174: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (with Michael Higham)

*Spoiler section includes some spoilers for key moments and/or themes in Nier Automata, Persona 5 Royal and Metaphor ReFantazio. Support my work on Patreon (https://patreon.com/realdavejackson) Join the Tales from the Backlog Discord server! (https://discord.gg/bptGyEWbk7) Buy me a coffee on Ko-fi (https://ko-fi.com/realdavejackson)! Once or twice a year, a game will hook me so strongly that not only can I not stop playing it, I can't stop thinking about it. If it's not the constant pull to get back on the sticks and play, it was the constant pull to think about the story. Sandfall Interactive caught lightning in a bottle with their debut game, and I couldn't wait to have this conversation and share it all with you. Guest info: Michael Higham * Read Michael's review of Expedition 33 https://www.ign.com/articles/clair-obscur-expedition-33-review * Follow Michael on BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/brazyazn.bsky.social TIMESTAMPS * 0:00 Title Card * 0:42 Intros * 6:25 Personal Histories with Expedition 33 * 9:31 Opening Thoughts about Expedition 33 * 13:12 Story Setup/Worldbuilding/A Strong Story Hook * 24:15 Cast of Characters * 31:29 Overview of Themes * 39:55 Comic Relief in a Bleak Story * 45:15 Music/Presentation * 1:03:02 Combat- Dodging and Parrying, Difficulty * 1:14:57 Combat- Offense and Character Building * 1:28:28 Closing Thoughts/Recommendations * 1:36:28 Michael's Work at IGN * 1:39:37 SPOILER WALL/Patron Thank-You's * 1:41:20 Spoiler Section- What's Happening? * 2:07:28 Spoiler Section- Endings and Interpretations * 2:39:13 Spoiler Section- Optional Bosses, More Thoughts, "For Those Who Come After" Music used in the episode: * Alicia (Lorien Testard, Alice Duport-Percier) * Lumière (Lorien Testard, Alice Duport-Percier) * Gustave (Lorien Testard) * World Map- In Lumière's Name (Lorien Testard) * Une vie à t'aimer (Lorien Testard, Alice Duport-Percier, Victor Borba) * Our Painted Family (Lorien Testard) * We Lost (Lorien Testard, Alice Duport-Percier, Victor Borba) * Verso (Music Box) (Lorien Testard) * Is It a Gestral or a Volleyball? (Lorien Testard) You can purchase the soundtrack here: https://lacedrecords.bandcamp.com/album/clair-obscur-expedition-33-original-soundtrack Social Media: BlueSky (https://bsky.app/profile/tftblpod.bsky.social) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/talesfromthebacklog/) Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures Listen to A Top 3 Podcast on Apple (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-top-3-podcast/id1555269504), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2euGp3pWi7Hy1c6fmY526O?si=0ebcb770618c460c) and other podcast platforms (atop3podcast.fireside.fm)!