Clear obscure: the controversial end of expedition 33 has been in my mind for a week, and I finally know why it bothers me so much
Clear obscure: the opening hours of the 33 expedition are rinsed by death. The protagonist of the act, Gustave, is presented by spending a last day with the love of his life before disintegrating with every two years from 34 years to light, all victims of the scrub. There is a note of hope – the shortest of things – when Gustave and Expedition 33 participated in their quest to prevent another scrub, but even it is torn off when, a few minutes later, they are killed en masse by an old man with a walking stick.
Vibrations, at this stage, are disastrous. It is a feat that Sandfall Interactive finds ways to withdraw from misery – but this is the case. The continent, although outdated by deadly nevons, offers glows of beauty and kindness. He is not lost on the survivors of the 33 expedition, who find time to make jokes and even appreciate their travels. A few hours before the first act, I stupidly thought that the trauma of Clair Obscur was loaded at the front and that we settled in a more conventionally fanciful adventure. I was, uh, very bad.
You can rarely predict so clear obscure: Expedition 33 arrives for a hug or a punch. The indie gem is constantly rushing between existential gloom and sweetness affirming life – or, to quote the good perennial boy of the game, “the” wheee “balances the” Whoooo “”. But it is not a gift and a socket.
Warning: Massive spoilers for the end of Clair Dark: Expedition 33 AHEAD
Wheee
Canvas score
Clear obscure: Expedition 33 review: “A JRPG from the old school as dynamic as persona but with battles filled with parry as hard won as Sekiro”
When the holder 33 expedition returns to light after defeating the bread, they only give them a few minutes to celebrate before the whole world – be included – is the victim of a last surprise scrub. It is a heartbreaking turn of the knife. But still, there is hope. A third whole act is in advance, and Maelle – which turns out to be the avatar of the real world – now has the power to resuscitate the dead. Based on everything that happened before that, it is sure to assume that we are at a low point – perhaps even the lowest – but the ups are waiting. If we can simply continue. If we can simply defeat Renoir, we will save the canvas and live happy forever. RIGHT?
Enter clear obscure: the deeply controversial end of the expedition 33. After defeating Renoir (who turns out to be nothing more than a woman who has pushed a breakdown), you are forced to destroy painting, forcing Alicia to get out of the web to face her sorrow, or will allow her to stay in happiness – even if it will ultimately kill her in the real world.
This is where things become messy. Until then, we have been led to believe that everyone in the web is a living and breathable person. That they are real. The back of the back, to destroy the canvas for the good of Alicia, seems selfish – especially because he wants to die. There is no suggestion that the inhabitants of the world are, for lack of a better word, NPCs. Likewise, Alicia’s argument – which she would prefer to live happily here rather than existing in a world that has been very cruel for her – seems right.
At least it was my logic. I supported Alicia while preserving the web – after all, this is what we spent the whole game trying to do – but if the vibrations were disastrous before, they are pure and simple rancid NOW. With the black and white fence kinematics (the universal filter of things is sad now), there is no doubt that the canvas, whatever it is, is now a disturbing imitation of life. The group and their loved ones gather to look back, its trapping that is too clear on their face, playing the opera. A perfect day – the one you feel has occurred before – with painted faces, all while Alicia dies in the real world.
The alternative, seeing the expedition 33 scrub, while the real Alicia and her family finally confront their sorrow, is positioned as the right end. I am still not fully sold. There is a disconnection between the rest of the game, which at no time suggests that the lives of the inhabitants in canvas is not theirs. At a more meta level, I do not think that Sandfall Interactive completely sells the idea that there is no common ground – a life where Alicia takes breaks of the web to return to the real world as she promises her father, which would avoid health problems linked to stay there for too long.
But if you interpret the painting of the family to be as an allegory of escape by the consumption of drugs, of course, Alicia will not think things through rationally – She does not try to. In addition, if we choose to help Alicia maintain the fantasy, who do we really make this decision? Alicia, who kills herself to avoid facing the benefits of the sorrow of her front family? Or, after spending more than 30 hours in the canvas and grew up to love his casting, ourselves?
I have thought about it since last week, and even if I was originally shouting how Sandfall Interactive executes the end of Clair Obscur, I could no longer imagine a more visceral way of putting us in the place of Alicia. In any artistic environment, it can be bitter and deeply sad to know that you will no longer feel something for the first time. It is difficult to leave something darling – whether it is a good book, rolling credits on a moving game or a loved one in the real world – is difficult. A painting, a game. What is the difference?
It took me 35 hours to discover Clear Obscur: the Overworld Card of expedition 33, but that only highlights my biggest problem with the dungeons of the game
