As the emotional credits rolled in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 after that grueling final boss battle, it did little to ease the trauma I’d endured from facing the game’s most bizarre and fascinating enemies: the Mimes.
Not only are they the strangest enemy type in the game, they’re also the funniest, and at times, the most terrifying. With Sandfall Interactive being a French studio, it’s not surprising they included one of their most iconic and cultural performers as tough enemies.
My first encounter with the Mimes happened during the game’s Prologue, you know, the part where everyone cried because it was depressing. Anyway, that first Mime encounter was weirdly incidental. I was simply exploring Lumiere, hunting for hidden items, spending what little I have left with my loved one. Then I found this oddball just standing there in a deep, dark alley. And then it started chasing me. I freaked out.
Then the accordion music kicked in, and a battle began. I wasn’t prepared for something so utterly absurd. I thought Clair Obscur was a serious game? But sure enough, as the Mime bolstered its tanky defenses with imaginary hammers and walls, Gustave tore them down with a single Overcharge.
After that fight, it was business as usual, until it wasn’t. I pressed on through what turned out to be an emotionally exhausting experience, and the Mimes just made things crazier.
As I ventured deeper into the Fractured Continent, I encountered tougher bosses than the Mimes, like those Chromatic aberrations, and the creepy Sprout in that cave full of crushing walls. But every now and then, a Mime would appear out of nowhere and give me a frightening jump scare.
Most of my encounters with the Mimes came from places I never imagined they would show up. One hid around a corner on the way to the second Axon, and it was a nightmarish moment as it suddenly began to chase me.
But the most terrifying Mime encounter? That came just before one of the game’s final levels. After a long grapple ride down into a vast, pitch-black underground expanse, I found a Mime, flanked by two endgame-level enemies. It was one of the most exhausting fights I had in the entire game.
“What was that all about?” I thought to myself afterward. It took nearly an hour to break through its defenses, not to mention dealing with the two other Clair Obscur horrors at its side. Not even Maelle’s overpowered kit could easily poke through their formidable shields. But after a few painful tries, I managed to win.
And what was my reward after all that? A silly little hairstyle cosmetic. That's so funny and meaningless, I can’t even complain.
The Mimes are definitely one of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s best running gags. Whimsical in their own surreal way, they frequently veer into borderline horror territory with how unnervingly placed they are throughout the game.
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