You’ve probably already heard the comparisons betweenClair Obscur: Expedition 33andPersona 5, so sit down, you’re about to hear more.
Persona has been a direct inspiration for the team at Sandfall Interactive’s debut game, and this is most evident in the combat. It doesn’t have the life-sim side of things, but with an incredibly stylish UI, flashy animations, and turn-based combat where you can whip out a gun and fire off some headshots, it’ll feel fresh and familiar in a brilliant way.
And while the music isn’t familiar, it’s a stand-out feature of Clair Obscur - though perhaps for fans of a different genre altogether.
The Phantom Thieves Of Mozarts
Ha. Get It? Mozarts? Like… Hearts? Moz- Never Mind.
As soon as you boot up Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 for the first time, you’ll be greeted by a soft and gentle piano tinkling away, followed by beautiful vocals that make it hard to select ‘New Game’ when you could just sit and listen to the music forever.
You’ll stop there for a moment, thinking you might have accidentally stepped into the Velvet Room, but no - this is just the French, classical music of Clair Obscur in all its glory. The game balances dark and light -a theme in keeping with its namesake- and this is evident in the styles. It’s a dark and gritty game,one that will leave you with a harrowing feeling at times, but so often soothes you with calming background music, invoking appreciation for the beauty in the fractured chaos that surrounds you at all times.
A bit too much of an artistic analysis? No. No, it’s not.
The game has strong elements in almost every aspect, so while the music isn’t carrying the whole experience by any means, it remains a heavy point of focus. The background music subtly enhances the tone and atmosphere when out exploring and during dramatic cutscenes.
Outside of beautiful ambience, the classical music makes its way into the battle themes as well; as soon as you instigate a battle, the instruments will kick in - it could be quite neutral, it could be sombre, or it could even be as jazzy as an underground bar on the streets of Paris. Yes, that is as great as it sounds.
It will adapt to the types of enemies, the environment or region, and the context of the battle, and will often mix classical instruments with more modern-sounding beats.
You’ll Never See It Coming
Though I’ve expressed multiple times that the music in Clair Obscur takes a deep root in a classical direction, it’s not purely tied to one style. As you explore the range of locations on the Continent, you’ll encounter drastically different regions and creatures, each of which informs the music in their own ways.
The game’s second main region is nautical in theme, and the music follows along - it sticks to the game’s classical style to a degree, so we don’t just end up with Super Mario 64’s water level score, but this means it remains just as soothing, while able to ramp up in battle in a whole new way. Techno-nautical-classical, anyone?
Technautical?
I could wax poetic on almost every aspect of this game, but the music deserves extra attention. It’s incredibly captivating and artistic, and it enriches the entire experience in a way that feels reminiscent of Persona 5’s iconic soundtrack. When there are comparisons between this game and Atlus’s own series, you might think it stops at the UI, but there’s so much more heart shared between the two.
