Claire Obscur: Expedition 33 is without a doubt the breakthrough of 2025, and it is hard to talk about the game in a spoiler-free manner. Still, here is our spoiler warning: we'll put a youtube trailer of the game, and after that comes a spoiler zone.

In a recent chat with the journalists, the creators of Expedition 33 opened up about a huge twist that takes place at the end of the game’s first act. At the start, players follow Gustave, who seems like the main character. But just a few hours in, something wild happens—he’s suddenly killed by a mysterious figure named Renoir. This moment totally shocked a lot of players.

Guillaume Broche, the game's director, explained that this dramatic twist wasn’t just for show. It was meant to match one of the game’s main themes: grief. The developers wanted players to feel the pain and sadness that the characters experience every year in the game’s world. Losing Gustave so early was supposed to make players feel that same emotional hit, like they lost someone important too.

Some fans thought this scene was similar to the famous death in Final Fantasy VII, but the developers say it wasn’t a planned reference. In fact, lead writer Jennifer Svedberg-Yén admitted she had never even played the classic JRPG. So the comparison turned out to be just a coincidence, even though Expedition 33 has Final Fantasy references.

Main image: steamcommunity.com

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