When fans started playing Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 on Steam Deck, many were disappointed in what they saw, feeling that Valve’s handheld was showing its age. Since this game was made for current-gen systems, it makes sense that the French RPG wouldn’t translate as well on the handheld.
Upon playing the game on Valve’s handheld, I’ve determined that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 runs fine on Steam Deck and PC players are just mean. Sure, this is the ugliest version of the game, and some parts look a bit blurry, but it’s far from unplayable.
Then again, this is coming from someone who’s played Switch games with uneven framerate, so maybe I’m the problem.
Starting this expedition on Deck is probably why fans start with a negative opinion. Parts of the city look blurry, plenty of pop in, and those grappling hook segments run badly. That is a bad first impression, so the Deck fails.
But that didn’t matter to me. I was too busy being awestruck by the game’s music, which can resonate with anyone. The opening prologue also does a great job of presenting this game’s world and unique premise. Voice acting is also superb, and it’s nice hearing Daredevil’s Charlie Cox talk in his more natural accent.
It also helps that the game starts to look and run much better once Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 officially begins. Players know that this is when we reach the island with our party. I’m happy everything here was pretty playable, with barely any frame drops. Sure, it still looks like a high-resolution game on low settings, but the strong art style should help anyone overcome any graphical flaws.
This is also where battles start becoming more of a regularity, and they are pretty great. Fans might have a harder time perfecting their moves at 30 FPS instead of 60 FPS, but it’s manageable. The combat will be incredibly satisfying once fans get the timing right and read their opponents regularly.
As far as modern games working on Steam Deck go, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is one of the better titles to play on this handheld. Granted, it might run better on an ROG Ally or Lenovo Legion Go, but it’s still a pretty good game. Compare this to something like Final Fantasy 16 or Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, and this expedition is starting to look pretty miraculous.
If you have any game system that can run Expedition 33, play it there. Whether it’s the old Steam Deck, PS5, or Xbox Series, this game is an absolute must-play for anyone.