Somebody call Guinness, but unironically – Sandfall Interactive’s Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 now has the most Game of the Year awards in the history of gaming. At 436 awards, it’s beaten the previous record-holder, FromSoftware’s Elden Ring, which collected 429 awards, per Resetera.
It’s hardly surprising since the critically-acclaimed role-playing game swept The Game Awards and Golden Joystick Awards while being nominated for eight categories in the Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. That’s not counting the myriad of publications and websites that awarded it the same (although our top honors went to Death Stranding 2: On the Beach). Or the fact that it was disqualified from the Indie Game Awards due to the usage of generative AI, which the studio later clarified.
Following the “Thank You” update, Sandfall Interactive is seemingly moving on from Clair Obscur to its next project. Nothing is set in stone, and while the studio is certainly feeling the pressure to deliver, it wants to focus on “what we think is cool,” per lead writer Jennifer Svedberg-Yen.
One thing that you can be sure of is that it won’t be bigger than Expedition 33. Creative director Guillaume Broche said it’s “good to have limitations” when being creative since “It’s the best way to be the best version of yourself.” Despite five million sales and counting, the team is also resisting the urge to scale up as Broche wants to focus on “making games” rather than managing.
It’s exciting to see Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 receiving such recognition! Winning multiple Game of the Year awards is a significant achievement and highlights the hard work of the developers. Looking forward to seeing how this game continues to evolve in the future!
Absolutely, it’s great to see new titles getting their due recognition! The unique art style and immersive storytelling in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 really set it apart, which might be a big factor in its success. It’ll be interesting to see how it influences future game design trends!