Clair Obscur: Expedition 33: The Entire Story Explained in Chronological Order

We review the complete timeline point by point to understand its background.

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The story of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 isn’t told in a linear fashion during gameplay, and this has led many players to finish the game with significant doubts about what actually happened. Its universe, characters, and events are intentionally fragmented, forcing players to reconstruct the narrative from clues, dialogue, and late revelations.

To bring order to this chaos, we’re reviewing the complete chronology of events, from the origins of the Clair Obscur world to the final decisions that shape the destiny of its protagonists. Everything is explained step by step and in the real order of events.

The Complete Chronology of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

• Early 20th Century (Alternate Timeline)
  The world is dominated by artists who can bring their creations to life through magical powers. Painters, writers, and sculptors control entire realities through their art.

• December 33, 1905
  The war between guilds culminates in a fire set by the writers at the Dessendre house. Verso dies as a child, and his sister Alicia is severely disfigured.

• Escape into Painting
  Aline, the family’s mother and leader of the painters’ guild, takes refuge inside a painting created by Verso. There, she recreates her family and gives shape to the city of Lumiere, fueled by her chroma, her life energy.

• The Fracture
  Renoir, her husband, enters the painting to bring her back. The confrontation causes a cataclysm that creates the Monolith, where both become trapped. Aline transforms into the Pittrice and is revered as a goddess.

• The Gommage
  To weaken her, Renoir initiates an annual process of progressive extinction of humanity within the painting, starting with the oldest, Aline’s first creations.

• Distorted Time
  Inside the painting, years pass much faster. Each cycle is marked by a number painted on the Monolith, while in the real world, barely any time passes.

• Nevron and Axon
  Clea introduces the Nevron, creatures that absorb chroma by killing humans. Renoir creates the Axon, colossal versions molded from the family members.

• Verso’s Rebellion
  The adult Verso, aware of being only a fragment of the original, rebels against the illusion and helps the inhabitants of Lumiere organize expeditions to defeat the Pittrice. For 67 years, all of them fail.

• Alicia Enters the Painting
  In the 49th year of the Monolith, Alicia is reborn as Maelle and lives 16 years without remembering her past.

• Expedition 33
  In the 33rd year of the Monolith, the definitive expedition sets out. Maelle, Verso, and their companions reach Aline and defeat her… but Renoir responds with a final Gommage that extinguishes all life.

• Maelle’s Awakening
  She regains her identity as Alicia, awakens her powers, and revives the fallen explorers. Along with Verso, she defeats Renoir.

• The Final Decision
  The player must choose between destroying the painting to allow the family to overcome their grief or keeping the illusion of Lumiere alive, at the cost of repeating the cycle of madness.

This approach makes Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 a thematically dense work, where pain, denial, and art as a refuge are the true core of the conflict. Understanding its chronology not only clarifies the story but also gives new weight to each decision made during the adventure.