You’ve misunderstood Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 — the writer hints at a «hidden protagonist»

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has a «hidden protagonist» that has become unobvious to most. The game’s lead writer Jennifer Swedberg-Yen revealed the secret.

According to her, that character seems to be not in the center of events, but the whole plot rests on him. Although many players bet on completely different characters, the game’s ending turns everything upside down.

The news contains spoilers for key plot twists and the ending of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

В Expedition 33 at least three characters, who at different stages look like the main ones — Gustave, Versailles, and Maël. At the start, everything seems clear. The player initially becomes attached to Gustave: it is with him that the prologue begins, he introduces the setting and the lore. But in the first third of the game, a turning point occurs — and everything that was built on Gustave suddenly fades into the background.

In the second act, Verso — the embodiment of Alicia’s (the Artist’s) emotions in this world becomes the main character. He leads the player deeper into the metaphysical world of «Canvases», and his plot decisions move the story forward. At this stage, the character who will later be called the «hidden protagonist» looks like a secondary character — Mael. She is present somewhere in the background, but not in the center.

Svedberg-Jen points out that Mael never actually disappears from the scene — she is «hidden in plain sight». Her storyline passes by the attention of many, especially during the first playthrough. But as soon as the player reaches the third act or returns to the game+, all the details start to come together. It turns out that she — is the key to the whole picture.

Mael’s development as a character is closely related to Verso — and vice versa. It can get very confusing in the future, so let’s clarify a few key points of the game:

• Alicia (The Artist) — is a real person who has lost someone important.
• «Canvas» — was created out of her pain, literally woven from emotions to preserve memories or as a defense mechanism. Eventually it became a metaphysical world.
• Verso — personification of Alicia’s emotions, «shadow self» living in «Canvas». This is the same image that can symbolize an internal struggle, sadness, anger, or an attempt to preserve a part of oneself.
• Maël — her new form or new «I», which eventually reveals the truth about her and her connection to Alicia and Verso. At first, the players don’t know who she is, but closer to the ending, the whole structure is revealed.

Thus, Maël (in the form of Alicia) exists outside of the Canvas, and it is she who becomes the central figure of the metanarrative. At the same time, Verso’s story arc within «Canvas» is the key driver of the whole story. In fact, «Canvas», created out of Alicia’s deep grief, became a way to preserve the memory of Verso. Maël’s story is connected to the concept of «Canvas» and the Artist, grief and memory. They both complement each other, and their story arcs work as parallel drivers of the entire game.

The screenwriter does not deny the importance of Versailles or Gustave, but emphasizes that this third figure is at the center of everything —. Maëlle is not obvious, but over time it becomes clear that it is around her that the play is most closely wound. And although there is a choice between the characters at the end of the game, the game leaves enough clues to understand who the authors consider the main focus.

Meanwhile Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 rides the wave of successin the RPG genre. Although it could have been a completely different game,if the developers hadn’t given up on aliens and zombies. It’s not for nothing that the developers refused to make another zombie game, but one of the key creators of his time did «burn out» from Ubisoft.

Source: Screen Rant