I’m not on Sandfall Interactive’s marketing team, but if I were, I never would have let them name their debut gameClair Obscur: Expedition 33. It’s a hard name to remember and an easy one to forget. It’s distinctly RPG-coded in a way that makes Expedition 33 sound like ‘just another one of those games’ when in reality, it’s anything but.
Despitecritical acclaimand launching on Game Pass, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is going to have to fight an uphill battle solely based on its unimpressive name. That’s a shame because it’s one of the most impressive games ever made by a new indie studio, and one that even turn-based RPG skeptics (myself included) would love. They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but in this case, you shouldn’t judge a game by its title.
What’s In A Name?
There are plenty of fantastic games with lousy titles, especially in the RPG genre.Metaphor: Refantaziowas a Game of the Year nominee at The Game Awards last year, and no one who has played it can tell you for certain what the title means (or how to pronounce it). Everyone likes to pick onKingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, but that’s probably not even Square Enix’s worst title.Triangle Strategy, anyone?
I’m not just picking on Japanese games. One of the most successful PC shooters of all time is calledPlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, which then was renamed PUBG: Battlegrounds. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds:Battlegrounds. What about Balatro, a title whicheven the developer doesn’t know how to pronounce?Immortal Fenyx Risingis a title so bad that it’s at least partially responsible for making a pretty decent open-world game bomb. I just don’t want the same thing to happen to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
A Pretentious Name For A Grounded Game
Before we move on, let’s break down the title. ‘Clair Obscur’ is the French translation for the Italian word chiaroscuro (I beg you stay with me), which is a term used in art to describe work that emphasizes contrast between light and dark. The term is often used to refer to the style of Noir films from the 1940s and ‘50s, but it has been used to describe art dating all the way back to the Renaissance and was later used to describe the work of Rembrandt and Caravaggio.
If you haven’t studied art history, you likely wouldn’t be familiar with the term. That doesn’t automatically make it a bad title, but it’s not a good start. It’s a French word meant to be pronounced with a French accent, which makes it sound awkward coming out of my ignorant American mouth. We’ll call that strike two.
The biggest problem with this title isn’t the actual words but the fact that it presupposes the entire franchise that could one day follow this initial entry, Expedition 33. It’s not a good idea to build the promise of a series into an untested IP, and we’ve seen enough flopped franchise-starters to know not to trust such things anyway. Kingdoms of Amalur, anyone?
We’re already at three strikes, but it has to be mentioned that Clair Obscur isn’t even necessarily an appropriate title for this fantasy universe. Belle Époque would have been a better title; it’s equally French, but at least it would accurately describe the turn-of-the-century period and style of the world. Clair Obscur, in the context of the game, can only be understood in terms of its connection to light and dark as thematic concepts, which is ultimately a pretty tired way to approach themes in a video game.
Expedition 33 Is Marginally Better On Its Own
Expedition 33 isn’t a great title either, and it’s easily confused with other games (33 Immortals, anyone?), but at least it’s an appropriate name for this game. Expedition 33 takes place in a world where a god-like being called the Paintress paints a number on her monolith that causes everyone who is that age to die. Every year, she paints a lower number, and every year, an expedition of trained fighters sacrifice themselves to try to stop her. The ritual started with a cataclysm called the Fracture 67 years ago, and as the Paintress changes the number to 33, the 33rd expedition to kill her takes off.
It’s a descriptive title, but not a very evocative one unless you’re already familiar with the premise (not as evocative as 33 Immortals anyway). If this series were to continue, you shouldn’t expect the next one to be Expedition 34, and in fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if Expedition 33 replaced Clair Obscur as the series title, a la Hellblade and Senua’s Saga.
I don’t necessarily have a better title in mind. I would be happier with Belle Époque or Age of Beauty, as I mentioned before, but that’s still not the kind of attention-grabbing name a game like this needs. The video game market has never been so saturated and competitive, so when launching a new IP from a brand new studio and a young publisher, you need to use every advantage you’re able to find.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a title that exudes confidence, but it doesn’t give people the right expectation for what to expect from this game. This game is a lightning bolt fired into the center of a rock golem to make it explode into rubble, while its title makes it sound like a class you slept through in college.
