Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

A well-deserved GOTY! What a game, my friends... this game is simply amazing from start to finish. I wasn't expecting much at first because before buying it, I found out that battles were turn-based, but I was surprised by how fun and addictive the combat actually is! Plus, you can build specific setups for each fight. The soundtrack that plays during battles and while exploring the environment is surrealy good (so much that I listen to it even when doing other stuff). The story is wonderful with an incredible plot twist, and the side quests are great with awesome boss fights. I got wrecked trying to beat certain bosses because I was leveling up my characters all wrong kkkkk. Overall, it was an awesome game from beginning to end! The character expressions in the cutscenes were perfect, and map exploration is simple yet really good. Truly an amazing game, a very well-deserved GOTY

Overall this is a great game, and if you can get it on sale it's definitely worth the money. At it's core this game is just like any other traditional RPG game with menu fighting. It's similar in that regard to games like Final Fantasy, or older games like Chrono Trigger. In the menu RPG category what this game does differently is add a lot of quick time events (QTE) and timed parry requirements to fights. A lot of people enjoy those menu fighting RPG games because of how relaxed they can be since they give you the ability to calmly fight and pay less attention to the screen. The QTE and parry requirements do make it so you are encouraged to stay focused and react quickly which can turn some people off. There is an easy mode where if you crank up your defense you can ignore a lot of things, but even on easy there are encounters and bosses you won't be able to do unless you can nail those timed parry events. The world and soundtrack are amazing. Many will find the story to be great, but others will find the story slowly gets worse over time and lackluster at the end. I found the story gave a lot of plot slowly in the beginning, then it was like all characters for the longest time refused to talk about anything story related with substance until it was nearly the end of the game. It dragged out the mystery so long that I personally lost interest, which made the ending a little more underwhelming. For me the best part of the game was the beginning, and then being allowed to explore such a beautiful world. I had fun taking my time exploring every area, killing every monster, and enjoying the beautiful sights. The people who made this game clearly did so with a passion. The soundtrack often matches perfectly with the vibe of the world. The character's facial expressions are animated wonderfully, and they are all impactful to have around. All my complaints are minor, and I still plan to go through the new game+ soon. Great game.

**No spoilers To preface: before playing this, I wasn’t big into the whole turn-based Final Fantasy style combat. I scoffed when it won Game of the Year. I bought it a while back after seeing the reviews, but it sat on my “I’ll play it if there’s really nothing else I feel like playing” list. I finally gave it a chance, and I’m so glad I did. This is easily one of my top 5 favorite games. To keep it short: the story and plot are excellent, no complaints. There are a TON of cutscenes, which was a plus for me. At times it felt almost like watching a movie. It’s easy to become emotionally attached to the characters, whose personalities are very likeable. The atmosphere is gorgeous and the music is beautiful. They go hand-in-hand with each other. Overall, it's an incredible game and it definitely deserved GotY.