There are six playable characters inClair Obscur: Expedition 33, all of which are incredibly dynamic and offer their own set of unique mechanics for players to experiment with and enjoy. While every character is extremely powerful and effective in battle with the right setup, some characters are simply more fun to play than others, which likely explains why they are top picks for most people to include in their active party.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.I would argue thatevery character inClair Obscuris incredibly fun for different reasons, but looking at how each character’s mechanics, skills, and weapons come together in terms of overall player experience, I think some are slightly more fun than others. This is, of course, a completely subjective ranking, and I’m not basing this on how much more effective any character is in combat. Instead, the ranking is based on how much I’ve enjoyed experimenting with each character’s unique features overmany hours of gameplay.
6Gustave: A Great Character With Limited Features
Gustave Is My Favorite Character, But His Gameplay Is Limited By Nature
It pains me to putClair Obscur’sGustaveat the bottom of the rankings, as he is easily my favorite character in terms of narrative, story, and character development. Unfortunately, by design,he has a very limited skill set and very basic combat mechanicsbecause he is largely set up as an introduction to how the game works. Understandably, this was done intentionally by developers to ease players into gameplay and prime them for more complex systems when playing with the other characters in the game.
We don’t get enough time with Gustave, sadly, and his limited skills and features are a byproduct of him being “replaced” by Verso in Act 2. In terms of gameplay, his Overcharge mechanic is very straightforward, which is great for the early game experience, but looking at things on the whole,it’s not nearly as fun to use as the other characters' mechanics.Gustave also doesn’t get any weapon bonuses, which is a major reason he isn’t as interesting to design builds around as the other characters.
It’s a shame they didn’t add extra skills and/or weapon bonuses for Gustave in NG+.
By the time you enterNew Game Plus, there aren’t any more surprises coming your way, and the gameplay experience with Gustave feels a little flat. It’s a shame that Sandfall didn’t add extra skills and/or weapon bonuses for Gustave in NG+, which would have placed him at the top of my list instead of the bottom.I’d be ecstatic if they introduced additional skills and content for Gustavein future updates or DLC, even if it’s unlikely. I’d love to be able to fill out his entire skill tree and see weapon bonuses designed around Overcharge.
5Monoco: Tons Of Skills Can Be Overwhelming At Times
Monoco’s Mask Upgrades Are Too Random & He Has A Ton Of Skills To Choose From
Clair Obscur’s Monocois a tricky character to build around for a few different reasons, and while his gameplay can be fun, it can also be a bit frustrating at times. First, he has a ton of skills, which is both a good and bad thing. It’s good because itmakes up for a somewhat limited arsenal of weapons,and it gives you a range of options to choose from to design personalized builds.
You can unlock a majority of Monoco’s skills in the Endless Tower, with a few exceptions, such asGrosse Tete Whack, which can be acquired on the Continent orin Flying Manor.
On the other hand,having so many skills to choose from can be very overwhelming, and it isn’t always evident how well a skill will fit into the overall build. Further, acquiringall Monoco’s skillstakes a lot of work, and by the time you unlock most of them, you’re probably going to be well into the endgame and won’t have much use for them outside a handful of bosses.
Another aspect that makes Monoco less fun than the other characters is that pinning down a good and reliable rotation for his Mask mechanic is pretty complicated. Each skill will rotate his Mask wheel a set number of turns, and you’ll have to do a bit of math to ensure you’re landing on the preferred Mask to upgrade the corresponding skill, andthis might not even be possible with certain skill combinations.
4Verso: Reach Perfection With Some Incredible Weapons
WhileVerso’s Perfection systemisn’t very complicated, it is a lot of fun at the end of the day. Compared to other characters,I’d place his gameplay right in the middle of the road,with a straightforward system that is enhanced by a decent set of skills and an incredible arsenal of weapons to choose from. Verso and Gustave’s weapons overlap, but Verso actually benefits from the weapon bonuses from these, and these weapon effects are some of the most diverse and fun to experiment with in the game.
Verso is capable of game-breaking builds, such as theSeeramandEnd Bringercombo that allows him to basically perma-stun any boss in the game, including the mostdifficult “secret” boss, Simon. But that’s just the beginning of Verso’s diverse weapon options, and there is no shortage of interesting ways to build him out based on your individual playstyle. Verso’s weapon list includesSimoso, which makes him invincible if he maintains at least A-Rank, whileTiresois an incredible choice for a Mark build.
