I only discovered when researching for this article - and has previously congratulated those that were involved in the Z Event, a charity streaming event on Twitch. I'm not saying Macron is a gamer confirmed, but…
Expedition 33 is easily my Game of the Year pick, with Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 hopefully coming in as a close second. While I still love Baldur's Gate 3, Cyberpunk, and other colossal story games, Clair Obscur is the game you should be playing right now.
If you're already doing that, though, we have a list of the best Clair Obscur Expedition 33 builds for all characters, as well as a rundown of all the best Clair Obscur Expedition 33 attributes - The Continent is a scary place, so it's good to be prepared.
Now go see our best Minecraft server list, with Bedrock, Java, PVP, survival and more.