There is no denying that the painterly, storybook aesthetic of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is visually arresting. However, the game’s beauty may have worked too well in one instance, leading to a bizarre bureaucratic entanglement for a fan who attempted to import the game’s premium edition. According to a recent report, Iraqi customs officials detained the package under the suspicion that its included art book was a genuine archaeological artifact.
The Monolith Set of Expedition 33 is a high-end collector’s item featuring a steelbook case for Sandfall Interactive’s stylish RPG, a music box figurine, and a 48-page hardcover art book. While pre-orders for the set opened in mid-2025 and shipments finally commenced in January 2026, not every delivery reached its recipient without incident. Redditor Ahmed15252 shared evidence of a letter received from the Iraqi government, explaining that Customs had seized the materials for a specialized inspection.
“The parcel contained an art book with drawings of monetary value,” the official notice claims. The correspondence further details that the art book was referred to Iraq’s Ministry of Culture and Antiquities for a formal evaluation. Secondary documentation revealed that the modern gaming merchandise was even expedited to the Directorate of Investigation and Excavation to determine its historical authenticity. Here is the set in question for context:
“This can’t be for real,” Ahmed15252 posted, clearly stunned by the situation. “They’re acting like it’s the Mona Lisa or something,” they added in a follow-up comment, expressing confusion over how officials could mistake a mass-produced gaming journal for a relic of the ancient world. The full thread and the official government letters can be viewed in the Reddit embed below.
My expedition journal art book was detained by customs for being “possibly ancient”
by u/Ahmed15252 in expedition33
The irony of the situation lies in the fact that customs agents had to unbox the collector’s edition and bypass the modern branding on the steelbook and “Paintress” statue to reach the art book. Some have speculated that recent headlines regarding Sandfall Interactive—such as the studio being recognized by the French government—might have contributed to the overzealous scrutiny of the “Expedition Journal.”
While Sandfall Interactive has yet to issue a statement on the matter, Ahmed appears to be taking the ordeal in stride. Given that the book is quite obviously a contemporary publication rather than a thousand-year-old manuscript, the fan expects the package to be released eventually. After waiting nearly eight months for the pre-order to arrive, Ahmed summed up the experience with a touch of sarcasm: “10/10 experience, will definitely accidentally import history again.”
Source: Polygon
