The one game that's getting the most attention in 2025 is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 from Sandfall Interactive. For role-playing game fans, it blends together many classic elements from iconic RPGs into a new adventure that feels top notch to play through. And while it definitely feels like a large portion of the gaming audience is overhyping Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 to an extreme degree, there's no denying that it's one of the biggest games of the year.

But the majority of what makes Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 so good isn't wholly original. The team at Sandfall Interactive were clearly inspired by multiple games that are viewed as classics in the RPG genre. That doesn't take away from what Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 does very well, but the games that had a big influence on it are part of what has led to it becoming a big success in the industry. If you liked Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, then here are a few RPG classics that you'll want to play that inspired it.

Final Fantasy X

Taking example from the greatest series

Taking one look at Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 will immediately draw comparisons to the Final Fantasy series from Square Enix. And that's because many of the developers who made the game have stated they were heavily influenced by the ongoing role-playing series. One of the games that feels like it's the closest to how Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 looks and feels to play is Final Fantasy X from 2001. Anyone who plays the game, either the original version on the PlayStation 2 or any of the remastered versions on newer hardware, can see how similar both games are.

For many fans of the series, Final Fantasy X was a turning point that ushered in the franchise into the modern era. It was the first in the series to include voice acting for cutscenes, had a more streamlined take on turn-based combat, and told a story with characters that became emblematic of the console generation. The way that you move and explore locations in Final Fantasy X is very similar to how its done in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, right down to the way players can enter locations through a world map and have linear areas to roam around.

The two games also have similar themes that focus on death and grief from varying perspectives, with Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 taking a much more blunt approach to it all. Characters in both games experience loss and have to deal with the fallout of it, while simultaneously dealing with the weight of the world, in a literal sense, that depends on the success of their quests. While both Final Fantasy X and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 have different approaches to combat and leveling characters, it's not hard to see where they both intertwine in their specific designs for being epic RPGs for players.

Persona 3

Building bonds between characters

Another classic role-playing series that has traces of influence on Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is the Persona series, and more specifically Persona 3. While people can say that any of the Shin Megami Tensei or Persona games influenced Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 in various ways, it's the third Persona title that feels like it has the most impact on it. Persona 3 was originally released in 2006 for the PlayStation 2, and has since had multiple re-releases over the years, with newer versions having more content and updating aspects of the experience.

What made this part of the Persona series stand out from the Shin Megami Tensei games was the focus on relationships between characters and how it influenced gameplay. While the story was deep and involved tons of characters battling a great threat, it was the smaller interactions and moments that players could spend time with various characters to deepen their relationship, and open up new gameplay options. While the series always had some form of this, it became very popular with the release of Persona 3 and its sequels, which capitalized more on building relationships between characters heavily.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has elements of this to a much smaller degree, with character interactions that can level up bonds and open up Gradient Attacks for combat. Persona 3, and its sequels, go much further with this approach by doing more than rewarding players with bonuses for combat. Certain side quests open up in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 when two characters have a strong relationship, which compliments the main storyline taking place. It doesn't go as deep as what the Persona series does, but there's definitely inspiration from it.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga

Reactionary tactics in battles

Turn-based battles in role-playing games have been around for a very long time, and reactionary tactics in combat have as well. The first turn-based RPG to allow players to react to enemy attacks by countering was Valkyrie Profile on the PlayStation in 1999. Characters could interrupt incoming attacks from enemies from doing massive damage with their own actions, shifting momentum in battles. Other role-playing games would take this concept and develop it even further, including the Mario & Luigi series from AlphaDream and Nintendo.

In Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, enemy attacks can be dodged or parried to prevent taking a big hit, which could also lead to a counterattack in some situations. This is almost exactly like the combat from the Mario & Luigi series, which began with the release of Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga in 2003. Enemies would attack Mario and Luigi during combat, which they could dodge with a jump or react in different ways to avoid damage or counter with their own attack. Although the execution of this is a lot more simple compared to how it's implemented in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the core concept of reactions in turn-based combat is fundamentally the same.

Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga wasn't the first Mario role-playing game, since Super Mario RPG was released for the Super Nintendo in 1996. But many of its turn-based mechanics are carried over into the Mario & Luigi games. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 gives players more options and opportunities during battles to capitalize on successful parries and dodges, including a jump mechanic against enemy attacks on the ground that can lead to damaging counterattacks.

Carrying on from the classics

Those who have been playing many RPGs over the years will see a lot of inspiration and similarities from classic releases in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. It takes example from some of the best games in the genre, and iterates on the foundation laid down by them to create something different for players today. It's something that has resonated with a lot of people and led to it becoming one of the biggest games of 2025. Those who really enjoyed playing through Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 will want to explore any of the games that clearly inspired it in big ways, especially if they love epic and adventurous RPGs that will take a while to complete.