Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was a completely different game, and the characters had different roles that aren’t the same now.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has risen in the charts of popularity within a matter of weeks, and people can’t stop talking about it. However, what if I told you, the characters didn’t quite have the same roles are they do now? Surprising, right? But it’s true all the way.

While reading through the internet, I found myself coming across some really cool details that need to be shared. Did you know thought process for Sciel started out as her being a farmer? Yes, the badass Sciel with those Foretell cards. That’s absolutely diabolical!

Sciel was completely different during the early development state of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

She was good, but now she’s better! | Image Credit: Sandfall Interactive

Before diving into the deets, I’d like to state an interesting fact: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 wasn’t even supposed to be the original name. It was called “We Lost” and had a completely different setting. The gameplay idea was the same, but the narrative took place in a Steampunk world. As a matter of fact, character names like Lune, Maelle, and Verso still remain from that build.

So why isn’t Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 using the steampunk idea? Well, it was technically turned down by investors, which was revealed by Jennifer Svedberg-Yen. However, this isn’t the only time Svedberg-Yen has spilled the beans regarding the development phase.

If you don’t know much about Jennifer Svedberg-Yen, she is the lead writer of Expedition 33. During an interview with Polygon, the lead writer revealed some extra details that weren’t touched on before. Especially her involvement with a NASA simulation where she was an analog astronaut. How’s that relevant?

Due to her experience with the NASA simulation, she was able to gain some insightful knowledge about sending people on expeditions. It’s not always military folks who are going on a mission; rather, other roles are required, too. It involved people who have related skills that can help on the journey.

Our expedition wasn’t going to be all soldiers. There had to be people who had jobs and were transferring those skills into an expedition where it’s not just about killing things, but about understanding and figuring out who the Paintress is.

Which is why Gustave, the engineer, was born as a character, as he wasn’t there in the early build. Sciel was also added, but she was thought of as a farmer who’d take care of others. But, she was thought to be an archer too, who could help with the travels.

How did Sciel turn into a card maestra from being an archer?

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Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 doesn’t have a main character for the story. Through three parts, it’s about different characters. The ending, as well, is debatable for that reason. Which I personally loved as it breaks the main character trope in RPGs.

What’s great is I think they all share the spotlight and depending on who you identify with, that person’s story is the main character to you. I think it leaves something up for the players to interpret.

Jennifer Svedberg-Yen revealed that Sciel was “supposed to be an archer” for Expedition 33. She even had dialogues that referred to philosophies about archery; however, it was changed. Why is that? A cool archer was fine. Here’s where the CEO of Sandfall Interactive, Guillaume Broche, comes into play.

Since Sciel was supposed to be an archer, and talked about “seeing” things, the idea of Foretells came. That idea was morphed into a mechanic that we all know. This took time to polish, but it came out just fine.

Guillaume later took that and changed that into Foretells, he changed the mechanic. So there was a bit of back and forth with how things evolved.

The evolution from simple ideas to a big one, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, is surely a masterpiece. Sandfall, I thank you for not doing Sciel dirty. People may talk a lot about Lune and Maelle, but she’s easily the best that many don’t notice.

Who is your favorite character in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33? Would you have loved Sciel even if she were an archer? Tell us your opinions in the comments down below.