Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Lead Calls Xbox 360 JRPG Lost Odyssey a “Cult Classic” and One of the Best Games of Its Kind

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The creative team behind Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has shown deep admiration for the underrated Xbox 360 JRPG Lost Odyssey, highlighting the impact it left on developers who appreciate classic turn-based role-playing games.

Guillaume Broche, the creative director of Sandfall Interactive, told Eurogamer that Lost Odyssey represents a rare achievement in design and storytelling. “For me, Lost Odyssey was the last grand turn-based RPG adventure with realistic graphics,” he said. “Its themes were very heavy and very well-handled — it’s the last game that made me cry.”

The game’s pedigree is notable: Hironobu Sakaguchi, the iconic creator of Final Fantasy, co-wrote Lost Odyssey with Kiyoshi Shigematsu and founded the studio Mistwalker after leaving Square Enix due to creative frustrations.

Despite its ambition — dealing with immortals, combining magic and technology, and crafting a fantasy world on the brink of war — Lost Odyssey struggled to reach a massive audience. By the time it released, action RPGs were gaining popularity, with games like Oblivion, Mass Effect, and BioShock shaping player expectations, and its Xbox 360 exclusivity limited access for the primarily PlayStation-oriented JRPG fanbase.

“It became a cult classic because few people played it, but the core audience who did love it,” Broche explained. “The critical reception at the time was very unfair in my opinion, as the game was criticized for being ‘old school’ during a period when anything that wasn’t open-world was labeled that way by western press.”

Broche praised the game’s structure and artistry: “Its linear structure, coupled with a world map, an amazing story, and fantastic music, made it one of the best games of its kind.”

While Lost Odyssey remains exclusive to the Xbox 360, fans and developers alike hope that future anniversaries might bring a re-release, giving a new audience the chance to experience a game that left a lasting mark on those who played it.

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