Verso has plenty of great skills to choose from as well,but they aren’t quite as exciting or interesting as other character skills. When all is said and done, Verso is extremely fun to play, but I’d argue that those who come after (sorry) are even more fun, which is why he sits comfortably in the middle.
3Maelle: A True Virtuose
Maelle Can Easily Deal The Most Damage In The Game
Maelle is a charactercapable of dealing billions in damage if you have her built out properly, and her skills, mechanics, and weapons are incredibly diverse and fun to experiment with. Dealing the most damage isn’t necessarily the most fun way to play, however, which is whyshe is only slightly outranked by a couple of characterson this list. The top three choices here are neck-and-neck, though, and I don’t really have anything negative to say about Maelle’s various features.
Her skill set is incredible, including the most powerful attack in the game,Stendahl, which is still game-breaking in my view evenafter it was nerfedin an early patch. The Battle Stance system, which includes Stanceless, Defensive, Offensive, and Virtuose stances, adds a not-overly-complex dynamic to her gameplay thatmakes each turn feel unique and important.She also has a range of excellent weapons, including the infamousMedalum, which starts her off in Virtuose Stance, though I’d argueLithum is her best weaponif you’re not into one-shot builds.
Maelle is also incredibly dynamic, and there are countless weapon and skill combinations to play around with, although most players probably end up sticking with some form of Medalum build. Maelle is easily the most popular character among players, and I might catch some grief for placing her at number three. However, I’d argue she isn’t being utilized for how much fun she is to play as much as she is for howshe can wipe the floor with pretty much every enemy.
2Sciel: The Twilight System Stands Out Among Combat Mechanics
Foretell Mechanics Are Dynamic & One Of A Kind
Sciel’s Foretell mechanicis one of my favorite systems in the game, only barely surpassed by Lune’s Stain system. Sciel also has an amazing set of weapon options that allow for diverse playstyles, and I would argue she’s the most underrated character inClair Obscurin terms of gameplay. This might have to do with the idea that the Foretell system is overly complicated, but it shouldn’t be dismissed based on that complexity. Once you get it down, it’seasily some of the most fun combat you’ll experience in the game.
One of myfavorite strategies for Scielutilizes theCorderonweapon, which will curse her at the beginning of the encounter but also give you an automatic damage bonus. The Corderon build is a perfect example of how unique her various weapon bonuses are. Sciel’s Sun, Moon, and Twilight mechanics and the overallForetell system add a level variety to each encounterthat’s hard to match. Add to this all of her ridiculously strong and interesting skills, and it makes for an overall great time.
Sciel’sEnd Sliceis capable of dealing some of the highest damage in the game and increases with each Foretell consumed.
I only have good things to say about Sciel in terms of gameplay, and if you haven’t figured out a fun way to play her, I strongly urge you totry out some different approaches outside of a straightforward support character.She’s capable of dealing equally devastating amounts of damage as Maelle or Verso with the right strategy, and I think the Foretell system is far more exciting in combat than the aforementioned characters.
1Lune: She’s Got Stains For Days
Lune Uses The Elements Better Than Anyone Else
It isn’t even up for debate in my mind thatLune is the most fun characterto play inClair Obscur,with the best arsenal of weapons, skills, and my favorite gameplay mechanic, her Stain system.Lune’s skills are incredibly fun to mess around withand especially entertaining to visualize in battle. She incorporates all the elements into her skill set, and her weapons allow for a wide variety of playstyles that are endlessly fun to experiment with.
One of my top weapons to build around for Lune is theScaverim, which can give youa 300% damage bonus on any skill if you get four active Dark stains.She also has an incredible weapon that allows her to freeze and avoid damage entirely,Snowim. Nearly all of her weapons can be incorporated into a unique and individualized build that suits your playstyle.
What makes Lune the most fun to play, however, is how the elements in her skills are interconnected and dependent on each other to find the best synergy. The Stain system is incredibly fun to strategize around and figure out which skills and/or Stains complement each other. On top of her dynamic list of weapons, this makes Lune my absolute favorite character to use during combat inClair Obscur: Expedition 33.
